The following is an article (Published in 'The BMW Journal '- July 2007) written by Alan Taylor, one of the founding members of the BMW Club UK. Alan participated in our Morocco Atlas Mountains Raid October 2006 trip.

ROUGHTY, TOUGHTY BIKERS TRIP TO MOROCCO

The Plan

Having purchased a new GS last year and in the past having done a fair amount of European touring it seemed appropriate to look for something slightly more adventurous. The nearest route out of European leads you to Morocco with a 600 mile ride across Spain with the assistance of Brittany Ferries from Plymouth to Santander, so Morocco it was.

Looking at the options of either World of BMW or Wildcat Adventures, both seemed to offer similar tours running at the same time. However, having met with John Fulton and Brigitte Lucas from Wildcat Adventures at a Southern Section meeting earlier in the year, they certainly looked the team to go with. John has over 24 Years' experience in adventure tours in Morocco and has a good support team based in Marrakech. Also comparing the options it looked as if Wildcat offered more time in Morocco with more miles (the whole purpose of going) at roughly the same cost. As it turned out John is a very nice bloke, ably assisted by Brigitte who was there to nanny us in our hour of need.

The route therefore took us from Plymouth across the Bay of Biscay to Santander with a two day ride across Spain before the rigours of Tangiers customs before setting off south. John had chosen a spectacular route across northern Morocco, through the middle Atlas Mountains, across the High Atlas and down to the Sahara before turning west along the high desert plain and Draa Valley. A rest day in Marrakech allowed for the usual touristy things before the hardest day of the trip a 260-mile ride across the Tizi 'nTest. and Anti Atlas Mountains, eventually turning north up the Atlantic coast before returning back to Spain. A total of just over 3000 miles.

The Bikes

We started with 9 bikes on the trip, 5 1200 GSs all standard save for the endless added bolt-ons, which was subject to much bike park comparisons and Bar time discussions. Two 1150 GSs, one standard and one converted to look rather like a Gold Wing with raised bars, two mirrors to each handle bar (rather looked like the rider was permanently waving both hands) and tons of extras, including would you believe it, four horns. You might ask why!

John Fulton rode a new Adventurer with Brigitte as pillion and there was one other Adventurer, also making up the fleet was a lonely Tiger in bright green. All the bikes survived except the rather nice 1150 which crashed out (more later). There were some problems such as a flying top box (again more later) and one 1200 showing brake failure which switched off the servo so Andy had to ride 50 miles on mountain roads, as he said "like the old times". No-one was too keen to have him behind so we all held back expecting to pull him out of the hedge at some point. Fortunately, after a while the fault corrected itself and there was no reoccurrence. However, this is not the first time this has been reported; perhaps it is something that is due for a recall. My bike had an intermittent problem with it dropping out of 4th gear on the over run and once ground to a halt with what felt like fuel starvation, but perhaps may have been local dodgy fuel. The Tiger which ran faultlessly carried on its number plate the slogan "It's a big bugger isn't it?" and it didn't only apply to the bike! Stewart, the owner was certain that his bike would be air-brushed out of the photos but I told him that the BMW Club had broad shoulders so hopefully the Editor will allow him to be represented!

The Gear

A bit more thought needs to go into gear selection on a trip of this distance and as we were riding from the UK in October to the Sahara with temperatures up to 35°C you need to get the kit right. Having determined that I would go as "BMW man" my Santiago suit did the job well both with its lining in the wet and windy weather to Plymouth and then with that removed all the vents open for the Moroccan heat. Having broken a bone in my lower leg on the BMW off-road course in April, a new pair of Santiago boots was a minimum requirement for any big trail bike. The only error in my kit was not to go with an enduro-style peaked helmet to provide some shade in bright sunlight in view of the upright riding position. My full face helmet also suffered a fall off the bike before we got going so I had to ride with a scratched visor; perhaps it would be wise next time to take a spare. My first problem occurred before I left home, having packed the bike the night before for the ride to Plymouth with an early start I had secured a bag to the pillion seat as I was planning to stop off in Portugal to drop some gear off, I found that I was rather stuck in getting my leg over; this I claimed was the result of my injury earlier in the year but having struggled on to the bike and riding down the road from home the words "fat and old" were still ringing in my ears from my wife's fond farewell! The quickest solution was to mount the bike having erected it on its main stand and then rocket off but a near catastrophe in the Exeter service station, whilst practising in private, meant that some re-packing was required.

On the trip there was only one terminal gear failure, that of the top box. Gary, a Geordie copper and a spirited rider, having lost the pack returned down the road to find out what had gone wrong. On his return he was concerned to find a fellow biker picking up the remains of luggage spread over the hill. He was more surprised to find that it was his, his top box having detached itself when hitting a bump at about 50mph. It flew about 3 metres into the air, over the following bike before disintegrating on impact, on recovering the bits the catch was still in the locked position. We shouldn't mock the inflicted but we all had to smirk at Gary's misfortune collecting his Y-fronts from the gorse bushes. It remains a mystery how you can fit a 26" Hotel TV into a top box Gary!

The Riding

This was riding at its best with all the ingredients you need, good road surface, bright dry weather, fast sweeping bends, stunning scenery and long fast open roads, plus lots of wiggly mountain passes, hairpin climbs and descents. The route chosen reflects Wildcat's knowledge, John having ridden the routes many times. There were many miles with no traffic other than nearing bigger towns and a few sections under repair, the trip was all on tarmac, mainly two carriageway but with some single carriageway roads with gravel margins; a bit scary when a big truck was approaching leaving you about 1 metre of tarmac. There are lots of hazards from camels, donkeys, goats, sheep and small children wandering into the road and also slow moving over-loaded lorries.

We did not see any accidents (other than that of the 1150 GS) but hundreds of near misses as it seems standard practice to pull out without bothering to look assuming that the approaching vehicle will either brake or overtake. There was no aggression shown which perhaps reflects in their laid back driving style. However, you do need 100% concentration. If you ever wondered what happened to "white van" after years of use by the local builder in the UK I can tell you it is exported to Morocco where it takes on a new life as a people/animal carrier. However, they don't go inside because at least two floors are added above the roof, one for the family and one for the sheep and goats so these swaying monsters amble along very slowly to avoid toppling Granny off the upper deck.

At most junctions there appeared to be a police presence, often stopping local cars but we were always waved cheerfully on. However, on the motorway up from Agadir to Tangiers there was a strong police presence with radar guns so we all took care. Fuel was readily available and Wildcat had pre-agreed fuel stops because John knew where "sans plomb" would be available. Although there are plenty of stations only a limited number were selling unleaded fuel. At one station we think the "sans plomb" turned out to be leaded because after a run of about 100 miles all the exhaust pipes were showing a white emission which after some debate we concluded was the result of being sold leaded fuel. There was much discussion as to whether this would wreck the cat and create MOT problems in the future. Look out for a rush of GSs for sale before their due MOT date!

With just 9 bikes it was possible to ride together which for most of us this is what we did, although John often lead the way because he knew the route it was a real benefit following him through the back streets of Marrakech. However, there was no requirement to stay together and we often went our own way to stop for photographs etc. and agreed rendezvous points along the way. Riding alone in Morocco you start to get the feeling that you really are taking on a bit of an adventure.

The Crash

It only needs just one moment of error and your trip collapses into a heap, which is what happened to poor Malcolm on his immaculate 1150 GS named Doris. Last year Malcolm and his mate Paul exported the bikes to the USA for 8 weeks so were not novices at overseas riding.

In a classic under steer Malcolm got off line on to the gravel on a fast left hander with a barrier on one side of the road and rocks on the other there was little or no run off; it appeared that the bike went down on its left hand engine guard and immediately flipped over on to its right offside where most of the damage was incurred, including wiping off his panniers, nose and screen. Malcolm took a tumble and badly cut his chin and knocked himself unconscious for a few minutes; his Boxer helmet had its chin protector up and was badly damaged. At this point we were spread out over about 10 miles but fortunately John and Brigitte stopped for photographs and were bringing up the rear so able to administer immediate first aid. A very helpful Belgium couple in a rent-a-car kindly ferried Malcolm to hospital and later on to our next over night stop. There was some discussion about gaffe taping the bike together but upon reflection it would require a leap of faith for someone to ride the bike again. The only loss from the site was the GPS unit which we envisaged some Moroccan nomad trying to watch Sky TV on the unit! However, it might just have pinged into the ravine but after much searching it was never found. Wildcat's support team were activated and very efficiently collected the bike and took it to Marrakech to await Norwich Union's instructions as to its future. Malcolm made a good recovery and within 48 hours returned to his normal self and we met up again when we arrived in Marrakech before his insurers despatched a nurse from the UK to accompany him home.

The End

To sum up it was a fantastic experience to ride in such unspoilt and open country; a real adventure. It should not be considered as a holiday more an expedition. The accommodation was adequate although a Moroccan 4* hotel is perhaps more comparable to a Morecambe Bay 2*. However, the controlling factor on accommodation was location and security and given that we often arrived early evening, tired and in need of a beer and up early the following morning, the accommodation was merely a means to an end.

Would I go to Morocco again? - Unlikely. Would I go with Wildcat Adventures? - Most certainly.

ALAN J TAYLOR
BMW CLUB UK

Photos by John Fulton & Brigitte Lucas

MORE INFO on our Morocco Atlas Mountains Raid Tour Description