adventurelog
The Adventure Brothers and The Tour without a Voice
By Shawn Thomas #91122
“I HAVE A BIG problem,” he said, the words rolling around a thick accent. “A big prob- lem.”
I stared back through the com-
puter monitor. I always spoke to Eric via video chat, the visual aid helping me better under- stand his French-infused English. The conversations were usually fun; Eric was a textbook extrovert, brim- ming with positive energy and excitement. But not today. Staring back at me Eric looked ragged and sleepless, his hand rubbing the wrinkles on his forehead. It was his mother, he explained. She was sick, and the prognosis was not good. She could go any day. “If she dies and I am away, I could not forgive myself. I must be with my mom.” I offered my sympathies and under-
support truck and assist as needed. But not anymore. “Adventures begin when well laid plans go awry,” I thought. Usually this sort of ‘adventure’ revealed itself on the trail, with a mechanical failure or other unfore- seen shenanigans. I had tools and experi- ence for these things. But this, I never saw coming. I called my brother Lance and explained
via Skype, and we could barely communicate. Hopefully another in the group would
know at least a little English and could translate. As a backup, Lance and I added translator applications to our smartphones and began rehearsing basic French. We considered bringing in a human translator to stay with us for the first few days of the tour, but the cost was prohibitive. We would just need to sort it out with the tools we had. Days later Lance and I found
Despite language barriers, smiles tell the tale.
standing. “I’ll make it work,” I assured him. “Go be with your Mom and keep me posted, okay?” The call complete, I leaned back in my chair and took in the situation. For months, Eric and I had been planning a motorcycle tour through the California and Nevada backcountry. His business, a French adventure company called T-3, led tours on bikes and in cars to nearly every corner of the world. In only a few days time, a plane of French and German riders would arrive in San Francisco to begin the tour. Eric was slated to lead; I would drive the
44 BMW OWNERS NEWS January 2017
the situation. “It looks like I will be leading this tour,” I explained. “Do you think you could drive the support truck?” Lance readily agreed. We had run tours together before, and he knew how the operation worked. We set to planning a strategy. The basics were handled. Bikes and a support truck had been reserved though Moto- Quest, a motorcycle touring powerhouse in their own right. The route was all sorted out, and hotels were booked. The biggest challenge, we determined, was the lan- guage barrier. We had Germans coming on the tour whom we had already met; they spoke fluent English and the rapport was strong. The French customers were another matter. I had only spoken to one of them
ourselves at San Francisco Inter- national Airport, awaiting arrival of our customers. We were easy to find, clad in motorcycle-centric apparel and holding a sign that read “T3 GS Tour.” Soon we were shaking hands with a group of weary travelers. “Please speak slowly,” one said after our greeting. “Our English, not so good.” Uh-oh. We collected luggage and made our way to the hotel. That evening we set to offering a ride briefing, providing expecta-
tions and helping everyone understand the plan. It was immensely challenging; our detailed list of objectives all but lost in the difficulties of translation. We learned quickly, truncating and simplifying our words for easier digestion. Soon everyone was nodding in approval, though a tension collected like fog in the air. “We just need to get though a day of rid-
ing,” Lance said in my ear. “Once everyone has some fun on the bikes, the tour will smooth out.” I nodded in agreement, sup- pressing my worries. He was right, I hoped. I touched my watch, holding up seven fin- gers. “7 a.m. for breakfast, okay? We will meet again at 7 a.m.” The group nodded and headed off to bed.
discovery
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100
