Two-wheeled globetrotter spins tales

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Men on horseback in Mongolia admire Rene Cormier's bike during his around-the-world tour on a BMW on a BMW motorcycle.

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Cormier is greeted by Turkana women.

In June 2003, Canadian motorcycle adventurer Rene Cormier left Vancouver aboard a shiny new BMW F650GS motorcycle. He returned four years later with 154,000 kilometres on the bike and stamps from 41 countries in his passport. "And none of those small, 'easy' European countries, either," he jokes, pointing to his route map that includes a host of uncommon destinations including Yemen, Iran, Tajikistan and Mongolia.

On Tuesday Cormier will share his exciting journey with local adventure junkies and fellow motorcycle enthusiasts in a free two-hour presentation at Wildwood Sports, Winnipeg's exclusive BMW motorcycle dealer.

Cormier, who recently chronicled his unique travels in the book, The University of Gravel Roads: Global Lessons From a Four-Year Motorcycle Adventure, will read excerpts from the book and share hundreds of photos from his odyssey.

The Edmonton resident is quick to point out there were challenges during his journey. One was at an Ethiopian checkpoint where a drunken border guard, wearing only a wrap-around beach towel, insisted Cormier take a guard with him to the next town, "for safety reasons."

"Drunken guards never make good travel companions," offered Cormier, who proceeded to race the BMW into the safety of the desert while the towel-wrapped guard and his AK-47-wielding partner wobbled unsuccessfully after him. "They were looking for bribes," says Cormier, "and I'm too cheap for that."

Cormier undertook his world journey without sponsorship -- roughing it on a frugal budget of just $25 per day. Although he had never even ridden a motorcycle until he was 30 years old, Cormier, who just turned 40, was an avid mountain bike racer.

The dream of travelling the world on a motorcycle became a reality when he was living in Colorado Springs and working as a marketing manager for Rock Shox, a company that manufactures suspension components for mountain bikes. "The company was moving to Chicago and I opted not to make the move," said Cormier, who then decided to sell his house, his car and all his worldly possessions to fund the trip.

"It was an exercise in how to simplify my life and in the end it was a wonderful feeling," said Cormier, who travelled the globe with nothing more than a tent, a sleeping bag, a pair of Sidi riding boots, an Aerostitch riding jacket, a pair of no name riding pants, a few pairs of gloves, an Arai XD helmet and a comprehensive tool kit.

His BMW motorcycle ran flawlessly, but he still managed to burn up more than a dozen sets of tires and sprockets. Although he admits he wasn't mechanically inclined when he left, nowadays he can change a tire in his sleep.

Eating was also a big part of the adventure, and although he passed on the boiled mice on a stick in Zambia (10 for 70 cents), he enjoyed many of the unidentifiable meals he consumed. The primary things he ate on his journey were chicken, hard-boiled eggs, rice, potatoes and locally grown fresh vegetables. He carried a small MSR Whisper camp stove that burned gasoline he regularly siphoned from his motorcycle. In addition to a small pot for cooking, he also had a coffee cup and a cutting board.

He rode very cautiously, "The bike had to be cared for and so did I," said Cormier. There were more than a few times in the mud and sand that he lightly dropped the bike, but the biggest crash occurred right here in Canada in Moncton, New Brunswick when he hit a deer at 80 km/h. He injured his shoulder but he was undaunted and back on the road a few weeks later after healing up on a friend's couch.

Cormier's travelling tales are both inspiring and informative. He met wonderful people from extremely varied cultures and learned along the way that wherever he went the locals were not only curious but also helpful.

"The goal behind bringing my stories to other riders is to remind them that although there are inherent risks with any travel, we imagine them to be bigger and scarier than they actually are," said Cormier, "I want to convince people of the overwhelming rewards of adventure travel by motorcycle."

Cormier's presentation takes place at Wildwood Sports, 1143 Pembina Highway, Tuesday, May 4 from 7- 9 p.m. Admission is free.

The University of Gravel Roads: Global Lessons From a Four-Year Motorcycle Adventure has been on the Bestseller List for both the Calgary Herald and Edmonton Journal and is available from select Chapters and independent bookstores across Canada and from www.universityofgravelroads.com.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition May 1, 2010 E2