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Around the world on a BDO bike
At the end of 2008, José Antonio Miquel Silvestre approached BDO in Spain for sponsorship of his solo motorbike trip from Madrid to Timbuktu. They agreed and, his initial itinerary having changed, he flew to Kenya, purchased a BMW R80 and set off for Cape Town, visiting BDO offices in the different countries he travelled through. He currently uses 3 BMW motorbikes for his travels, on 3 different continents.
His first African adventure was such a positive experience for him that he has now taken unpaid leave (from his position as a property registrar) in order to continue travelling with the support of the international BDO network.
In the last two years he has travelled more than 90,000 km across 4 continents, taking in some 60 countries and visiting more than 30 BDO offices. His travels have included Kenya to South Africa, Madrid to Kazakhstan (via Russia), Kazakhstan to Madrid (via the Middle East), a US trip from Miami, via San Francisco and Vancouver to New York, Barcelona to Dakar and Madrid to Iran (through Turkey) and back to Spain (via North Africa).
BDO Spain sponsored Miquel’s project for two years and the press coverage resulting from their sponsorship has been almost as impressive as his adventure:
• Miquel’s travels have been covered more than 50 times in the Spanish press, for example in ABC, El País, travel magazines (Vueling, Zona Rutera… ) and specialised motorcycling magazines (Solo Moto, BMW Moto Magazine…), as well as other publications (Yorokobu, El Duende, Reebok Sports Club…)
• He has also featured in the Israeli and Senegalese press, as well as on the BMW web site and other sites specialising in the world of motorcycling and adventure
• Miquel’s bilingual web site (www.miquelsilvestre.com) includes a number of blogs where he talks of his adventures in both English and Spanish (www.miquelsilvestre.blogspot.com/)
• His first travel book Un millón de piedras (a million stones) is in the process of being printed. It includes countless photos and tales of the friendships made with BDO partners and the different BDO offices he has visited on his travels through Africa.
Miquel would like to continue taking the BDO logo throughout the world in his bike. His currently planned projects include routes from New York to Ushuaia in Argentina, as well as one to India and China (Beijing). He is looking for financial as well as practical support at local level – in particular with regard to obtaining the necessary visas to enter certain countries with his bike - from BDO firms. In return, as well as the potential for extensive press coverage, Miquel offers to present a choice of seminars to the offices he visits. His subjects include cultural differences and coping with difficulties in stressful situations.
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