New Telegraph

DEEPAK KAMATH: Life’s good to me as an adventurer

Background

Deepak Kamath, Indian national, is of Adventures of Armstrong, an overland adventurer travelling through the seven continents of the world on his super motorbike. He was in Badagry, Lagos, on the Nigeria leg of His African Odyssey, which is targeted at exploring all the countries in Africa in commemoration of Indian’s 75th Independence anniversary celebration later in the year, recently where this reporter, who was part of the Best of Lagos Fam Tour team encountered him at Badagry Museum in the company of some of his Nigerian bikers. Kamath comes across as a very lively and passionate adventurer, who is committed to humanity and his exploration of the world, describing his love for adventures, which has spanned over two decades as ‘madness.’ He is well read and educated, with a degree in Commerce, a project manager by profession with specialty in transitions and a corporate career spanning two decades. He is married to Anitha, who is also part of his adventures and has a daughter, who is pursuing Masters in Developmental Biology (Genetics) in one of the top universities in the United Kingdom. Kamath spoke extensively of his life of adventures and desire to conquer the world before drawing the curtain on what could be described as an illustrious and exciting Odyssey across the world in the coming months and then switch to core adventures of a different hue. Excerpts…

What inspired your going into adventure?

My mother used to love travel and I have her genes that pushed me to like travelling a lot. However, I found normal travelling a little mundane and opted to influence my travels with adventure and I have not looked back since 1988.

What was the reaction from your family and friends when you first started on this course?

My first travel was an adventure that took me cycling around my own country. Twelve thousand kilometers over four months that took me across many States of my country and I went into Nepal too. My parents followed me to many cities and it gave me an opportunity to have a good family time and also helped to assure my parents that I am doing well. My friends have been extension of my family, they have greatly influenced me in building courage and thinking out of the box.

What was the first country you travelled to?

Nepal in 1988, on my cycling route and I did not need a visa. However, with all logistics and half-baked planning, it all ended in Kenya, a failed attempt to cycle around the world in 1988. Unfortunately, we do not have good ties with Pakistan and they would not allow us to exit our country into theirs by land to head further west. Hence, I opted for Kenya, so as to cycle up to Egypt and later sail into Greece.

What was the experience like?

Since this attempt was not completely planned and was undertaken with just a lot of encouragement, I hit hurdles at every other stage and that slowed me down with many logistical nightmares. For an Indian, getting the visas is one big challenge with many countries which then suspected Indians to be refuge seekers, (There are many who I know, who took cycling around the world as an option to settle down in many countries), border crossings were very interrogative. What made matters worse was that with my cycle stolen at the Greece – Bulgaria border, and I had to hitchhike into the erstwhile Yugoslavia and taking a train from Zagreb to Bologna, and made to deboard the train in Trieste, while many background checks were done for over 36 hours. It was then I made the decision that I will switch to motorcycling, as it is a big beautiful world and I may never make time to cycle around this world. I returned home from Rome in 1990.

How do you fund your trips?

Funding my cycling was mostly from parents and Rotary Club, who helped connect, but motorcycling has been mostly funded by various sponsors though I do end up using some of my own money.

Do you sometimes travel with a group or all alone by yourself?

I sell my dreams on a PowerPoint presentation and the bike manufacturer would ideally want two or more motorcycles to be a team from a visibility perspective. I end up choosing people, who I think can match my demands in deliverables, though seldom it has been the way I want. However, for the current African Odyssey, I was very clear in my proposals that I wish to do it alone for the simple challenges in logistics and split-second decisions that need to be made on the go. I have always put my sponsors ahead of my own wants, and unfortunately, that is something I did not find in the team I chose. To help reduce stress on the ride, I now prefer to ride alone. I find it difficult to understand people who are riding under the aegis of a sponsorship but do not want to give back in return by way of a product feedback or photographs.

What exactly is the purpose of your travels

There is no other purpose to my travels other than adventure. I have 7/10 most dangerous roads in the world that I have taken my motorcycle on and wish to keep it that way. However, on this current ride, and with 49 countries till Ghana, I am targeting 75 countries’ borders by August. India is commemorating 75 Years of Indian Independence and I wish to get the number of borders that match.

How many countries and continents have you visited so far?

49 till Ghana and all over the seven continents and that include Antarctica.

Which country is the next on your basket and why?

This is the last long ride I would do and by the time I finish in Turkey, I would be looking at core adventures on a different level and those will be short; a 15–30-day rides. I have few countries on my radar with no specific country in order of preference.

Have you ever been in danger and if yes, how did you survive it?

No.

Have you ever been robbed on your trips and how did you cope with it?

None, however, I was almost robbed in my own country and with a little presence of mind, I was able to get away. Having said this, it is important to understand that I was late to retire for the day and it was quite dark. These unhealthy elements are all over the world, so it should not be construed that my country alone has such.

Have you ever run out of cash and how did you survived it?

No, but I have run low and people have always helped unconditionally.

Which is the most outstanding country visited by you and why?

Argentina from my previous travels and Namibia from the current travel for the sheer landscapes and varieties they have and making it so easy for people to travel. Having said that, I strongly believe that people make any country a great place to visit and all the countries so far I visited the people have been so kind and overwhelming. While in Nigeria, I can only thank the outstanding hospitality of the Tolaram Group, the brilliant support by the Primlaks Group and such robust support by way of diplomacy by the Indian High Commission. There are so many people, including the fabulous motorcycling group of Mettalic BullRidaz of Lagos who took a day off from a working day week, and accompanied me to Badagry. I shall never forget the kindness of such people and so many more who made mine stay in Lagos one of the most memorable.

Which is the worse country for you and why?

As mentioned above, people make a country good or bad and I have always had some fabulous people. I wish the governance in few countries was devoid of rampant corruption and more focus towards the betterment of the society.

Apart from Lagos, how many other states or places in Nigeria have you visited?

Calabar, Owerri, Benin City and Badagry.

Which of these places are most outstanding for you and why?

Calabar; the roundabouts are fantastic!! I really loved the huge sculptures and such beautiful history behind those pieces. I loved Owerri too and Lagos takes the cake for all the good reasons. While Badagry is also good, it’s traumatic experience to realise the number of people who were driven out as slaves to the western hemisphere through Badagry. While it is good to visit, it’s a haunting experience for me to go through the feelings of those people, who would never come back.

Do you ever dream of visiting Nigeria again and why?

Absolutely! I would come back to Nigeria because of the people and spend more time enjoying the hospitality of the fabulous people.

What are the most valuable lessons you have learnt from your travels?

People are generally nice and welcoming. One should not perceive or anticipate the behaviour of any form but should always feel that you are always being welcomed and that is the truth. I have stopped by in remote of remotest villages along the road and the kind of warmth I have experienced is beyond any kind words that I could mention. And along the journey, if I am able to make a small shopkeeper or a child happy by way of a tip or a biscuit, the travels are more fulfilling. The Lord has been kind and has given me enough, and I believe the knowledge of sharing the travels and also a meal with the less fortunate ones is what brings humanity closer. I do not trust the politics and I am religion neutral.

You did a video project called 7 miles and 7th continents, what inspired it and what is it about?

First, such experiences always leave a lifetime memory. The 7 Miles on Antarctica has been the most challenging, most exhilarating, and undoubtedly the most memorable and not having dropped the bike even once, makes it that special! There are so many people behind that and I have included those in my video so that people realise that when I am the face of an adventure, there are many people who unconditionally rose up to support my madness.

How fulfilled are you with your life of adventures?

Life has been good and I am not sure how better it can get from here. I am hitting the retirement bench after this ride, meaning, I am contented.

How do your family; wife and children; cope with your absence?

There is no absence, my wife joins me in my madness and my daughter has her focus right on her education. My wife and I have travelled over 50, 000 kilometers and she sitting as my pillion. She will be joining me in Morocco and we will travel through Europe for over 25, 000 kilometers. .

What do you miss most about home and family when on your travels?

There is no room for sentiments and missing home. I embraced travel willingly and work a way around it to ensure that my wife too joins me in places where it is easy for me to take her as a pillion and that fills any void that can possibly come up. She was with me during the start of this adventure in South Africa and we celebrated 25 years of marriage in Cape Agulhas! What is your advice to people? Focus on your priorities and work hard towards achieving them. Today, the world revolves on a social media platform and YouTube but they are not the priorities in life.

Education offers a good paying job but you should know where to stop chasing a big/bigger bank balance. It’s a big beautiful world out there, spend some planned travel with your family and enjoy nature. Visit the lesser known countries than getting into urban chaos. There is always time to chase a passion, just because some get it easy, it might not be the same with everyone. I find it difficult too with the trending youngsters and corporate having impractical MBA graduates which drive some important portfolios. The generation is changing and it is not getting any easy anymore hence, it is important to ensure you have a sound education and a job that is fulfilling, but always remember to give your attention to family.

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