Secrets2Success

HAVE BIKE WILL GAMBLE- A POKER RUN WITH A DIFFERENCE

SOUTH AFRICAN FIRST EVER SAMBA POKER RUN

Every wondered what it might be like to meander alongside pristine coastlines,  weave your way though world famous wine regions,  take in spectacular country passes and succulent rich semi desert, on a Harley?
Think Soft Tail Heritages, Electra Glides and Road Kings,  a knowledgeable and bike crazy guide, fully kitted backup vehicle and luxury hotel accommodation along the way.  Place yourself at the tip of Africa in South Africa’s heritage rich and visually stunning Western Province … and enjoy.

Add to this the fact that you might be able to win the value of your trip back in cash by beating your fellow travellers at a winner takes all poker show-down on the last night of your trip.    You’ll have plenty of time to practise during your ten day journey with nightly stop over’s at some of the countries leading gaming establishments.  It’s an alluring combination set to draw a range of enthusiasts from bikers to gamblers to both.

Offering travellers something new is an ongoing challenge in the tourism game no matter where you operate from in the world.   A ten day motorbike road trip combined with gambling and the opportunity to win US$ 4000 worth of trip back is a great way to pique interest and stir up excitement about something completely different,  even amongst seasoned motorbike holiday enthusiasts.

Husband and wife team Thomas and Nina Assenmacher, owner/operators of Samba Tours, say their Samba Tours Motorcycle Poker Run idea was inspired by traditional poker runs elsewhere in the world.   People, generally members of a club,  arrive at a single venue from nearby locations to play poker and socialise.  There are motorbike poker runs, car poker runs and even some poker runs where people arrive by boat.   The true concept of a run though,  travelling and gambling over a geographic distance, is something less tried and South African Motorbike Adventures a.k.a Samba Tours are the only company offering this unique experience in South Africa and one of few doing so around the world.

Nina explains, ‘We specialise in all sorts of  motorbike road trip experiences around South Africa but this one is unique.  The way it works is that at strategic points along the way participants get one of five cards.  On our final evening together, after everyone has had a great time,  we have the final all-stakes playoff.   It’s an incredible prize and we know the atmosphere will be electric’.

It must be quite a build-up:  Along the way people have made friends, enjoyed magnificent scenery,   great biking,  food and luxury  accommodation not to mention the fun of gaming side by side at the various casinos.   The last night however promises to be something special.  How often does one get the chance to walk away with a free holiday after having experienced it already?     This is also not the preserve of the professional poker buff.  It’s a regular travel experience where all you have to be is cleverer or luckier than your fellow travellers.  A complete beginner could walk away with the trip. Anything is possible.

Thomas is quick to point out that the Motorcycle Poker Run is not just focussed on gambling.  It is a fully fledged motorbike tour.  The biking side of the trip is not only for seasoned bikers or even speed freaks,   ‘You don’t have to be a brilliant biker to come on a trip like this.  The pace is leisurely and we expect many pillion clients will join their partners’.

A big plus for motorbike, especially Harley, enthusiasts is that in South Africa noise mufflers are not mandatory.  Unlike many countries where the famed sound of a Harley is restricted by various noise pollution ordinances, South Africa has yet to clamp down. The freedom to enjoy to the true, raw sound of your bike without restriction is a delightful added bonus for foreign bikers.

Accommodation is at casinos and hotels within the luxury range and the route is tailor made for the best possible on-road biking experience.  The Samba Tours Poker Run explores the Cape Peninsula including the famous Chapman’s Peak Drive and the Cape Peninsula National Park.  It heads out onto the open road beyond Cape Town following the cliffs to Hermanus    Then you journey through the Cape wine region and into the historic town of Matjiesfontein home to Oliver Schreiner the famed author of ‘The Story of an African Farm’.   This historic little town takes you back to the days of gun slinging and saloon poker.  Then its into the Little Karoo and  Merringsport.  Soaring cliff walls with spectacular rock formations line the 25 km tarred road which winds along the floor of the gorge, crossing the Groot River twenty five times.  Each crossing, or drift, has its own name and story.  Then to Oudtshoorn, famed for its Ostriches and Cango Caves and to the Garden Route and the  indigenous Tsitsikamma Forest, Knysna,  surfer’s paradise Jeffery’s Bay and oyster rich Mossel Bay.   Heading back to Cape Town you cross the mountains back into the Little Karoo and then scenic curves and breathtaking views accompany you as you wind your way home via the Du Toits Kloof and Bains Kloof passes.
Collecting your five cards along the way and practising your skill at leisure the final night playoff is held back home in Cape Town at the cities top casino – Grandwest.

The Poker run takes a minimum of eight and a maximum of sixteen people.  On average you’ll be on the bikes five to six hours a day with plenty of breaks.  There is a support vehicle carrying luggage, spare parts and refreshments for outlying areas.  Don’t be surprised if your posse comes around a mountain pass at just the right time for a culinary refill and ahead of you, in a perfectly chosen picnic spot under a shady tree, lunch awaits beautifully prepared and timed.

Office averse Thomas, who leads the trips, is a registered tour guide who uncovered a love for the country, its stories and history as a new immigrant ten years ago, ‘ One never stops learning’, he enthuses, ‘I have travelled each and every one of our bike routes myself and every time I discover something new.   As a scenic highlight for bikers there’s nothing better than Route 62 through the Little Karoo.  It’s a similar feeling in a smaller way to route 66 in the States.   Another favourite of mine is Merringspoort.    Winding your way through a valley of sandstone you’ll cross the Groot Rivier near Oudtshoorn so many times you might stop counting.  In a car it is spectacular.  On a bike … breathtaking’.

Nina’s favourite part of the tour is travelling along the famous Garden Route coast, “I love the slow leisurely pace, particularly on a Harley.  I love the view of the sea, the passes, the curving roads”.

Thomas and Nina are keen bikers and occasional gamblers.  Thomas hails from Essen, near Dusseldorf.  He met Nina in Hamburg and after seven years she convinced him to relocate to South Africa where she had spent her school years.   He is an electronic engineer who has worked in electronic sales and marketing and Nina had been in the hospitality and tourism industry for most of her professional  life.   As bike lovers they decided that if they were going to move country, especially to one as beautiful as South Africa with the open road beckoning and so many fascinating places to discover,  they would start a bike touring company – with a difference.

The shortest tour they offer is one day, the longest so far has been 5000km.  The company also offers private custom made tours in BMW 5 and 7 series sedans.  Languages spoken are English, German,  French, Spanish, Italian, ‘Whatever the language we can accommodate it’, says Thomas, ‘ We have a network of guides’.

The Samba Poker Run is set at ten days but can be tailor made for groups of eight people or more.   Cost approx $US4000.  Pillion passengers are priced at a lower rate.  All accommodation and meals are included, drinks are for your own account.

Bringing true meaning to the idea of a traditional poker run the Samba Tours Motorbike Poker Run launches in March 2009.  For more go to www.sambatours.co.za and click the ‘specials’ link.

Written by Lisa Chait – lisachait@gmail.com