OLD BIKES BLITZ DESERT
Classic scramblers can join an incredible adventure in the African desert
As a teenager I longed to ride in the desert,” says Karles Vives, organiser of Scram Africa’s trips for scramblers. “I watched the Paris-Dakar Rally every year and just wanted to be out there riding with them, so when I finished my BMW build I thought a good way to test all my work on the bike was to ride through the amazing trails and dunes of the African desert.” While he was out in Africa he met Pep from SoloRaids, a company specialising in organised African travels. “I realised it would be a lot of fun to run a desert tour for bikes like mine and Pep was the perfect partner to deal with the logistics of such a trip.” A typical Scram Africa itinerary is 10 days and about 1400 miles. It starts in Barcelona and heads across into Morocco and then takes in Tangier to Chaouen, Taza, Rekkam, Merzouga, Marabut, Mhamid, Foum Zdig, Dades,
‘Some of the bikes are old and heavy’
Midelt and back to Tangier. “We have 20-25 riders on a tour – from Spain, France, Italy, UK, Norway, Belgium, Australia, etc. The trip is designed for people with their own customised bikes like our Fuel R100 and neoclassic scramblers such as the Triumph or Ducati. “The most difficult part is usually the desert stages due to the sand. Some of these bikes are old and heavy, so any difficulty with terrain is doubled compared to doing the trip on modern, lightweight motorcycles. Besides that, the stages are long and fatigue quickly accumulates. Scram Africa is for experienced, adventurous bikers who enjoy the kind of challenge of riding the African desert as it was 30 or 40 years ago.” Of course the trips are not without incident – as one might expect with such a challenging route on machines that are not entirely designed for the tough terrain and long days! “We’ve had mechanical problems, such as as oil leaks, broken foot pegs, battery problems, punctures, broken sub-frames. I think the best thing about the trip is the solidarity and friendship that strengthens between the riders during the trip. The personal challenge to overcome problems and the satisfaction of riding in harsh terrain makes for a very special spirit of adventure.”