Feature
After three months of searching, Sandford eventually found one model
on ebay and another through the British Norton Owners' Club, both
costing around $4000. They're not the exact 1939 Norton 500 Model 18
that Guevara used, but after sourcing period frames, engines and forks,
Sandford built two bikes as near as dammit to the original.
The plan was to allow eight weeks for the 5,000-mile road trip and
to stay true to the spirit of Guevara's trip which was to travel alone,
without any back-up, and to stay with locals whenever possible or just
camp rough the rest of the time. In other words, no frills.
The Adventure Begins
January 10, 2009
After a year of planning, sourcing bikes, settling on a route, and sorting
out a thousand other issues, the two Nortons were crated up and sailing
over the Atlantic by late December of 2008. Pete and Steve would fly
out to meet them at Buenos Aires on January 10. Or at least that was the
plan. In reality, it took nine days for the bikes to clear customs, and to
add insult to injury, the authorities charged Pete and Steve for nine days
storage expenses!