This one: Ewan McGregor (aka the young Obi-Wan in the Star Wars prequels and soon a new back-story Disney series) and his wingman, Brit TV personality Charley Boorman, have reportedly begun production of the third entry in their popular Long Way motorcycle road trip TV series, and are set to travel from the southern reaches of South America and ride the long way up to the United States. Previous iterations of the episodic documentary series were Long Way Round, an eastward journey from London to New York City in 2004, and Long Way Down, a southward odyssey from John o Groats in Scotland to Cape Town in South Africa, in 2007. No matter how much support the riders have, this looks to be a monumental test for Harley-Davidsons Livewire bikes, which are its first foray into the electric motorcycle space. Enter your email address below we'll keep you up to date with everything that's happening in the world of adventure motorcycling. In the DVD extras, while preparing the bikes for cargo, Ewan McGregor refers to a possible future trip in South America, perhaps called Long Way Up. Upon arrival in Tunisia, the team bribed the local authorities with a few bottles of vodka to aid their passage into the country. HotCars covers all things automotive: the latest auto news and informative reviews on the car, pickup truck and motorcycle industries. JAG: Ewan, you're a big movie star, as I was pointing out to my daughter when we were watching the show. In 2008, he did a show called 'By Any Means' where he traveled from County Wicklow, his hometown in Ireland, to Sydney, Australia using only appropriate public transport and flying whenever necessary. The TV journeyman and professional biker tells Hannah Stephenson about some of his most hair-raising moments, Horror crash: Charley is back on his bike after a horror smash last year. But if I could have ridden with anybody Id have loved to have ridden with Lawrence of Arabia on a Brough Superior. So we had to sort of do all of our testing and learning on how to manage that battery system while we were doing the trip in sub-zero temperatures. Ewan McGregor, besides being an actor, has been an activist and the ambassador for UNICEF UK since 2004. Smiling, looking forward 2 getting home. WebBoorman hit a wall and then bounced along the pavement three times. They crossed 13 countries, namely Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico, and the U.S.A. I consent to allow Adventure Bike Rider to collect my contact information (required), Charley Boorman confirms the Long Way Up will take place within months. The team travelled from their base in Shepherd's Bush, London, to John o' Groats at the northern tip of Scotland to begin their journey. Salta in northwest Argentina to take the Tren a las Nubes (Train to the Clouds) one of the highest in the world at almost 14,000 feet. 1 bestselling author is back! according to a post on popular off-road riding site ADVPulse. Its something that you cant help. Obi-Wan Kenobi was right, you know: That is a major twist. This article is about the TV documentary series. Update 2moro. I didnt do very well in school, but I got As in daydreaming, so I would spend a lot of time daydreaming about Machu Picchu, like it was this mythical place that Id never see. I love it. Even though it was touch and goI thought Id lose a legbut that seemed ok but I kept thinking, you know what, I just want to get back on the motorbike. In Long Way Down, they share their 15,000-mile We took their LiveWire bike and we said Look, can you make it into a dual sports bike for us? After a period reliant on a wheelchair, Boorman is back riding, but now walks with a limp as his left leg is 1 cm shorter than his right after operations to repair the breaks. With Ewan McGregor, Charley Boorman, David Alexanian, Russ Malkin. Id love to ride with (princes) Harry and William. Theyre already talking about making it harder. He didnt see the funny side. Ever wonder what it's like to be riding with Charley Boorman? A bike tour with my wife. Charley Boorman bares all for our readers, Custom Eye Candy: An Electric Zero SR-X Concept, 10 Electric Skateboard Brands That Are Killing It, Start typing to see results or hit ESC to close, Fast Figures: Piaggio Groups 2022 Sales Were Best Results Ever, Industry Insider: EU Ignores Licensing Revamp Pleas, UK Is Next, Luck of the Irish: Insurance Costs Cause Country-Wide Racing Closures, Powersports Podcasts: Ricky Carmichael & Ryan Villopotos Title 24, Harley-Davidson Screamin Eagle Engine Sets New Record, Husqvarna Releases Up-Specd Norden 901 Expedition, Armor, Airbag, Base Layer, & Underwear Reviews, Click here to read more about his African tours. I just find myself thinking about it a lot. Portions of Boormans recovery from the horrific accident are shown in the first episode of Long Way Down. These snippets show how dedicated Boorman was to getting back on the bike and how important it was for him to do this third trip. But it was fun and everyone was very fun and very respectful and it was nice. A division of A07 Online Media, LLC. Take a LiveWire around your city and youll just have such a laugh. Jon Alain Guzik: Youve been around and down, why decide to go up this time? The soundtrack features music drawn substantially from the catalogue of Real World Records, which produced the accompanying album. Having ridden with Ewan McGregor all the way round the world, and on an extraordinary trip through Africa, he is now taking on Canada, South Africa and the USA. However, given the pairs typical journeys through distant lands where it might be a challenge to find gasoline or food, let alone a Level II electric vehicle charger, its suspected the sprinter vans might be ferrying generators for the Livewire bikes, which will need to top up about every 100 miles under favorable conditions. Let me just say that this trip exceeded every one of my expectations. Boorman broke both legs after colliding with a wall whilst avoiding a car that pulled out in front of him. The result is my recent book the Long Way Back. The first trip in the series was shot in the year 2004, when they set out on a 19,000-mile journey from London to New York City on BMW R1150GS Adventure bikes. And we had to do all of our training on a trip because our bikes were prototypes and they were delivered at the very last minute. And after a bike trip in south England, we have to visit Wales, Scotland, Yorkshire. WebFind many great new & used options and get the best deals for Long Way Round - Complete TV Series DVD Ewan McGregor Charley Boorman at the best online prices at eBay! For Long Way Up, which debuts globally on Apple TV+ on September 18 with the first three episodes, McGregor and Boorman reunite to ride 13,000 miles from Ushuaia in Tierra del Fuego, Argentina, to Los Angeles, California. The riding I like most is a mountainous bit of tarmac through the forest. He grew up on an estate in the Wicklow mountains his dad had bought on a whim, and also on film sets, making his debut in his fathers brutal 1972 thriller Deliverance, aged six. On a daily basis, just plugging the bike in at the end of the day was a highlight in itself. Hobart to Strachan is probably one of the best roads like that in the world. It doesn't happen to me that often, you know, to be sort of holed up in a restaurant with a mob outside. But the LiveWire wasn't even being sold yet, so we were so lucky that they built us these two beautiful bikes. Having ridden with Ewan McGregor all the way round the world, and on an extraordinary trip through Africa, he is now taking on Canada, South Africa and the USA. Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman will film in coming months", "Charley Boorman confirms the Long Way Up will take place within months", "Apple TV+ now includes all classic Fraggle Rock episodes, orders full season reboot [update: official]", Right to the Edge: Sydney to Tokyo by Any Means, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Long_Way_Down&oldid=1110182313, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Galaxy British Book Award 2008- Best Popular Non Fiction, This page was last edited on 14 September 2022, at 02:52. In 2004, Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman embarked on a journey to bike across 12 countries and 19 time zones in 115 days. Will Its really touching me, and what I was looking for in terms of feeling closer to the world, the Earth, appreciating the beauty of it as we ride along.. When it's extremely cold, you know, the batteries don't perform as well. Motorcycle adventurer Charley Boorman has bared all for Motorbike Writer readers, including his backside! The shock absorbers bore the brunt, with both McGregor's and von Planta's bikes suffering broken springs. Argentinian news outlets report McGregor arrived in the country (apparently to considerable fanfare) in late August. Charley had a terrible accident and was very badly injured. Boorman was involved in a serious accident whilst test riding a motorbike with journalists in Portugal in 2016. Did you encounter any technical issues? And that happens regularly. Charley journeys in a circular route starting and finishing in Cape Town, experiencing the deeply rooted Now, a decade after the Long Way Down entry, it looks like the third installment is underway with electric mobility at the core of the concept. Can you change the seat? When James isnt riding motorbikes, he can usually be found reading or writing about them. Then this big truck came round the corner and it put them off. I love them all. All these vehicles are all frontier tech and you both seemed pretty damn worried during the first couple of episodes. I rode all the way to my front door from Ushuaia it was a pleasure, that.. McGregor and Boorman gave the adventure or ADV riding segment a huge boost in 2004 with their original series Long Way Round, in which the pair rode heavily loaded BMW GS adventure bikes around the world the long way from England through Russia, including Siberia, capturing their adventures on video using action cameras, and by including Swiss photographer (and rider), Claudio von Planta, who also rode a kitted BMW during the project. I got clipped and the bad thing is I hit a wall. News updates will happen by Twitter, through @biketruck his long-time friend Billy Ward. Click here to read more about his African tours. WebCharley Boorman has been riding motorcycles since he was seven years old. Can you do this, that and the other?" Both men received some off-road riding instruction before departure and came through to finish the ride, though not without various struggles. That sounds like an intimidating journey on its own, but trouble began for the adventuring pair even before they left for South America. In TV Guide's exclusive sneak peek at the premiere episode, viewers get an inside look at Boorman's harrowing motorcycle accident that left him struggling to walk during the early stages of planning the trip. The torque is unbelievable, its fun to be sort of silent and it's just a different riding experience. The book abounds with bikes trashed and accidents endured, including the time Boorman rode 400km in the Dakar Rally with broken hands. And thats where my daughter found me! Husqvarna announces Norden 901 Expedition for 2023, New Tnr 700 versions for 2023 announced by Yamaha, Ride this incredible route through the Lake District, Discover the best motorcycle routes in Northern Spain, See Charleys Long Way Round BMW R 1150 GSA on your next ride-out, The first trailer for Long Way Up is here, Long Way Up: Ewan reveals the challenges of riding an electric bike, Watch: Riding on the frontlines in war-torn Iraq, Charley Boorman tweet sparks new TV series excitement. News updates will happen by Twitter, through, Custom Eye Candy: An Electric Zero SR-X Concept, 10 Electric Skateboard Brands That Are Killing It, Start typing to see results or hit ESC to close, Fast Figures: Piaggio Groups 2022 Sales Were Best Results Ever, Industry Insider: EU Ignores Licensing Revamp Pleas, UK Is Next, Luck of the Irish: Insurance Costs Cause Country-Wide Racing Closures, Powersports Podcasts: Ricky Carmichael & Ryan Villopotos Title 24, Harley-Davidson Screamin Eagle Engine Sets New Record, Husqvarna Releases Up-Specd Norden 901 Expedition, Armor, Airbag, Base Layer, & Underwear Reviews, The Fight to Save the Davidson Ancestral Home, Indian Motorcycles Publishes Recall over Non-Compliant Lights, BMW Recalls K1600 Models over Suspension Failure. They let us in and let us plug in our bikes as they showed us around and explained how everything worked. He has a deep passion for and vast knowledge about JDM cars. The journey started on 12 May and finished on 4 August 2007. Can you raise it? Talking about the uncertainty of keeping the bikes charged in these remote places, Boorman recalls a story about getting this amazing charge out of a very dodgy plug in a youth hostile. Published: Monday, 8th May 2017 at 10:40 am, Long Way Round's Charley Boorman: Even if I lost my leg, I would never give up motorcycling. She likes riding (pillon passenger) too, after she start doing it, the first time with me. The first episode of Long Way Up is all preparation and planning, which was incredibly fun to follow. LONG WAY ROUND -- Pictured: (l-r) Charley Boorman, Ewan McGregor -- Photo by: Sven [+] Arnstein/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank. 2. The Facebook posts appear to show the bikes are clearly being ridden off pavement, and it doesnt look like theres knobbies mounted on the rims (yet). As the only spare had been fitted to McGregor's bike, von Planta rode in a support vehicle while his bike was sent ahead for repair. The wheels were spinning forward, but we were shooting backwards towards a cliff. Not just get on a bike again, but go basically 13,000 miles on an electric motorcycle? CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA - AUGUST 04: Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman mark the finish line of The [+] Long Way Down at the Lagoon Beach Hotel on August 4, 2007 in Cape Town, South Africa. I was on a bed pan for god knows how long and I just wanted to go to a regular toilet. With the limited range of both the bikes and the Rivianapart from bringing backup generators like you guys did, how does the average motorcyclist enjoy a cross country trip on an electric motorcycle when the technology is still on the fringe? Once it became a little warmer, the batteries became much more friendly and we got more distance out of it. Long Way Down is a television series and book documenting a motorcycle journey undertaken in 2007 by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman, from John o' Groats in Scotland through eighteen countries in Europe and Africa to Cape Town in South Africa. We turned the corner on this hairpin and just hit black ice. I was just coming out the hotel in the morning and was passing a car when the driver decided to turn down a lane. Then we got Russ and Dave our two producers and partners and then Russ floated the idea of maybe going electric and that was it really. charley boorman accident south africa 2018 Charley also gave us the inside scoop on what it was like to travel from the tip of South America to Los Angeles on electric Harley-Davidson motorcycles, and what plans he and Ewan have for their next adventure. He did lose a lot of work: a planned TV show about a bike trip through the perilous Darien Gap in Central America that had taken a year to plan, and commercial tours with bike fans in Australia and Africa, a lucrative offshoot of his celebrity. They rode their BMWs through Belgium, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, a large portion of Mongolia and Russia, the Road of Bones, Alaska, Canada and finally, the U.S.A. I really hope Charley and Ewan do ride together soon in another adventure. The thing I remember most was flying through the air and seeing the pavement and wall and thinking, 'This is going to hurt'. His motorcycle was substantially damaged, and the footage of the rest of the journey to Cape Agulhas appears only to include support vehicle and helmet cam footage, suggesting that Von Planta's motorcycle was no longer used. Ahead of that, The Drive had a chance to talk to McGregor and Boorman about their trip. This time, McGregor and Boorman are making it even harder on themselves, taking a pair of electric Harley-Davidson LiveWire motorcycles transformed into dual-sport adventure bikes and a pair of Rivian RT1 electric pickup trucks from Ushuaia in the southernmost tip of Argentina, up through South America, Central America, into Mexico, and ending in Los Angeles, California. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. It was assumed this would become a regular occurrence while travelling through Africa. EW: It'd been over 12 years since we did The Long Way Down, our trip down through the African continent back in 2007. Full Name Charley Boorman Occupation Actor and Television Personality Nationality British Birthplace Wimbledon, London, UK Birth Date Aug 23, 1966 Age 56 Years, 5 Months Co-creator of Documentary Series 'Long Way Round' with Ewan McGregor Charley Boorman | Biography Child Actor in Film 'Deliverance' It comes to its conclusion.. The bikes had a 1,130cc engine and a six-speed gearbox that was good for 85 horsepower and 75 pound-feet of torque. They crossed Scotland, England, France, Italy, and Sicily before making their way across Africa through Tunisia, Libya, Sudan, Egypt, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, and finally, South Africa. I've crashed a lot in the past. I understand why they ride bikes: One, because they love it and two because it gives them anonymity. And our bikes were being charged directly by the sun., In the end, after three months on the road, both men were ready to end the trip, though Boorman says, You always talk about the possibility of another one, so youve got that in your head, so its not so bad that this ones finished., Theres an arc, these trips that weve done, says McGregor. And then we just got used to it and we began to understand how far we could go and how far we could push the parameters and you kind of like all of our trips, eventually you just settled into it. All Rights Reserved. Im too stupid to be anything other than open about my life. Theyll have to make it all the way up first. We need to be a bit more friendly toward each other and look at what the cycling industry has done with their lobbying. Weve had our share of spills and thrills (riding, all our lives), but this is -pretty- unbelievable; so unfortunate! Up In The Air! I think absolutely its definitely the right thing to do if youre living in London. During the trip, the pair visited three UNICEF facilities to promote the work done by the organisation. The book and TV show enabled me to do the Dakar and the other tours and books and shows, so it really changed my life. I found Africa's landscapes stunning to the eye, it's people vibrant and welcoming, it's food diverse and exotic, and it's history fascinating and complex. I said can you give me a hand? and she just shook her head and said no. WebCharley Boorman's South African Adventure: With Charley Boorman. recovery, on all fronts!.. Charley Boorman suffered a serious injury after coming off his motorbike in Portugal It has now been over a year since the horror scene, which happened on his way to a media launch of the new Triumph Explorer. The 50-year-old added: It has been a long journey to get here. Riding a prototype electric Harley-Davidson LiveWire through the Calchaqu Valley in northwest Argentina, the actor and avid motorcyclist Ewan McGregor waxes poetic into a microphone inside his helmet. Charley Boorman and Ewan McGregor stop in Bolivia on their electric Harley- Davidson LiveWires. The two friends will travel through such places as Siberia, They took the Channel Tunnel to France and rode south to Italy. ", "I remember taking a 4x4 up the Sani Pass in South Africa, which goes up into Lesotho. What do his doctors think about that? From abseiling down Cape Town's iconic Table Mountain, to learning how to rodeo in Canada, prepare for a non WebDoubleTree by Hilton Cape Town, Upper Eastside Hotel will once again host Charley Boorman for this years Motorcycle Adventure that begins and ends in Cape Town, South Africa. See our review policies for more information.