When I found out that being an adventurer was no longer a proper profession, I was sorely disappointed. I'd grown up on the black and white serials every Saturday at the local cinema and I was looking forward to heading to the centre of the earth, a land that time forgot or some other similarly unknown world. To learn that there was no longer a profession that required wearing a pith helmet, spending years away and only emerging to tell amazing tales with which to entertain a captive audience just seemed quite wrong.

As a youngster my mother and I found ourselves in moments of homelessness and, in these moments, someone would invariably lend a helping hand thereby contradicting all the bad that was being broadcast on the news. While I'm sure this part of our life was stressful for her, I was running around Southsea in a ninja suit with my pals, jumping out at passers-by from behind the massive rocks that lined the sea shore. Not a bad gig for a kid. In reality though I was learning to deal with situations regardless of how seemingly dire they were. Adaptability, kindness and an appreciation for the people and things around me would be staple themes that would guide me for the rest of my life.

My nomadic spirit never left my side, and I spent a good part of my early adulthood touring with bands through North America and Europe - working day-jobs as I found them. At some point after university I got caught up in "making something of myself" though it has to be said that it was in no way at the request of my family. They'd been entirely supportive of my need to follow ideas to see where they'd lead me. For that I'll always be thankful. That nomadic spirit helped create opportunities to work with - and eventually start - some great, creative companies with a fairly maverick group of designers, developers, artists and business folks.

So, wandering is in my blood. And in the past years I've started to put that need to drift together with a curiousity I've had with motorcycles since I was a child.

Other than sitting on some police bikes as a youngster, I rode my first motorcycle when I was 8 or 9 on a friends acreage. It was a beautiful Honda Z50 Mini Trail. That friend actually grew sick of hanging out with me because all I wanted to do was ride that bike. I was hooked. Since then I've owned a few Duc's and now this wonderful overland beast, the BMW R1200GS. But don't think for a moment it's about the bike, or the brand. It's not. I want to ride as many different bikes as I can as long as they move me - literally and figuratively. The nice thing about the R1200GS is that I don't look like a circus bear riding a mini-bike and, for me, that's a huge bonus :)

So, for now, home-base is Calgary, Canada. In 2006 I met my dream girl for a half-hour sitting trackside at the MotoGP races at Laguna Seca, California and now I'm proud to call her wife. Though I usually don't, it's usually "babe, baby, Nita, awesomestuff" or some such thing. I'm blessed to have a partner whose truly game for anything - be it long highway trips or roughing it in a tent under the stars (sometimes fending off imaginary creeps).

And so it is. Two and a half year around the world by motorcycle living mostly in a small tent or local homes. For those who like stats it's been 41 countries, 5 continents and a couple of days waiting out a hurricane in the belly of a ferry. I wouldn't have it any other way.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Real people in real places. The best.

Interests

• animals
• cooking
• coffee
• running
• motorcycles
• news
• movies
• traveling
• cycling
• adventure races
• business
• emergency services
• statistics
• tourism

Music, Movies, and Books

Somewhere Else Tomorrow, Motorcycle Messengers, The Endurance, Jupiters Travels, Skinny Legs and All

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Two and a half years around the world on motorcycles; forty-one countries, five continents and countless chases by wild animals...

What I Can Share with Hosts

Local travel, international travel, overlanding, motorcycling, border crossings, cooking and coffee!

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Laos, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, Monaco, Morocco, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Tunisia, United Kingdom, United States, Vanuatu, Vatican City State, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, Canada, United Kingdom