GS Trophy:Behind The Scenes

This entry is part 15 of 19 in the series Adventure Rider Issue #30

Miles Davis goes global with a behind-the-scenes look at BMW’s international GS event.

In May I headed to Mongolia for the BMW Motorrad International GS Trophy as one of 15 marshals assigned to escort teams during the eight-day competition. It was my first gig on the GS Trophy and I was really excited to be part of such a large-scale international event.

Practice Loop

We arrived in UB (that’s locals’ talk for Ulaan Baatar), about two weeks before the actual competition, to do a 12-day, 3000km ride of the course to make sure we understood the route, locations and special tests. We were also shooting promotional video and pics.

On the scouting tour there were marshals from Germany, France, Turkey, England, Thailand, Malaysia, South Africa, Canada and Australia, so it was a truly international affair. The support team included video, photography, event management, tech support and Doc Tom on a GS. That made for an entourage of about 22 bikes and a few support cars.

The main man behind the GS Trophy is Tom Wolf, an ex-racer who’s been riding GSs all over the world for decades. Tom spent almost six months in Mongolia working on this event so he got to know it pretty well, and Trophy marshals reported to Tom to ensure participants got through each day safely and with big grins.

Miles Davis

Scenery overload

After setting up our brand-spankin’-new bikes we cruised out of UB to see what the real Mongolia was all about.

The next 12 days took us through some incredible terrain that changed drastically from day to day, from lunar-like barren plains to the awesome dunes of the Gobi Desert and outback mountain ranges.

One range had ‘The Ice Canyon’. It was 500 metres long and had thick ice walls with creeks flowing below. We had to take another pass to get around it, but luckily it melted enough so riders could get through 10 days later.

As we headed north the vegetation turned slightly green and more mountainous with patches of trees, something we hadn’t really seen at all until then.

Wildlife galore

The terrain and scenery were epic, but that was only part of the experience.

The thing that took a while to get used to was the number of animals.

There were plenty of farming herds belonging to nomadic locals, but aside from that I’ve never seen so many wild animals – mainly camels and beautiful wild horses. On day one everyone was like, “Wow!” But then we realised it was basically never-ending. And every now and then we saw these super-speedy mini gazelles that left vapour trails as they roosted away from the bikes.

We could get quite close to the camels and they were serious beasts. They’re very weathered from the harsh, dry, windy conditions, and many were still losing their thick winter fur. The baby camels stayed in the middle of the pack and the herd tried to hide them from danger.

The horses were quite surreal. They ran alongside us and across the tracks in front of us, wind blowing their manes just like in a movie, and they were quite tame. We could roll up to them slowly and they didn’t bugger off right away.

The terrain and scenery were epic.

There were plenty of baby horses too. Their long, wobbly, spaghetti legs didn’t look so stable, but they made sure they hung close to mum.

On top of this we did see yaks in some parts of the country and they’re quite bizarre. They’re a lot like cows, but with fashionable hair extensions.

Then there’s the airborne wildlife.

I have never seen so many eagles, kites and other cool hunting birds in my life.

In Australia I’ve had some incredible ‘Wedgie moments’ (of the eagle variety)on my GS, but they’re quite rare. In Mongolia, more often than not there’s an eagle in sight. There were many moments when I had to remember to look at the track and not at the incredible birds soaring beside and above as I cruised along.

We were lucky to see a few traditional shows at some of the camps and it’s clear how important horses are to the Mongolian culture. So are the eagles when it comes to using them for hunting.

Shooting promotional video and pics.

Good times in the Gobi

One of the highlights of the recce was the day we spent riding the Gobi Desert dunes.

At times almost 20 of us were spread out in a wide formation in very windy conditions, cresting some awesome desert scenery.

It was so dramatic it almost looked fake.

Much of the route that day was sand, either flat plains or sandy roads and tracks. Then, at the end, we went into the middle of the massive dunes and a few of us got to really have a play. We went nuts in a Gobi dune playground.

We rolled into the next camp, just on the edge of the dunes, very worn out and with huge grins on our dials, what a day!

Event stats

• 72 participants from over 20 countries
• 16 marshals
• Three doctors
• Six TV crew
• Three photographers
• Four motorcycle technical support
• IT/connectivity.
• 10 event management
• Three Mongolian local event specialists
• 33 support vehicles/drivers
• One helicopter
• 20-man catering team
• 114 specially prepared R1200GS Rallyes

The Aussie team. Shane Booth, Shane Gutteridge, Simon Turvey and Michael Haley.

GS Trophy

GS Trophy is a competition for BMW GS owners. It’s not a race, but more like a decathlon, with a variety of special tests and a points system. One could be a trials test, then navigation, then river crossing, bike towing, tyre changing and so forth. The event takes place every two years in spectacular locations all over the world. Participating countries run qualifying events in the off years to select their teams. Teams are made up of three members plus a local journalist from each country.

Previous events were Thailand 2016, Canada 2014, South America 2012, South Africa 2010 and Tunisia 2008.

This year there were 18 teams, including two International Women’s Teams.

Julia Maguire rode on team AusAmerica.

Sand Blasted

That night a massive, howling sand storm came in and it kept going the next day. We were scheduled to go back to the dunes for a video session, but I was sure we’d stay put and chalk it up as a rest day. I was shocked when a few of us were asked to suit up. It was on!

Visibility was so bad that without a good GPS we’d have never made it across the plains to the dunes. Luckily we did, and we spent the next few hours with the film crew doing some really fun – and slightly nuts – sand riding. I look forward to seeing what comes of it.

Small world

The next day we arrived at the Magic Cliffs, one of the local spectacles, and bumped into a dirtbike tour taking in the sights. It turned out there were three Aussie boys from the Goldie on the tour. They’d found it on Facebook and decided it was worth a go.

It’s amazing who you bump into in the middle of nowhere.

Later in the week we met three crazy Brits (one who lived in Bondi) on local rental bikes, loaded to the hilt, doing their own Mongolian adventure. The Chinese bikes were rough, but what can you expect for 10 Euro a day? It goes to show there’s more than one way to live an adventure.

Teched up

Being in such a remote part of the world BMW had gone to a lot of effort to provide marshals with a solid program and support. We had a dedicated iPhone with a local SIM card installed, and which paired to a ‘Sat sleeve’. That gave the option to be used as a standard mobile or a sat phone, depending on coverage at the time. On top of this the phone could pair with the BMW helmet intercom. It was great peace of mind to have solid communication with medical and event support.

The Aussie contingent

This was the first time Australia had entered a team in the GS Trophy. The team consisted of Michael Haley, Shane Guttridge, Simon Turvey, plus team journalist Shane Booth. The boys felt a bit of pressure as Australia is world-renowned as an adventure-riding hot spot, but the event isn’t all about the competition.

It’s about people, places and motorcycles, and the competition is a bit of fun as well.

As well as the Aussie team we had Julia Maguire on team AusAmerica with two American girls. Amy Harburg had participated in the 2016 GS Trophy in Thailand on the first-ever International womens’ team and was part of the marshal team for this event. Then there was our token Aussie from Poland, Kinga from onherbike.com, who took a break from her RTW trip to be a guest blogger on GS Trophy. Things went great until about 100km from the end when she fell and snapped her tib/fib. She’s back in Sydney rehabbing and planning the next leg of her trip. Get well soon Kinga!

The wrap

The GS Trophy was a massive success.

The combined energy of the participants and their passion for GS motorcycles was incredible. Many friendships where made and I now have invites to ride in at least 10 countries.

South Africa won, Australia finished 10th, team AusAmerica with Julia finished 15th.

BMW pumped out some great updates during the event. You can see daily videos, posts and information at www.gstrophy.com or on Facebook. Search ‘gstrophy’

But wait. There’s more.

I’m only home for a couple of weeks before I head back to Mongolia to help run the ‘Follow The Trails’ tours. BMW sold out eight week-long tours covering the same basic route as GS Trophy. It looks like I’m going to set a new PB for days on the bike.

Can’t argue with that!

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