Motorcycle Explorer February 2015 Issue 4 | Page 233

N ot so long ago, over the festive season, I did a series of posts on social media entitled “the 20 greatest essentials of motorcycle overlanding”. It seemed to go down well, with the entire biking community waiting with baited breath for number 1. No? Okay, but it did seem to spark a modicum of interest amongst you. The truth is though, there really are only three essentials of motorcycle overlanding, or any overlanding for that matter … health, time, money … in that order, with health the clear winner. Which is why I am so delighted to have been asked by MEM to host a new, regular feature in their magazine, HEALTHY OVERLANDING. The canvas is vast, from what medicines to pack to how to survive in a desert; from tarantulas and rabid dogs to water purification, malaria and remaining sane on returning home. I’ll be looking at common overlanding ailments and bike-specific maladies as well as the occasional more unusual disease we’d certainly do best to avoid. Ness and I would also like to open the floor to any medical questions pertinent to travel that any of you may have, drawing the line I would hope at becoming the ‘Embarrassing Bodies’ of motorcycle overlanding! But let’s kick off with that most primeval of fears, held deep within all of our psyches. And no, it’s not how do I pick up my loaded GS in front of a baying crowd. It was always my mum’s first question when we arrived home, particularly from Africa – “how do you cope with all those snakes?”