Give the Around the World riding a motorcycle is the dream of many adventurers who love two wheels and travel. It is a way to get to know other places on the planet in a truly pure and exciting way due to the symbiosis that is created between the motorcycle, the rider and the environment that surrounds both.
However, the story of this British couple is worth telling, among other things, because, in addition to going around the world, they have done it as a couple and that has helped them enter directly into the Guinness Book of Records. A feat that has taken them 20 months at the controls of a Suzuki V-Strom 1050 XT.
Around the world on a motorcycle and as a couple: A Guinness record trip
As detailed from Visor Down, Ollie Gamblin and Lavi Scholl, they left the emblematic Ace Café in London, heading to France, on a Suzuki V-Strom 1050 XT donated by Motorcycle World, Northampton. After touring Europe, they crossed the strait to Morocco to later cross Africa from Mauritania to Senegal.
This couple's trip around the world on a motorcycle would continue in Brazil, after having the motorcycle arrive in a maritime container. Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia were crossed by Ollie and Lavi in the following weeks. After this leg they sent the V-Strom 1050 XT to Panama, to tour North America passing through the United States and Canada and even visiting Las Vegas where they got married!
New plane trip to Seoul, South Korea, to begin the route through Asia and see some truly unique countries on this trip around the world by motorcycle. Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey to finish crossing the Bosphorus back to the old continent, where they visited 9 more countries, completing up to 39 nations visited throughout the journey and 20 months of travel.
Lavi commented on this trip around the world: “The idea for a Guinness World Record came about after a friend of ours attempted to become the youngest man to circumnavigate the world on a motorcycle, a record already established. We sent an email asking if we could create a team record with the same criteria. They accepted it under the title The Youngest Couple to Ride Around the World on a Motorcycle (Riding Pillion).”
Concludes: “We were free to plan our own route, as long as the Guinness circumnavigation requirements were met. Therefore, the route was mainly planned using card-free countries and countries with easier visas.”
For his part, Ollie said: “We saw many places, many people and had many experiences. If I had to pick one country that stood out, Mongolia really surprised us. The landscapes are vast and incredible and there are herds of animals running everywhere and locals living in gers.”
He concludes by commenting that: “It was absolutely beautiful. Another highlight was watching wild orcas hunt penguins on the remote Argentine coast. “It was like a scene straight out of a documentary in front of our eyes.”
