AFTER THE FIRE
As the Coronavirus (COVID-19) situation worsened
across the world, impacting every corner of the globe,
the BMW Motorrad WorldSBK team took to the Australian
bush to witness firsthand the devasting bushfires of
just a few weeks earlier. Team riders Tom Sykes (GBR)
and Eugene Laverty (IRL), BMW Motorrad Motorsport
Director Marc Bongers and Team Principal Shaun Muir
got their own impressions of the damages and met with
residents and firefighters affected by the crisis.
Just a day after the opening round of the World
Superbike Championship held at Australia’s Phillip Island
circuit the riders gathered again in southern Victoria to
head towards the region known as Gippsland to see how
the BMW team could help the struggling communities.
The three day ride was organised as an adventure into
the south-eastern corner of Australia aboard a fleet of
GS models; it wasn’t about the bikes, the brand or the
famous riders but rather the devasted communities and
those that fought to save the townships.
Organised by BMW Group Australia as part of its
extensive bushfire relief efforts, that included a donation
of AU$600,000 to the Australian Red Cross Disaster Relief
and Recovery appeal as well as the World Wildlife Fund
(WWF), the riders were taken through regions that were
ablaze for months, destroying vast swaths of bush land,
homes and community assets.
As the opening round of WorldSBK traditionally takes
place in Australia, the BMW Motorrad WorldSBK Team
had decided to team up with BMW Group Australia
and do its bit. They did so by swapping the RR for GS
motorcycles, gaining a picture of the situation, and
meeting the people affected and firefighters on site, who
fought for months to prevent the catastrophe.
Starting at Phillip Island, the ride led the adventurous
racers through more than 1,200 kilometres of southeast
Australia to the nation’s capital city, Canberra. The route,
similar to that of the iconic BMW Safari.
“It was important for us to do this tour,” says Bongers
who, along with the three WSBK representatives, was
also joined by Glenn Allerton, a rider in the Australian
Superbike Championship (ASBK). “The images of the
bush fires were all over the media however, you can only
truly grasp the size and the impact when you are actually
there.”
Heading cross-country through the state of Victoria to
the township of Bright then onto the small community
of Swifts Creeks, the riders witnessed just how immense
these fires were and how they impacted the small towns
and communities.
“We started at the racetrack, but our thoughts were
soon turned on their head after just a few metres,” says
Sykes. “I left the racing behind me. Obviously riding the
TRAVERSE 111