Albee s African Bike Safari
WE GO COW...ERR ELEPHANT"TRAIUNG IN AFRICA WITH
THREE"TIME WORlD MX CHAMPION GREG ALBERTYN.
sights on winning an AMA title in the
STORY AND PHOTOS BY MARK KARIYA
, hen it comes to great off-road
riding locations, places like
Baja, Canada, or even Hawaii usually
come to mind first, not Africa. When
Africa and motorcycles are mentioned in the same sentence, it usually has something to do with the ParisDakar Rally, but we're talking about
good, 01' fashion trail riding here,
where there are no clocks, no block
passing and no checkered flag. But
Africa isn't really known for trail
rides. Africa is, however, a land of
many countries, and there are actually some great places to ride in many
of them - and three-time World
Motocross Champion Greg Albertyn
is anxious to show you some of them
through his new off-road riding tour in
Zimbabwe, Africa.
Albertyn, as you probably know by
now, is a South Africa native. From
the local tracks in South Africa,
"Albee" ventured to the grand prix
circuit in Europe before setting his
40 JULv17.2002· c u e I
e
U.S. After retiring at the end of the
2000 season, he remained a resident
dual·sport tour in Hawaii, and then
going on a trail ride in Baja.
"I think the main reason where it
of Corona, California, with his wife,
Amy, and began work as a consultant
[the idea of starting a tour business in
Africa] really came from was two
with a whole bunch of guys," Albertyn said. "I just thought, 'Man, this is
so cool to get a bunch of guys
together and have a good time!' This
is why I started riding in the first
for American Suzuki's MX team, Smith
Sport Optics and Parts Unlimited. But
once a rider, always a rider, and sever-
years ago when I went to Baja to ride
place.'
al circumstances caused him to think
about doing more of it once again,
especially after attending an organized
(Above) This is the sort of thing that
anyone who rides a dirt bike dreams
about, but it's fairly common in
Zimbabwe on the trail tours
conducted by Albee's African Bike
Safari.
(Right) A visit to an island preserve
resulted in a close-up encounter with
a juvenile black rhino; an endangered
species. Rhinos are very protected in
Zimbabwe, as It seems that each one
Is looked after constantly by a young
guard to prevent poaching. Colin
A1bertyn (far left), Albee's older
brother and an excellent rider himself,
will lead most tours.
neVIl's
