September 30, 2024
SINGAPORE – Forty-two deg C heat, 40km away from civilisation and the impending dark of night. These conditions might spell doom to those who leave life up to fate, but not Singaporeans Nerine Mak and Haren Khatau.
The long-distance biking couple were navigating a remote jungle section of the Ho Chi Minh trail in Laos when Ms Mak’s bike fell into a river. After being fished out of the water, her ride refused to start.
Tired, hungry and thirsty after three hours of repair efforts, the two 32-year-olds had almost exhausted all options when they found a farmer who had a truck to help take their bikes out of the jungle to a nearby town just before sunset.
After a night of troubleshooting in an unfamiliar guest house, they realised the issue lay in the bike’s waterlogged exhaust pipe. They drained the water before seeking a mechanic’s help to charge the bike’s flat battery – springing the ride back to life.
Ms Mak said: “There is always a solution. You just have to look hard enough.”
Giving up, the couple said, has not once crossed their minds, despite the travails they have encountered since they set off in January on their dirt biking adventure from Singapore to Britain.
Ms Mak said: “We set a realistic challenge for ourselves, we are having fun and learning so much about the world, and want to inspire others to do the same”
Speaking to The Straits Times from Kazakhstan, the couple have covered more than 38,000km across 12 countries as at September, temperatures ranging from Laos’ sweltering 42 deg C heat to Tibet’s bitter minus 4 deg C cold.
They have also been documenting their travels on their Instagram page @allterrainoverlanders.
They said their adventure has taken them through a fair share of breathtaking sights, including one few will ever get a glimpse of – the sun rising over Mount Everest, its rays shining upon one of nature’s seven wonders.
The couple riding on a road in Tibet. PHOTO: COURTESY OF NERINE MAK AND HAREN KHATAU/THE STRAITS TIMES
And yet, Ms Mak and Mr Khatau said, their most unforgettable moments are those that were also rife with hardship.
One was the experience they shared when they signed up for a gruelling enduro race – a form of mountain bike racing – in Siem Reap in Cambodia in March, “completely on a whim”.
They were just there to experience the thrills and had no ambition of winning, said Mr Khatau. “But by the end, we felt like champions,” he said, “because of the pure joy, adrenaline and the sense of accomplishment.”
Two of only three foreigners competing in the team event, Ms Mak and Mr Khatau partnered up to tackle a brutal off-road course packed with log jumps, deep muddy trenches and ditches, and steep climbs that pushed them to their limits.
There was also a language barrier to navigate – with every announcement, instruction and race information given in the Khmer language.
But Ms Mak said the locals were eager to step in to explain the course, offering tips and reassuring them throughout the race, making the camaraderie with fellow racers and the adventure shared memorable.
“We weren’t just racing, we were connecting with the community,” Ms Mak said. “The whole village, and even neighbouring villages, had come out to watch and support the racers, creating an atmosphere that made us feel like we were a part of something much bigger than just a race.”
The couple participating in the gruelling enduro race in Siem Reap, Cambodia. PHOTO: COURTESY OF NERINE MAK AND HAREN KHATAU/THE STRAITS TIMES
Another experience etched in their minds was conquering one of Kyrgyzstan’s most remote off-road trails in July.
Covering more than 200km, the couple crossed the Barskoon, Arabel, Tossor mountain passes along the way, which each towered over 3,700m in elevation.
The trail had it all: Gravel, mud, grassy meadows, rugged rock gardens and, most excitingly, the pair recalled, river crossings.
“The landscape changed constantly, keeping us in awe while herds of yaks, sheep, horses, marmots and cows shared the trail with us. It was an epic ride through the raw, untamed beauty of Kyrgyzstan,” said Ms Mak.
Whether it is landslides, stones or narrow passages, “there is little that can stop a dirt bike and a skilled rider”, said Mr Khatau.
He added: “Being able to go off-road means that we can literally take the roads less travelled. We’ve explored remote mountain passes in Central Asia, covered much of the Mongolian Steppe, and crossed rivers that cars cannot cross.”
Ms Nerine Mak pictured in a flower field by the Song Kul Lake in Kyrgyzstan. PHOTO: COURTESY OF NERINE MAK AND HAREN KHATAU/THE STRAITS TIMES
The allure of dirt biking
This ability to traverse varied terrain is the main reason Ms Mak and Mr Khatau opted to travel on smaller 130kg dirt bikes, instead of larger touring bikes which are more typically used for long-distance trips, but can weigh over 300kg with luggage.
“Roads marked highways on Google Maps may just be gravel tracks, and sometimes beautiful expressways turn off into muddy detours or are washed away in floods and landslides, or are filled with potholes,” Mr Khatau said, adding that dirt bikes are designed to handle such conditions.
While touring bikes have a higher engine capacity and are more comfortable, Mr Khatau said their weight makes them more difficult to lift in tricky terrain.
The pair overhauled their dirt bikes – at about $4,000 each – to withstand the trip’s sometimes gruelling conditions, including installing larger fuel tanks to increase range.
Ms Nerine Mak and Mr Haren Khatau catching the 2024 World Nomad Games in Astana, Kazakhstan. PHOTO: COURTESY OF NERINE MAK AND HAREN KHATAU/THE STRAITS TIMES
Both riders have fit their entire lives into 30kg to 35kg bags carried on their bikes, which hold everything such as spare motorcycle parts, toolkits, vital travel documents, electronics, clothing for four seasons, a cooking set and even a boot dryer.
For the current leg of the trip in Asia, they decided not to carry camping gear as accommodation in the region is more affordable and accessible. Once they enter Europe, however, they will need to start carrying camping gear as it is a cheaper housing alternative.
“This trip is funded mainly by our savings and passive income,” said Mr Khatau, who added that they spent about $3,000 on riding gear and equipment before the trip, in addition to overhauling their bikes. “We keep a close eye on our budget, and compile the data and project it for future planning.
“We have both left our jobs to chase this travel dream so that there is no work commitment that might hold us back.”
Mr Haren Khatau riding through the Canyon of Forgotten Rivers in Kyrgyzstan. PHOTO: COURTESY OF NERINE MAK AND HAREN KHATAU/THE STRAITS TIMES
Before they were full-time travellers, Ms Mak was a member of the legal team of Bytedance, the parent company of TikTok, while Mr Khatau was the technical lead at motorcycle distributor shop Mutt Motorcycles.
They first met during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2021, and were drawn to each other’s hunger for adventures off the beaten path.
Mr Khatau was planning to ride his motorbike from Singapore to India, while Ms Mak envisioned an adventure in a van across Europe once borders reopened.
“Inspired by each other’s dreams, we decided to combine them and embark on an epic journey, riding our motorbikes all the way from Singapore to Britain, or further,” Ms Mak said, adding that they spent about a year preparing for the trip.
Ms Nerine Mak crossing the Kyrk Kyz mountain pass in Kyrgyzstan. PHOTO: COURTESY OF NERINE MAK AND HAREN KHATAU/THE STRAITS TIMES
For Mr Khatau, adventure runs in his blood. He said his parents were happy and supportive of him pursuing his dreams, adding that his family runs Indian safari resort chain Infinity Resorts, which he previously helped manage.
The road to freedom was not as easy for Ms Mak.
Being raised in a traditional and strict environment, her parents had concerns about her long-term travel dreams, she said.
They questioned what impact her travels might have on her career and her ability to return to the legal profession, taking over a year to come to terms with their daughter being truly happy chasing her dreams.
In a poignant twist, Ms Mak’s 69-year-old father went on to buy a motorcycle himself in early 2024, and announced that he, too, was going to ride across Asia and Europe.
The allure of long-distance biking, as it turns out, is not easy to deny.
Mr Khatau said: “We have complete freedom – we are not bound by flights, ticket timings, bus routes or overpriced tourist taxis.
“There is a sense of achievement with saying you rode your bike to and from some place far from home especially to the many people that approach you – sometimes even at a stop light.”
The trip has also taught the couple how to let go of rigid plans or set expectations, opening themselves to the unknown and allowing the journey to unfold in surprising ways, be it good or bad.
Ms Mak said: “If anything unexpected strikes, we see it not as a setback, but as a challenge to tackle together. Every twist we face along the way strengthens our resilience and sharpens our adaptability, and this develops us into being efficient problem-solvers.”
The couple stopping for a photo at Ala-Kul Lake in Kyrgyzstan. PHOTO: COURTESY OF NERINE MAK AND HAREN KHATAU/THE STRAITS TIMES
Embracing this spirit of wanderlust, they have decided not to end their trip in Britain, and aim to continue for at least another year travelling through the United States or Africa.
“The world is more welcoming than it seems, with strangers offering kindness and support when we least expect it,” Mr Khatau said, adding that people at their core are driven by the same desires for connection and understanding.
The couple have also learnt to appreciate the simplicity of life and the resilience of communities that thrive in harsh environments, such as the nomads they encountered who live in yurts and own only basic necessities.
Ms Mak said they have seen “families living in basic conditions who radiate a sense of joy, hospitality and generosity that humbles us”, adding that it is the human connections that have made their journey more enriching.
“There have been days when the highlight has been sitting in a yurt or a cafe, just talking to a local about his or her culture, language and day-to-day life over a bowl of kumis (fermented horse milk) or a cup of coffee. Sometimes, these intimate conversations yield more than any museum, language app or YouTube video can.”
These experiences, they said, remind them that the “richness in life is not defined by luxury, but by human connections, nature, and being fully present in the moment”.
Both Mr Khatau and Ms Mak will turn 32 in October, just eight days apart. While the couple’s birthday week back home would typically be filled with a flurry of celebratory dinners, the two have no set plans this year.
All they know is that they will be on their trusty bikes in Iran, waiting for the day to surprise them just as the countless moments on this adventure before have.