PRESENTERS
Confirmed presenters for the Winter Warmer 2022 are below, Those presenting at WW 2023 will be listed shortly,
Click each presenter for more information!
Helen Lloyd
Helen spends most of her time travelling. Even when she’s working to save up for the next trip, she maintains the freedom of an itinerant lifestyle by residing in her van.
For her first big overland journey, she cycled from the UK to Cape Town. Since then she’s pedalled down North and Central America and across Asia, packrafted in Nicaragua, bought and ridden a horse in Kyrgyzstan, and paddled a pirogue down the Niger River in Guinea.
After a winter cycling in Siberia(!), she finally upgraded to a motorbike and hasn’t looked back. She has since returned to Africa on her XT225 Serow, has ridden it across Europe twice and spent summer 2019 exploring Iceland’s remote highland trails.
At the WW in 2020 she launched her book - 'Iceland, Serow Saga' about the experience. It was her 3rd book, her two previous – 'Desert Snow' and 'A Siberian Winter’s Tale' – were about her cycling adventures.
Previously she has talked about the 15 months she spent riding her Yamaha from Cape Town to Cairo: exploring the remoter parts of Angola to Ethiopia’s Danakil depression (hottest inhabited place on earth) with mine-avoidance, monkey mischief, safaris, volcanoes, salt flats, pyramids in the desert and other tales.
She's due to arrive back in the UK just before The Winter Warmer so hasn't yet confirmed what she'll present about, but she's always engaging and has great stories to tell.
For her first big overland journey, she cycled from the UK to Cape Town. Since then she’s pedalled down North and Central America and across Asia, packrafted in Nicaragua, bought and ridden a horse in Kyrgyzstan, and paddled a pirogue down the Niger River in Guinea.
After a winter cycling in Siberia(!), she finally upgraded to a motorbike and hasn’t looked back. She has since returned to Africa on her XT225 Serow, has ridden it across Europe twice and spent summer 2019 exploring Iceland’s remote highland trails.
At the WW in 2020 she launched her book - 'Iceland, Serow Saga' about the experience. It was her 3rd book, her two previous – 'Desert Snow' and 'A Siberian Winter’s Tale' – were about her cycling adventures.
Previously she has talked about the 15 months she spent riding her Yamaha from Cape Town to Cairo: exploring the remoter parts of Angola to Ethiopia’s Danakil depression (hottest inhabited place on earth) with mine-avoidance, monkey mischief, safaris, volcanoes, salt flats, pyramids in the desert and other tales.
She's due to arrive back in the UK just before The Winter Warmer so hasn't yet confirmed what she'll present about, but she's always engaging and has great stories to tell.
Supported by Dunlop Tyres
No matter how you like to ride, there’s a Dunlop tyre that’s perfect for you and your bike. Ever since John Dunlop invented the pneumatic tyre in 1888, Dunlop have been at the forefront of tyre technology. They never stop trying to improve riders’ grip, control and safety. Continually developing new technologies they have an incredible range of tyres to suit every kind of adventure and touring machine. All new technologies are thoroughly tried and tested in racing conditions so you can concentrate on nothing but the road ahead. And just ride.
Fern Hume
Although Fern's epic global ride aboard her DRZ400 began back in 2011, now that she's back in the UK she hasn't stopped travelling. Now though, she's been exploring the world on micro adventures, setting a £1000 budget and seeing where in the world she can get to, hire a bike and ride until the money runs out. You'll be amazed at what's possible! Fern's Grand idea!
Bruce Smart
Bruce Smart had a GSXR when he decided that he would follow his mum's advice and 'Live his life'. So he set off Round the World and the tale of how it all went became the hugely successful book 'Live Your LIfe' released back in 2015. But more recently he's undertaken an electric bike ride around the UK, so it'll be interesting to hear the reality of that! You probably know him as a proliffic vlogger, and is always game to lift the lid on the mystery. How do you do it? Why should you do it? What works, and what doesn't, should all be covered in his workshop.
Tiffany Coates
Tiffany Coates is the world’s foremost female motorcycle adventurer, having travelled over 300,000 miles crossing every continent, some of them several times. Each year she heads off on new adventures. She discovered motorbike travel by accident after several years of backpacking. Her initial two-wheeled adventure involved riding overland to India when she set off two-up on a BMW R80GS alongside her best friend, with just two months riding experience between them. Overland Magazine has featured some of her stories from those early journeys and she'll be talking about something to do with Africa at the Winter Warmer. Perhaps the mud of Madagascar or wonderful Uganda, which she says is a must-see for all overlanders. Remote riding adventures remain her passion, something she now shares with others in her role as freelance motorcycle guide, working with the biggest names in the industry.
Max Jowett
Max is probably known to you as the owner of TravelDri, selling camping equipment and motorcycle gear at The Overland Event and many other shows across the country. But he's widely travelled and has led mountaineering expeditions to the Annapurna region of Nepal in the early 90’s whilst also enjoying winter mountaineering, rock and ice climbing, before setting up and running a charity called Wheels 2 Work.
It’s a motorcycle loan programme for disadvantaged people, that stretched over five counties and had nearly 300 motorcycles on the road helping isolated people access work and education. He ran two motorcycle dealerships investing all of the profits back into local communities through Wheels 2 Work.
At The Winter Warmer this year he'll be talking about his recent CRF250 ride through West Africa. A couple of years ago he left his bike out there but is now back with it and will have only just returned from Sierra Leone when the Winter warmer begins!
It’s a motorcycle loan programme for disadvantaged people, that stretched over five counties and had nearly 300 motorcycles on the road helping isolated people access work and education. He ran two motorcycle dealerships investing all of the profits back into local communities through Wheels 2 Work.
At The Winter Warmer this year he'll be talking about his recent CRF250 ride through West Africa. A couple of years ago he left his bike out there but is now back with it and will have only just returned from Sierra Leone when the Winter warmer begins!
Simon & Lisa Thomas
Since 2003 when they first left the UK on a BMW R1150GSA and an F650GS, Simon and Lisa Thomas have ridden something like half a million miles through 78 countries, breaking records and more than a few bones along the way.
We’re thrilled that they are to be part of the Winter Warmer but rather than talk directly about their travels, they'lll be running some workshops. Lisa will be cooking up something really special: an on-the-road cookery workshop, while Simon will be offering a taster of the photography courses they now offer through their Living Lens project. https://www.livinglens.photography/
Find out more about their mammoth trip here
https://2ridetheworld.com/
We’re thrilled that they are to be part of the Winter Warmer but rather than talk directly about their travels, they'lll be running some workshops. Lisa will be cooking up something really special: an on-the-road cookery workshop, while Simon will be offering a taster of the photography courses they now offer through their Living Lens project. https://www.livinglens.photography/
Find out more about their mammoth trip here
https://2ridetheworld.com/
Supported by Dunlop Tyres
No matter how you like to ride, there’s a Dunlop tyre that’s perfect for you and your bike. Ever since John Dunlop invented the pneumatic tyre in 1888, Dunlop have been at the forefront of tyre technology. They never stop trying to improve riders’ grip, control and safety. Continually developing new technologies they have an incredible range of tyres to suit every kind of adventure and touring machine. All new technologies are thoroughly tried and tested in racing conditions so you can concentrate on nothing but the road ahead. And just ride.
Mike Vitkovitch
A proper engineer and motorcyclist who only reads one kind of book; a bike manual. Well that was the case, but he's now learning to enjoy writing, especially about his travels, and was second in the Rev'It Overland adventure writing challenge in 2015. He rides whenever and wherever he has an opportunity and particularly loves the desert... still unable to resist a good challenge. He'll be talking about surviving incredible flash floods in Morocco.
Jacqui Furneaux
In the summer of 2000, Jacqui Furneaux began what became a seven-year journey around the world through 20 countries on a 500cc Royal Enfield Bullet. That was seven years without a plan. Hit the Road Jac! tells the story of that life-changing adventure. Ted Simon called it, “much more than an absorbing book, this is a manual for self-discovery.” She hasn’t stopped travelling though and has recntly returned from a 6-month ride in Australia, still using her Enfield, which remains her everyday transport in the UK.
Supported by Dunlop Tyres
No matter how you like to ride, there’s a Dunlop tyre that’s perfect for you and your bike. Ever since John Dunlop invented the pneumatic tyre in 1888, Dunlop have been at the forefront of tyre technology. They never stop trying to improve riders’ grip, control and safety. Continually developing new technologies they have an incredible range of tyres to suit every kind of adventure and touring machine. All new technologies are thoroughly tried and tested in racing conditions so you can concentrate on nothing but the road ahead. And just ride.
Aron Molnar
Aron, a Hungarian engineer, dreamed big, packed his belongings, burnt his bridges and left London with his partner 2-up on an R1200 GSA in 2019.The idea was to keep heading east, see the world and take pictures of beautiful places, but he learned the hard way that travelling is not only about waterfalls and pink sunsets.
It became clear travelling comes with dramas and that the real beauty of being on the road is to interact with people. His story is about friendship, miracles and kind strangers on the road.
It became clear travelling comes with dramas and that the real beauty of being on the road is to interact with people. His story is about friendship, miracles and kind strangers on the road.
Claire Elsdon
Claire Elsdon is a recovering banker who, in 2012, quit her City stock-broking job to ride her Suzuki DRZ solo the length of Africa. You could say it changed her life…
Having lived for the best part of a decade immersed in the highly competitive, often brutal world of the trading floor, Claire was keen to re-examine her beliefs about how the world really worked and what her role is within it should be.
She ended up in Malawi on a voluntary placement and was confronted by the shockingly high casualty rate of motorcycle taxi-riders and their passengers. This led to her running motorcycle maintenance and road safety classes for a microloan charity which had a fleet of 80 knackered Yamaha DTs. By the end of that the running costs of the charity had been reduced by 60%.
Ultimately she moved to Tanzania and established the Pikilily movement, a community-based organisation empowering and training local women to ride motorcycles and earn an income by serving their communities as safe motorcycle taxi riders. In addition, these women voluntarily run training sessions for the community in safe motorcycling, reducing crash rates and gently challenging gender stereotypes.
Although Claire moved back to the UK in 2019 the fine women of MJ Piki (which stands for “brave motorcycling woman” in Kiswahili) continue their work and to date have trained over 3000 men, women and children in motorcycle safety. It's the charity we supported at The summer Overland Event with this year.
Even though she has just given birth to a beautiful baby daughter, Claire will be talking about riding Africa solo, and will doubtless mention the importance of good motorcycle maintenance…
Having lived for the best part of a decade immersed in the highly competitive, often brutal world of the trading floor, Claire was keen to re-examine her beliefs about how the world really worked and what her role is within it should be.
She ended up in Malawi on a voluntary placement and was confronted by the shockingly high casualty rate of motorcycle taxi-riders and their passengers. This led to her running motorcycle maintenance and road safety classes for a microloan charity which had a fleet of 80 knackered Yamaha DTs. By the end of that the running costs of the charity had been reduced by 60%.
Ultimately she moved to Tanzania and established the Pikilily movement, a community-based organisation empowering and training local women to ride motorcycles and earn an income by serving their communities as safe motorcycle taxi riders. In addition, these women voluntarily run training sessions for the community in safe motorcycling, reducing crash rates and gently challenging gender stereotypes.
Although Claire moved back to the UK in 2019 the fine women of MJ Piki (which stands for “brave motorcycling woman” in Kiswahili) continue their work and to date have trained over 3000 men, women and children in motorcycle safety. It's the charity we supported at The summer Overland Event with this year.
Even though she has just given birth to a beautiful baby daughter, Claire will be talking about riding Africa solo, and will doubtless mention the importance of good motorcycle maintenance…
Matt Booth
Matt didn't have a proper motorbike licence when he decided to ride from New Zealand to the UK. Some would argue he still doesn't.
Leaving a comfortable life in Middle Earth to join the great unwashed on the road was supposed to be the culmination of a long-held dream. The reality was a mismanaged farce that illustrated the best way not to travel.
He'll tell the story, but be warned, he can do things with a flip-flop that you wouldn't imagine...
Leaving a comfortable life in Middle Earth to join the great unwashed on the road was supposed to be the culmination of a long-held dream. The reality was a mismanaged farce that illustrated the best way not to travel.
He'll tell the story, but be warned, he can do things with a flip-flop that you wouldn't imagine...
Ian Coates
“Ian Coates is remarkable for many reasons, not least his incredible story-telling. Life on the road has been good to this mild-mannered mechanic from Hebden Bridge in Yorkshire, who seems to let serendipity create remarkable situations.”
During his 14-year journey around the world on a 1991 Honda Africa Twin, Ian clocked up nearly a quarter of a million miles and visited just about everywhere there is to visit. Nobody knows what he'll talk about this time, but even though he's soon to celebrate his 80th birthday, there's no slowing his storytelling!
During his 14-year journey around the world on a 1991 Honda Africa Twin, Ian clocked up nearly a quarter of a million miles and visited just about everywhere there is to visit. Nobody knows what he'll talk about this time, but even though he's soon to celebrate his 80th birthday, there's no slowing his storytelling!