A young Che Guevara kick starting the old Norton motorcycle he rode during the journey written about in The Motorcycle Diaries
There are few rides as iconic, and perhaps influential in the course of world affairs, than the one a young medical student named Che Guevara undertook in his youth and presented the classic memoir, The Motorcycle Diaries. While the political legacy of Che Guevara lives on, mostly through the t-shirts worn by young idealists that bear his image, so does his love of motorcycles in a way that hits much closer to home.
Today, Ernesto Guevara, the youngest son of Che, leads tours through Cuba under the name La Poderosa Tours, named after the Norton motorcycle that the political revolutionary took on his 5,000 mile Journey through south America. La Poderosa tours is comprised of three partners: Ernesto, friend and lawyer colleague Camilo Sanchez and Sergio Morales who is a renown Harley mechanic in his own right.
A fledgling tourist has the choice between two routes. They are dubbed Fuser 1 and Fuser 2 after Che Guevara’s childhood nickname and there are a total of nine Harleys to choose from.
After forging a revolutionary identity, Che eventually settled in Cuba and was married, but not before overthrowing the dictator in power along with Fidel Castro in a grassroots revolution. This was a defining moment in Cuban history.
Ernesto Guevara posing with his Harley
Ernesto Guevara’s tour of Cuba includes many places connected to his father. As well as riding past his image painted on billboards across the island, patrons of the tour visit a museum dedicated to Che which resides in an 18 th century fortress where the rebel kept his headquarters.
Actually getting to Cuba is your own prerogative, but once you are there, prices for the tour start at $3000 per person and go up to $5,800 for six or nine day trips. While exotic motorcycle tours are becoming more and more popular, La Poderosa Tours stands out. It’s intrigue not only lies in its reference to Che Guevara but seems to capture the essence of Cuba, a country that is mysterious to many of us with beautiful countryside to match.
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