Anita Yusof, a 58-year-old Malaysian, has returned home after completing an extraordinary solo motorcycle journey around the world.
Since 2019, Anita has been riding her trusted Yamaha FZ150i across all seven continents and through 81 countries. Over the course of 2,280 days on the road, she clocked an astounding 113,284 kilometres, navigating unfamiliar terrain, unpredictable weather, erratic navigation systems, and moments that were as nerve-racking as they were life-threatening.
This remarkable achievement marks Anita’s second global expedition. Her first, known as the Global Dream Ride in 2015, took her through 40 countries and laid the foundation for a journey that would later redefine her life.
Her most recent expedition, Global Dream Ride 2, was not without its challenges. Nearly two years of her journey were disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. By the time global travel restrictions took effect, Anita had already crossed much of Africa, reaching as far as Cape Town, before being forced to pause her travels.
In January 2022, she returned to Ethiopia, then amid political conflict to retrieve her motorcycle, which had been left behind. From there, her bike was flown to Jeddah, allowing her to resume her journey through Mecca, Medina, and Riyadh, before continuing across the Middle East, Iran, and the Balkan region.
“I zig-zagged all over up, down, left, right, turning back whenever I felt like it,” she said, describing the freedom that defined her journey.
A former lecturer at Institut Pendidikan Guru’s Ipoh campus, Anita shared that the journey offered far more than physical distance. It gave her deep insight into the cultures, traditions, and humanity of the many countries she passed through.
Speaking to Bernama, she revealed that the expedition cost nearly RM400,000. She also admitted that a personal life crisis had driven her to do something “crazy,” something entirely for herself.
Before embracing motorcycling, Anita was an avid backpacker. Her transition into adventure riding was sparked after reading a blog about a cyclist who travelled through the remote landscapes of Kyrgyzstan. Inspired, she made the decision to chart a new path.
In 2012, at the age of 45, Anita learned to ride a motorcycle. She obtained her licence and began by riding across Malaysia, gradually extending her journeys into Thailand, Cambodia, and Laos. Within a year, she ventured further into Central Asia, travelling through Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, and Afghanistan.
“That was the beginning of my transformation from a backpacker into an adventurer,” she said.
Choosing freedom over routine, Anita opted for early retirement, allowing her to pursue exploration without the constraints of work commitments. Today, her journey stands as a powerful reminder that courage has no age limit, and that reinvention is always possible.
Anita Yusof did not simply ride across the world, she rewrote the boundaries of what is possible, one kilometre at a time.
Source / Image Credit : SAYS , gdranitayusof (Instagram)
