The new Compass Expeditions crew for South America are settled in to the role now so we thought we would let you know a little about who they are.
We started with crew training in Brazil back in June for a group of people who had contacted us and who seemed to fit the bill for what was required. The most important thing being that our Motorcycle Tour guides need to be intuitive, adaptable, dedicated, able to think quickly and adapt plans if required while assessing the safety, enjoyment and overall feel of a trip. They needed to have a good sense of humour, good team and interpersonal skills and the ability to ride and confidently lead a motorbike tour, speak Spanish and some Portuguese and to have a good understanding of mechanics. Not too much to ask is it really???
During training it became apparent that we had a good group of applicants but at the end of it 3 were selected and moved into the phase of training on the road.
Those three were Justin Sain – an Austrian/Canadian who past life was spent touring the world in planes, trains and automobiles (and by motorcycle of course), studied criminology and who was a trained skydiver. He went on to become a stuntman and started a career in the movies where all of these skills were tested on a daily basis. Justin has some great stories to tell….
Secondly we had Daniel Chispim from Rio de Janeiro who has lived in various parts of the world, is a keen kite-surfer as well as having spent a lot of time hiking, climbing, kayaking and snowboarding. Daniel is also a qualified lawyer.
Finally we had Felix who joined us from the UK where he has lived for several years in beautiful Bath. Originally from Spain, Felix has worked in a hospital environment for quite some time so that inspired our confidence.
These three led the beginning of our South America Coast to Coast along with Jerry who was there to emphasize the lessons learnt in the training and so soon the three became our new leaders and Jerry returned to base.
The first Motorcycle Tours across South America for the new team consisted of the 42 day South America Coast to Coast, the 27 Day Atlantic to Altiplano and the 17 days Aguas y Salares which all interconnect with each other and offer something slightly different depending on the amount of time you have and the experience you are looking for. All are fantastic and it was clear that the guys were loving it and were being challenged.
There were alterations to the journey due to snowstorms closing a high mountain pass, a huge sandstorm, which blocked off a road and required a lot of quick thinking and changes to the route. The first major trip was no easy ride but the guys all did very well and we’re incredibly happy to have them as members of Compass Expeditions and as the leaders of our South America Motorcycle Tours.
So, with a Lawyer, an Emergency Department Assistant and a professional stuntman we think we’ve got all bases covered. Look out for them on your next adventure with us…..