When you see Astrid Neudecker for the first time, you might imagine this petite German to have any number of hobbies – but motorcycling touring to the end of the world probably wouldn’t be among them. But first impressions can be deceptive: Astrid Neudecker is one of the best known German motorcycle adventurers. Television viewers in particular know her from the program Motobike on the sports channel DSF, where she regularly presents new bikes. This job takes her off into remote areas on long tours where she puts new models to the test. One of her latest journeys: a trip on the new R 1200 GS Adventure through Mexico :
“I was amazed the first time I rode the R 1200 GS Adventure,” says Astrid full of enthusiasm, “it’s such a big motorbike, but so light and agile to handle. I thought I would find it difficult to ride at my height – but that wasn’t the case at all! One reason for this is certainly the engine properties and the powerful torque. The R 1200 GS Adventure coped with every challenge we put its way in Mexico. It really is a fantastic motorbike!”
A longing for faraway places
Astrid began her motorcycling career at the tender age of 19 on her boyfriend’s bike and with a love of travel: exploring faraway continents by motorcycle, discovering America! Africa! Two years later, Astrid bought her own motorbike and began to fulfil her dream.
Since then she has done many tours, having started with Spain, Italy and Turkey. She is currently planning a trip to Mauritania – with four friends, for five weeks: “There are still a lot of people who think it is strange for a woman to be going on adventure tours by motorbike. But for me it’s just a hobby – like other people love mountain climbing or parachuting, I love riding through remote regions, sleeping under the stars and going to places other people never usually get to visit.” She has many a funny story to tell of her experiences in faraway places, for example in Togo: “When I wanted to enter the country, the border guard stopped me. Of course, I didn’t look particularly glamorous – but he simply couldn’t believe I was a woman!” This experience she shares with another biker, Julia Sanders. However, most people she meets are simply fascinated by the fact that she is exploring their country on a motorcycle.
Africa – her favourite destination
It was on a trip about eight years ago that Astrid discovered her real love: Africa. Since this tour from Tunisia to Libya and Niger, she has been addicted to the continent, especially Ethiopia and Algeria: “The variation between differing landscapes is truly unbelievable: one day you are in the mountains, the next in the desert – fantastic,” says Astrid, her eyes aglow and her face beaming. Nonetheless, one of her next trips will take her to a completely different region: the expanse of Siberia.
