MOTOR CYCLE TOUR.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 10 September 1927, Page 15

MOTOR CYCLE TOUR.

ANOTHER BRITISH EXPEDITION. NEW ZEALAND SECTION. Captain Matins and Captain Oliver, who ieft London last December for a tour of the world on motor-cycles and have passed through Holland, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland, thence along the Riviera coast to France, Spain, Algeria, Tripoli, Egypt, Palestine, Iraq Persia, India, Burrnah, Siam, Singapore and Java, have now completed the Australian section and were due to reach Invercargill on Thursday. Their New Zealand itinerary is: Dunedin, September 13; Christchurch, September ]9; Blenheim,' September 'JG ; Hastings, October 5; Cambridge, October 14. Leaving New Zealand from Auckland, they will embark for San Francisco, and thence across the United States and Canada en .route for England. Many and varied have been the adventures of the riders during their journey. They had the mast arduous experiences in crossing the £jinai wilderness and the Syrian desert, where it took twelve days to cover the distance which, ordinarily, should not have taken more than three • days. During this time they had no means of communicating with the world. Heavy sandstoims were encountered as soon as they left Suez, and they had to take shelter all along the route under improvised tents. Their machines were in a terrible state owing to sand working into all the parts, the machines having to be dug out from the sand many times a day. On the Sinai hills they experienced heavy rain, all roadways being flooded. The tourists made bridges of boulders, but these were often washed away by the current as they were building them. From Jerusalem to Mount Hebron into Syria was the next stage, and here they had to fight against heavy snow. They then crossed 700 miles of desert to Bagdad, this being the first time the Syrian desert was crossed by motor-cycles. They were chased bv Bedouin robbers in the native portion of Iraq, but successfully evaded them. In Malaya the conditions of travel were ideal, some of the roads being the best seen since leaving England. Many of Captain Malms’ friends in England have laid a wager over his not returning to England within one year after doing this tour, but Captain Malins said he was prepared to take a bet that he wo\ild arrive in England a- day before Christmas at an appointed time outside the Marble Arch in London.