AROUND THE WORLD WITH SCOTT ONROAD PART 4

After a few months it is again time for some news about the adventurous Czech couple Mirka and Vojta traveling around the world with our Dualraid DP and Ergonomic Pro DP gear. We all love to follow their story - read more about their latest adventures in the interview.

The last report was published in March where you were in Chile. By now you have crossed a lot of South America already and we are sure you have a lot to tell. What happened since we brought the last report about you? Where did you travel in the meantime?

So many things happened since the last report. We reached the most southern point of America near Punta Arenas and headed down south to the most famous and most southern city in the world, Ushuaia. From there we went north again through Chile and visited many national parks. It was beautiful and some places were wild and deserted. After, we followed the famous Chilean road Carretera Austral and the landscape changed behind every horizon from country side, to "moon surface" and to rain forests. We finally arrived in Santiago where we had to do major repairs, maintenance and change tires.

We left Santiago quite late (autumn). We were lucky - just a few days after we crossed Paso Libertadores to Argentina it was closed due to snow. For two months we were slowly going north on Ruta 40 and enjoyed Argentina to the fullest from thermal baths, vine yards to high mountains and more. After, we went to Bolivia and crossed the world`s biggest salt area, Salar de Uyuni. Snow stopped us several times along the way. First when we tried to get back to Chile and second, when we were about to get to the Stone Tree (Arbol de Peidra) south of Bolivia at 4600 meters. We had to turn back and now we are again in Chile enjoying warm weather by the Pacific Ocean, heading back to Bolivia.

We have also heard that you had to interrupt your world tour for a little while and went back home?

Just a day before we were about to leave Santiago, Mirka was told that her sister is in hospital. A quick decision was made and one day later we were on the plane back to Czech Republic. It was a big surprise for our family and friends as we told nobody.

How long did you stay in Czech Republic and how did you feel to go back again to South America?

We stayed home for almost a month and we really enjoyed it. To see our family and friends after more than a year on the road was pretty overwhelming. We were not sure if we were looking forward to going back on the road but now we are here in Chile! Maybe it was due to the weather or the desire to be with our families. We slept every day in warm bed and could use a car every day. It was very comfortable! Going back to Chile, where at that time it was autumn, was very hard for Mirka especially because we knew we have to camp a lot to keep our budget.

What did you do with your equipment in the meantime?

We were lucky because we met many great people on our trip. We had several options where to leave our stuff. At the end it was outside of Santiago and really safe.

What is your plan for the rest of the trip now? How long will it take and where do you want to go?

This question is not so easy to answer because we did not really plan our route in South America besides the main tourist attraction. What we know is that now we are going north where the weather should be warm. Like this we are not in a rush at all. We are thinking of going to places like the death road in Bolivia and to Machu Pichu and the Nazca lines in Peru. Probably we will be in Colombia in two months.

Coming to the SCOTT gear: What are the conditions after wearing it for so many months throughout the most different weather conditions? Are you still happy with the functionality?

There is no end in sight for SCOTT! The gear is full of dust, mud and other stains (mostly food), Vojta's pants are burned from the exhaust pipe, Mirka's knees are worn out but otherwise everything is working how it's supposed to work. We are wearing the gear every day and there is no single sign of the gear being damaged, torn or ripped off apart of mechanical damage caused by ourselves. We are also wearing the rain suit (Ergonomic Pro DP) very often as an additional to prevent our bodies from the cold. Even though we are not handling it nicely all the time, there is no damage to the gear.

Can you please try to give a short statement about our gear and the brand that you experienced on your trip?

 The gear is practical for everyday usage and comfortable for full days of riding thanks to perfect SAStec protectors. It is also very suitable for riding in any weather conditions. The gear can be combined with inner layers and a rain suit for cold days or it could be worn without anything for very hot days. This is exactly what "over landers" need.

Do you think you gave an impact to the Czech market that more people want to do something similar like you did?

This is hard to say but a lot of people wrote us that they would love to do something like we do. There are at least one or two folks we inspired to quit their job and start traveling. Even it is only a few, we are proud that we can inspire people.

Do you think that the SCOTT brand awareness in your country increased by people following your story?

We hope it did! In fact our distributor Motopalic is doing the best to do so. Also a lot of people react to our pictures asking which gear we are wearing and if we are happy with it. Thats for sure very good for marketing.

Finally, a few questions concerning our cooperation: Could you imagine to continue after you finish your trip? (Do product tests, attend meetings where you can explain your story and experience, join photo shootings etc.)

We would love to continue our cooperation! Although we are currently on our big trip, we are already thinking where to go next. We have a whole list of countries where we would like to go again to explore better. There are for sure plenty of opportunities where to go with the SCOTT gear next. We also like the idea of joining tests, shootings and meetings to talk with people about experiences, possible improvements and so on.

What is your feeling about our cooperation in general? Were you happy throughout the trip or is there something you would like to be improved?

We are more than happy with our cooperation and we think its a good teamwork. Hope you guys are happy as well.