Andre Du Plessis
AGE: 49
MARITAL STATUS: Married to Elsabe for 21 years, with 3 sons [Jean-Pierre (18), Jacques (16) and Francois (12)]
OTHER ABOUT MYSELF: I was born, schooled and attended university in Johannesburg. Thereafter, I worked and lived in Johannesburg, London, Cape Town and for the past 7 years in Stellenbosch. I’m a Christian. I believe in work hard, play hard. I’m an adventurous person who is always keen to take on challenges eg parachuting, climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, hiking various trails, bungi jumping, riding the Cape Epic mountain bike tour twice, etc. I love camping, 4×4 touring and travelling in South Africa and abroad.
PROFFESSION: Financial Director of Capitec Bank, a retail bank in South Africa; We started the bank in 2000 and listed it in February 2002. Prior to my present job I was the Chief Executive: Finance of NBS Boland and Boland PKS and a partner at Arthur Andersen (Chartered Accountants & Business Advisors).
HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN RIDING MOTORCYCLES: I started riding in 1976 , when I was 15, but stopped riding in 1986 (I had a Zundapp and later a Suzuki). I have been riding again since 2005 when I bought a scooter to avoid the traffic. In 2007 I bought a BMW 1200GS and immediately my passion for adventure riding was ignited, especially off-road and untarred roads. In 2010 I decided to buy a KTM 990 Adventure and I love it. I’ve clocked about 40 000 km in the last 2.5 years. In addition to adventure riding, I have taken up enduro & off-road riding with my middle son (on a Yamaha 250).
WHAT RIDING EXPERIENCE DO YOU HAVE: I have done several courses, including the Country Trax/BMW intermediary and advanced courses and the Honda academy course. More relevant is completing several adventures (see below) and enduro & off-road riding.
WHAT IS THE FURTHEST YOU HAVE RIDDEN IN ONE DAY: 1 450 km
WHAT ADVENTURE MOTORCYCLE TRAVEL HAVE YOU DONE ACROSS THE SA BORDERS: Mainly in the Western and Eastern Cape eg Gamkaskloof, Black Mountain pass, Baviaanskloof, Tankwa, Middelpos, Sutherland area, BMW Eco1000 off-road ride from Cape Town to Gariep dam, etc, as well as a Zimbabwe/ Mozambique Recce with Tours for Africa in 2010.
WHAT MADE YOU DECIDE TO BOOK ON THE CAPE TO CAIRO 2011: It has always been a dream and my passion to travel through Africa (preferably on a motorcycle, but a car or bicycle would have also been an option). Earlier in the year a group of us planned a trip to Tanzania and back, but like most of these “African travel” plans, most of the guys cancelled. I continued to do research of tours/groups that I could join, when I read about Tours for Africa in a motorcycle magazine in about February 2010. I immediately contacted Ray Muller by telephone, followed up by a visit to Johannesburg to find out more. I have ever since bugged Ray for the details. As a matter of interest, as soon as I received the Tours for Africa e-mail of the trip, I committed and paid within 30 minutes.
WHAT ARE YOUR PERSONAL FEELINGS ABOUT THE LIFE CHANGING UNDERTAKING YOU ARE EMBARKING ON: I’m very excited and hope I’ll be able to meet the challenge we will be facing. Many things can go wrong, eg mechanical, physical, health, psychological, etc. To the extent that I can prepare for it, for instance improving my mechanical knowledge of the bike, reading & learning about the terrain & environment through which we will travel, meeting & getting to know fellow riders and getting my mind right for the trip, I’ll do what is required. The unknown, things I do not think of or are unable to plan for, is what makes me wonder and to some extent, worry/excited. People, the participants/riders, can make or break such a trip. Therefore, it is important for me and everyone else to realise that things will not always go according to plan. Fortunately, I do not see myself as a control freak and can easily adapt to be a follower and accept change, challenges and problems occurring without it having a serious effect on me. I pray that these thoughts and a huge sense of humour and compassion for fellow riders remain with me throughout the trip. It’s hard to think I have to leave my family at home for 40 days, but trust that they will be as excited about my dream as I am.
WHAT ARE YOUR EXPECTATIONS: Having fun on the bike, sharing fellow riders’ experiences and thoughts, thinking about new & innovative ideas, spending quality time with the 3 of us (me, myself & I), adding another great accomplishment to my CV. After the trip I wish to be a better rider than before. I want to learn about, and to some extend experience, the different cultures of the countries and nations through which we will travel. Wow, I can hardly wait and the KTM is idling already!
WHAT DO YOU FEAR THE MOST AND WHAT ARE YOU EXPECTING FROM THIS EXPERIENCE: My biggest fear is not being able to start or complete the tour.