Mzanzitravel Magazine Issue 10

Road Travel
Few experiences are more exhilarating than sitting astride
a powerful machine, revolutions close to the red, the
wind blasting through your hair and an endless open road
stretching ahead of you. In South Africa with its great scenery,
wonderful sunny weather, wide open spaces, and excellent
highways and country roads, there can be few better ways to
see this beautiful country than on a motorcycle.
At times it will be hard sticking to the speed limit, but yes, you have to. And the wind
through the hair is very invigorating, but please wear your helmet. And please, no
playing chicken, even though the ride will unleash the child in you!
As more and more tourists coming to Southern Africa are looking for unique
experiences and exciting ways to see the country – and with more freedom than
sitting aboard a tour bus or in a rental car – the niche market of motorcycle tourism
has taken off in leaps and bounds. Tourists from countries such as the United
States, Canada, Germany, China, Australia and Japan are increasingly booking
their bikes for open-road adventures, seeing the spectacular offerings of South
Africa in a way few other modes of transport can offer.
You can buy or use your own bike, but if you don’t own one or are only in the
country for a short time, there are a growing number of motorcycle tour and rental
companies operating in South Africa. You can either join one of the motorcycle
tour companies on a variety of organised, guided group bike tours, or you can
rent a machine to do your own individual touring or local sightseeing. Bikes for
rent include anything from vintage Word War II machines, to bikes with sidecars,
Japanese and European street machines, and the classic
tourers - Harley Davidson, BMW, Honda Goldwing, Royal
Enfield and Triumph, as well as the new kids in the game,
Victory motorcycles.
Standard requirements for renting bikes in South Africa include a valid ID
document or passport, valid motorcycle driver’s licence and credit card, while
some rental companies have age restrictions.
In addition to motorcycle tourism, the bike fraternity in South Africa has grown
massively, with over 1,500 motorcycle clubs in existence, called MCs.
Rallies and events
There are also a growing number of rallies and other gatherings or special riding
events for motorcycle enthusiasts, some of which draw visitors from outside
our borders. If you are a regular motorcyclist interested in meeting other bikers,
socialising, participating in fun events and runs, and seeing a great display
of different machines, there are some excellent motorcycle rallies and events
staged in South Africa each year. These range from the classic Buffalo Rally,
one of the longest-running events, to the Desert Wolves Rally, the Namaqua
Rally, the West Coast Rally and more. For a full list of such events, go to www.
zabikers.co.za/biking-events/.
In addition you will find pubs and lounges all over South Africa catering
specifically for and frequented by motorcycle enthusiasts of every type. Here
you can have a beer, play some pool, learn about breakfast runs or bike tours,
meet other bikers, marvel at the most outlandishly chopped machines, hear
about second-hand bargains, or find out about the latest brand-new arrivals on
the showroom floor. Unless you misbehave really badly, you won’t get stomped
(biker term for getting beaten up) at any of them – forget what you saw in the
movies! By and large, despite the ominous names of some MCs – bikers do
have a penchant for scary, weird names - the biker fraternity consists of nice,
friendly, ordinary folk who just love motorcycles and hitting the open road.
On their website Motorcyclists SA (http://www.motorcyclists.co.za/clubs/) lists
1,500 registered clubs. For each one the website provides the club colours, club
name and region or city where based. Clubs range from Christian motorcycle
clubs, to family clubs, established social riding clubs, to the more hard-core
motorcycle clubs such as the Gypsie Jokers and Hells Angels, or clubs linked
to specific makes of motorcycles such as Harley Davidson clubs. But as a
motorcycle tourist your interest would be more in the bike rental companies and
the tours and rentals they offer.
Variety of motorcycles
The variety of two-wheeled, motorised transport available in the country
includes street bikes, superbikes, café racers, cruisers, choppers, tourers,
scooters, mopeds and combination on-road/off-road bikes known as adventure
bikes that have become very popular.
The latter includes the likes of the KTM 1290, Triumph Tiger 800, Honda
Africa Twin, and the BMW R1200. These bikes are ideal for South
African and African travel adventures – they are designed to give a
superb asphalt ride and just as easily carry you comfortably off-road,
through deserts, across rivers and over mountains. They can literally go
anywhere. And they come with ample panniers and top boxes for all your