Charley Boorman: Freedom Riders

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Dong Si Nguyen, the chief of staff for the 559 Engineering Corps in charge of the Ho Chi Minh Trail in Laos
Cluster bombs, shell casings, and original cobblestoned sections of the Ho Chi Minh Trail can still be seen in Laos. Explore our massive Ho Chi Minh Trail image gallery.

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Freedom Riders Asia

Charley Boorman in the Explore garage
Charley Boorman and Digby on a Ural motorcycle
Charley Boorman made a TV series about riding around SE Asia, ‘on one tank of petrol’, doing his thing while marketing a particular brand of engine oil.

Charley called Digby, who had ridden with him before and told the producers to approach Explore Indochina because he wanted to ride one of their 650cc Ural motorcycles. We took care of him and arranged all his activities in Hanoi. This included visiting our massive bike garage, meeting trendy local bikers at a biker café, and driving around Hanoi in an old US Army jeep.

Back in Touch with Charley

Charlie Boorman rides on an Explore Indochina motorcycle tour of Vietnam
Best of all, Charley rode with us on the first day of our annual Rally Indochina charity ride. He participated in our safety briefing and rode with us into the rice-terraced hills on the way to Mai Chau. The Rally supports the Blue Dragon Children’s Foundation, so we set up a meeting between Charlie and the Foundation’s head Michael Brosowski. Charley visited the Blue Dragon HQ and highlighted their important work in improving the lives of impoverished street kids.

Charley was in Hanoi with us for a few days, and we got to know him better over several dinners. He is a lovely, friendly, down-to-earth guy. It’s worth watching the show, especially if you are interested in Blue Dragon’s work.

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By Digby Greenhalgh

Digby Greenhalgh is the founder of Explore Indochina, and a recognized expert on the Ho Chi Minh Trail. All motorcycle tours are designed and guided by Digby.