The Quickshift
- Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman return to our screens with a new installment in the Long Way series on Apple TV+
- The adventure, which begins at McGregor in Scotland and ends at Charley in London, is around 10,000 miles long
- Gone are the days of electric bikes, instead there are refurbished vintage motorcycles
Electric bikes have their time and place. I’m not against them. In fact, I can’t wait for Can-Am to launch its upcoming electric models, and I think we’re ready for an OEM to try and build an electric superbike… er, Yamaha, er. But when I heard the Long Way franchise was coming back, aside from the electric Harley, or electric bikes at all, I was excited.
When I watch a motorcycle adventure docuseries, I want to experience the variety that comes with tackling strange, difficult, beautiful terrain, experiencing new places and ways of life, and the countless wonderful emotions and difficult decisions that all of this brings. I really enjoyed Long Way Up and love what the guys were able to do for charging infrastructure in Latin America, but for me it was a far cry from the first two seasons where range anxiety was a dominant theme.
But in terms of technology, the latest installment in the series seems miles away from Long Way Up. And I need your help figuring out exactly which bikes are being used, but that’s for later.
Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman are at it again, but this time they’re riding restored vintage motorcycles from McGregor’s home near Perth, Scotland, to Boorman’s home in London, England. And if you think that sounds a bit too easy for the guys, you’re absolutely right. They’ve turned a 453-mile journey into an adventure that spans more than 10,000 miles.
Rather than simply heading south from McGregor’s home in Scotland, the duo will point their wheels towards the North Sea, into Scandinavia. From there, they will ride to the Arctic Circle, down to the Baltics and across continental Europe before heading back across the English Channel and finishing at Charley’s house in London. The journey is expected to take around two months.
Boorman and McGregor are executive producers and will once again work with David Alexanian and Russ Malkin. Apple TV+ revived the franchise in 2020 with Long Way Up and is behind this latest installment.
As far as I can tell, Boorman rides a late 60s/early 70s BMW R model and McGregor rides a Moto Guzzi California II. But I hope the anoraks throw on their coats and come to my rescue. Can anyone give a definitive answer as to which R model Charley rides – possibly a 75/5? And if McGregor doesn’t ride a California II, then what is it?
