could you make it from Sao Paulo to the US on a bike? Let's say you had to ride a bike from SP to the US border and you had to take vacation to do it. How many days would you take? The only goal is to get there safely yet quickly, no time for sightseeing.
If speed and speed alone is the goal, then ride it to Bogota and fly it and yourself to Miami. Way cheaper than flying it over the gap and then paying to get through central america. From Miami, you can ride to any part of the US border in 3-4 days pretty do-ably.
Interesting question. I agree with Airhead Wrangler that it wouldn't cost much more to fly your bike to Miami from Bogota than to fly it from Bogota to Panama City. But since I have nothing better to do today I entered your route into: https://maps.google.com/ and came up with Sao Paolo to Quito Ecuador taking 87 hours riding time and another 24 hours riding time to Bogota. If you rode sun up to sundown it would take approximately 10 days to get to Bogota, a few days to fly across the Darien gap to Panama change tires and service the bike and if you rode like hell you could make it to the U.S. border from Panama in 8 days sticking to toll roads up through the gulf coast of Mexico to Laredo or Brownsville. So all in a blurry three or four week vacation I'd say if your bike ran flawlessly and you didn't burn out. Best, John Downs
Interesting...hadn't considered flying from Bogota to Miami but if the cost is close that would definitely save time. OK, new Q...how long from SP to Bogota. Google maps says about 111 hours for roughly 4800 miles. Normally I'd say 5000 miles...5 days. I know going is supposed to be slower in Peru/Bolivia/Ecuador/Colombia, especially with the border crossings. Figure 12 hours/day of riding on a Super Enduro...can you average 500 mi/day in those countries? I've only ridden Argentina/Brazil but I have absolutely no problem making more than 500 miles/day.
500 mile days are loonnnggg days in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia. Not saying you can't do it but it'll be tough and it won't be fun (imo).
SP to Bogotá, I believe would take at least 10 days, leaving Brazil through Acre. I don't think you will be able to ride 500 miles in Ecuador and Colombia. In the desert part of Peru, you should do 500+ miles a day. Make sure you check the US Immigration Requirements if you decide to arrive in the US by Air Freight. I believe it is different than crossing the border by land. Good luck.
I truly believe a 500 Mile a day average is way too much. Some math: Others might disagree, but IMO, the AVERAGE MOVING speed in Colombia and Ecuador is around 50 Km/h (I emphasize again on "average" and "moving"). That means 31 MPH.Yes, you will hit top speeds way higher than that, but there will be more times in which you will be actually riding slower than 30 MPH and even a 1 minute stop drops your moving average speed dramatically. I'd say Peru, if you stick to the Panamericana is something around 50MPH (yes, you can go way faster in the desert, but you will be crawling through the small towns filled with bumps - topes - policias acostados... whatever their name is) A 500 Mile a day would mean you need to be riding for 16 hours straight. So, let's say you stop only three times for fuel each day and seize the opportunity to eat something FAST, put some water in your Camelback, take a leak and stretch your legs in order to maximize your stop. Let's say it only takes you 20 minutes each stop. That is one more hour out of the day for a total of 17. Let's say you know EXACTLY where you are going to spend the night (which you don't) and get directly to that place each and every night without getting lost (which you won't) and without any holdups of any kind (which is basically impossible in Latin America, but that is why I'm emphasizing on "average" speed). That leaves you 7 hours out of every day to check into the hotel, take your luggage upstairs, take a shower (sleep) and then, pack your stuff back on the bike and getting back on the road... So let's say you are FAST and manage to do all this in only one hour and a half (45 minutes for checking in and falling asleep and 45 minutes for waking up and letting the clutch out). That leaves you with 5.5 hours for sleep. What happens if one day you only manged to ride 400 miles ? The next day you will need to ride 600 miles, (100 miles extra) which means about 3 hours and 12 minutes extra actually riding and one more fuel stop for 20 minutes... 3 hours and a half more... that leaves you with 2 hours of sleep for that day. Every day, day in and day out for how many days? That is if EVERYTHING goes well, and you don't have a flat, or don't encounter a road block, or a land slide or an accident or you never make a mistake on the route and you do not stop to take pictures (even if it takes 10 seconds, 100 pics a day will add up. That is without taking into account the time spent at borders (which will make your moving average speed drop to probably 20-25 MPH)... Maybe "some" days? Yes! Absolutely ! But Sao Paulo to Bogota planned on a 500 mile a day average is lying to yourself. A realistic FAST average daily distance for Peru, Ecuador and Colombia ? IMO is around 300 Miles... and that is pushing it, the way you described it: "no time for sightseeing", then again, you also said "safely".
You can get maybe 250 miles in a day in Ecuador not more. And why would you want to go that fast? There is too much to see here.
A friend of mine (french citizen) did it a couple years ago and the cost was only about $200US more than flying to Panama at the time. He ended up having to pay a fumigation fee in Miami, but he got off the plane and was riding his bike again the same day. If just "getting there" is your goal and you have no interest in seeing what's in between, then this is definitely the cheapest and fastest way to get it done. You'd pay more than $200 in tolls in Mexico alone if you're taking cuotas (which you'd need to on your schedule). Factor in gas, lodging, food, etc and you'd save a LOT.
+1 on shipping out of Bogota direct to Miami, much cheaper way to the States rather than paying nearly the same money to jump the gap. I'd imagine you could also find a plane to Houston as well for about the same money or less, I only hear about people air freighting to MIA.
Good thoughts, thanks, keep em coming. I may have to transport a bike back to the US. I will have 2 weeks for sure, I might be able to swing 3. I'm trying to see what is a reasonable amount of time to allow, then add 3 days for mishaps etc. If it comes in under the time I'm alloted then I'm saddling up. Yeah, the trip would be better if I could stop and smell the roses, but it's either put the bike on a plane from BA and meet it in the US or do a quick ride up there. I'd rather ride it even if I don't get to see anything. Any mile on a Super Enduro is better than whatever else I could be doing.
Again, it might be doable but it won't be fun at all. IMHO 300 Mile a day is pushing it a lot and won't be fun at all either. A 250 mile day like CourtRand suggested is more realistic. And I would definitely factor in one "free" day (zero miles) every six days of travel so that you have a cushion for any holdup. (You did suggest you'd take three days off from a three week trip, so that is about it!). I suggested a daily mileage average of 300 because I think its doable and, I totally get your point about better to be riding against the clock than not at all. Very few of us can leave family and/or work obligations for more than two-three weeks at a time so we have to make do with what we get. But maybe planning to ride to another city like Santiago or Buenos Aires or Lima and shipping from there is the way to go? That way you'll definitely be riding and that way you will be able to stop and smell the roses (er.... the beers I mean ) A word of advice on shipping: no matter the country, make SURE you have everything properly arranged well before the start of your trip, with a reputable company that has been recommended by others that have done the same thing as you, a company that know the exact day you will be at their office with all paperwork in hand and the bike ready to crate, otherwise, you might end up spending one week or more just trying to get your bike shipped. A week that you could have spent riding or back home working... DAMHIK... As for shipping from Bogotá, when Lenny (DirtyBones) http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=637218 was on a similar quest, we managed to find this company called Lyncargo who would ship the bike either to Miami or Houston. At the moment, they charged $850 for the bike, no crate needed, to Miami, but that was about 1 year ago, so prices might have changed. Read his post on their service and decide for yourself. Get in touch with them: (She speaks English) LYNCARGO VERÓNICA MOSQUERA OVIEDO GERENTE / MANAGER LYNCARGO S.A veronicam@lyncargo.com info@lyncargo.com.co PH. (57-1) 742 5850 FX: (57-1) 413 1632 Address: Kra 103 No. 25B-96 2do Piso Bogotá, Colombia Good luck!
I just used Veronica from Lyncargo back in March to return to the US... It was about $900 US to MIA back then. Plan for that process to take 1 day on the Bogota side, and another 3 or 4 until the time your riding out of MIA. My bike arrived in Miami a day and a half after I left it wrapped in the cargo terminal in Bogota. Luckily, I was on top of it and US Customs got me out the same day it arrived, but they were trying to tell me to come back the next day. I think 3 days is the shortest the whole thing could happen (1 day in Bogota, fly out next day, ride out of MIA on the third day). Lyncargo will tell you that your bike could sit in Bogota for up to 5 days though, which could be possible around Valentine's Day (mid February - when Colombia ships a lot of flowers to the US). Still, a lot shorter and cheaper than shipping then riding through Central America... The countries there are really small too, meaning frequent border crossings, thus making 500 mile days even more difficult.
Don't know about Sao Paulo to Panamá, but Chicago to Panamá (4,331 miles) took me eight days last December. I presume the reverse would be about the same. Two and a half of those days were Chicago to the border, so the Central America portion was about five days. There were some long days in the saddle, but that's all part of it and it was a very enjoyable trip.
