Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
Bahrain-based biker buddies Doyle Rosario and Ayaan Raichur are already chomping at the bit for more adventures across the Gulf after completing their first 2,300-kilometre ride.
The two ‘riders of the desert storm’ recently returned from their long-distance motorcycle trip, riding all the way from Bahrain’s sunny shores to Dubai’s soaring skyscrapers, through the shimmering sands of Saudi Arabia.
“We have had this dream of taking on a long distance trip for a while, and although the original plan was to ride to Riyadh, we decided to do two countries and go to Dubai, via Abu Dhabi,” Ayaan, a digital marketing specialist by day, told GulfWeekly.
“We had done a 200km ride to Saudi Arabia when we first got our visas. For this particular trip, we started at night, and in Saudi, we rode under the open night sky, with a dazzling display of stars and celestial bodies overhead. Absolutely breathtaking!”
Riding atop their limited edition 1200cc Harley-Davidson Sportsters, 34-year-old Doyle and 29-year-old Ayaan covered more than 1,000km each way and notched another couple of hundred kilometres of sightseeing in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
The bikes, of course, had to be modified for touring needs, since their stallions were built to be more suited for city jaunts than cross-country journeys.
“We modified our motorbikes both for comfort so we could handle the longer rides,” Ayaan added. “Also, in terms of safety, we got a lot of lights on the bike, as well as foglamps. The key, as a motorcyclist, is to always find a way to make your presence better seen on the road, to avoid accidents.
“That’s why having a bigger bike, or something more chunky, is better for road trips.”
Ayaan’s experience came from nearly a decade of riding ... and a fair amount of bravado for hitting the road with two bikes, a friend, and some supplies.
For Doyle, a father and husband, the challenges lay more in convincing his loved ones that he was up for the job.
And assauging his wife Ektha’s concerns around letting him leave her behind with their four-year-old son Ryan, to hit the road with his friend, all in service of a tail-pipe dream, was no easy task.
“My wife is supportive of my hobbies, but understandably, this was a challenge even for her!” Doyle, who works in the food services industry, added.
“My parents, who are based in Dubai, were also not sure, but I was able to prove to everyone and myself that I can pull off a trip like this.”
Of course, just as important as conquering personal challenges in such an adventure are those surmounted together.
Among these, errant bug splatter and planning for toilet breaks were the most memorable.
“The bug splatter on your helmet can be both irritating and a safety hazard, because, when you are riding, there will be bugs that hit your visor, but you can not just wipe them away, because that just smears your helmet, further reducing visibility,” Ayaan explained, with Doyle chiming in to agree.
“We had to keep stopping to properly clean our helmets, and we had to plan bathroom breaks since at times, there would be 100-150 kilometres between stops, but with every adventure, you can only plan so much. These are things you learn along the way.
“My advice to other bikers is to make sure your bike is safe and properly inspected before embarking on a trip like this. And never take any road for granted. As they say in the biker community, you live to ride another day, by riding to live another day.”
