Up Everest By Motorcycle...
You're small, you're blonde, you're Swedish, so why not ride a motorcycle as far up Everest as you can? Oh, and you're environmentally aware too...
Posted: 29 July 2003
by Jon
Forget 'Across the Andes by Frog' - Ripping Yarns, if you were
wondering - the latest comedy attempt at Everest is going to be by
motorcycle.
A Scandinavian expedition, including self-styled 'Rally Princess'
Annie Seel - she's small, Swedish and blonde, which always helps with
these things - is planning to ride up to Everest Base Camp on the
Tibetan side starting from Kathmandu on Honda XL250 and 350cc trail
bikes.
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The Rally Princess
herself
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Once there, two of the riders will then attempt to reach Advance Base
Camp at 6400 metres with the aid of 'warm clothes' and oxygen. If
they reach an altitude of over 5600 metres, they'll consider it a
world altitude record for motorcycles.
It sounds like a triumph of hype to us. Especially given that you
can actually do much the same trip as a fully supported mountain
biking tour with at least one commercial mountain biking company and
there is a navigable road / track all the way to Base Camp on the
northern side.
Even more bemusingly, Seel's web
site describes co-organiser of the trip Henning Bitsch (really)
as 'a known environmentalist in Denmark'. Quite why an
environmentalist would choose to ride through mountain areas on seven
gas-guzzling motorcycles complete with a back-up vehicle is beyond
us.
So what are they doing for the environment? 'Annie and main
sponsor Fujitsu-Siemens Computers will contribute to an Everest
environment and cleaning up project. Which one is not yet decided
but Annie is doing some reasearch ebout it.' (sic.) it says here.
More pertinently, the site points out: 'But the tourism also has a
devastating backside'.
We couldn't have put it better ourselves. You can also read about
the 'Rally Princess' in the Times
online. Thanks to OM member Jarl Moden for bringing Annie and her daft scheme to our attention.
Discuss this story
Have you read Metro, Monday? "If a yak can make it up there, then a bike should be able to" Swedish female biker Annie Seel will make loads of trekking friends...
Posted: 28/07/2003 at 09:13
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