S'pore man, 55, bikes 40,000km from Africa to S'pore for SG60, raises funds for local food aid

Amidst the quiet of a biker-themed restaurant in Gillman Barracks, a small crowd gathered on Singapore's 60th birthday.

Nothing happened for awhile, until the rumble of motorbikes echoed from a distance.

Then, from around the corner, a motorcade of bikes emerged.

At the lead was a biker decked out in a neon green jacket.

His touring bike stood out, plastered with stickers that made it clear it's been to places.

As he pulled in with the motorcade behind him, the small crowd clapped and the excitement grew.

The biker was Rahim Resad, 55, and after riding 302 days to raise funds for a local food aid programme, he was finally home, just in time for SG60.

Where's Resad coming home from?

Resad, who is now semi-retired, dismounted from his bike, took off his helmet and put on a smile.

The scene gradually turned into a buzz as those who gathered approached him to shake hands and make cordial conversation.

Fellow riders from community groups "Tambak Overlanders" and "Geeks on Motorcycles" were also there to welcome Resad.

Who was he, and why was there a homecoming gathering thrown in his name?

Since November 2024, Resad has been riding his way through the world, making his way home.

He started in Cape Town, South Africa, and called the journey, "The Longest Ride Home".

"'The Longest Ride Home' is part of my round the world project," Resad told me.

The project began in 2017, when Resad rode from Singapore, traversed peninsular Malaysia, crossed northern India and West Russia, before reaching the North Cape in Norway.

From Norway, Resad continued westward, eventually reaching Alaska.

From Alaska, the biker rode southward through the western seaboard of the Americas, before looping up to Argentina in 2019.

"I would love to do it in one go, but with my girls, family, I decided to do it in stages," Resad explained.

Covid-19 eventually forced a pause in his project.

Bicycle before motorcycle

Resad had always dreamt of traveling the world.

"Whenever I travelled, I looked down from the plane with curiosity. I asked, 'What if I travelled over land instead?'," Resad recalled.

His head did not stay in the clouds for long.

In 2015, he cycled around the island of Borneo.

"I'm the only guy to have ever cycled around Borneo," Resad proudly revealed.

The expedition was not just to commemorate SG50, but also to prepare for something bigger.

After Borneo, Resad set off from Singapore on his bicycle with his eyes set on Norway, the first destination in his round-the-world project.

Things, however, were not meant to be.

He made it through much of Southeast Asia, all the way to Laos, before things went awry.

"I busted my knee in Laos. But I kept going until the doctor told me, 'you have to go back'," Resad said.

Back home, one suggestion from his partner kept his round-the-world dream alive.

"I have a motorbike. So, my partner, asked me, 'Why don't you do it on your bike?'

I did the calculations. On bicycle, I can go maybe 100km. On motorbike, I can do more than a hundred.

I can save on two nights of hotels that way. After crunching the numbers, it evens out. So, I decided to do it."

Back at it

In October 2024 and after the Covid-induced pause, Resad prepared to hit the road again.

“I can feel it in my bones, and the adventure is going to start very soon," he wrote on Facebook at the time.

In November 2024, the 55-year-old flew to Cape Town and the journey to connect all the dots in his round-the-world project began.

For the next 302 days, Resad would go places few have gone before.

The toughest part of the journey was in Africa and Central Asia.

"I underestimated Africa, the challenges and the many unknowns," Resad admitted.

Besides road conditions, safety was also a constant challenge.

Being alone a lot of the time, any injury may easily turn into much bigger trouble.

Once, Resad stopped along a slope in a national park somewhere in Africa.

He failed to fully extend his side stand before dismounting from his bike.

The bike tipped over and slid, sending him along as well.

"Fortunately, my motorcycle got stuck halfway and didn't follow me down. Else, the weight of my motorcycle would probably have injured me badly," Resad pointed out.

Wanted to turn back

The 55-year-old was close to not finishing his journey, he told me.

In the face of the gruelling conditions on the road, he had wanted to call it quits and turn back.

During the lowest of lows, the wisdom of his partner again pushed him on.

"When I wanted to turn back, my partner said one thing: 'Don't start something you cannot finish'," Resad shared.

That, together with photos of his daughters which he kept on his phone, kept him going.

'Kindness of strangers'

It was not all doom and gloom, however.

Along the way, Resad got to do some sightseeing as well.

By the time he reached Yunnan, China, on Jul. 1, he was 34,473km into his journey.

While his family provided spiritual support, the strangers Resad met along the way provided material assistance.

Throughout his journey, Resad posted often on Facebook not only to document his journey, but to reach out for help from the biking community the world over.

He also paid it forward by publishing public service announcements such as road closures or whenever a fellow biker needed help.

Resad recounted to the Gillman Barracks crowd about how, at one point, his phone loaded with banking apps stopped working.

He also did not have cash on him.

"When I entered China, I met this guy and he passed me RMB3,000. I asked him why he'd give me money and he told me it was actually from a friend I met in Slovenia," Resad recounted.

The friend, who was from China but was studying in Germany, had learned of his technological woes through his posts on Facebook and extended her helping hand.

Apart from social media, Resad was also touched by random acts of kindness from people he met along the road.

In another instance, in Zambia, a local biker donated a part from his own bike to Resad.

This allowed Resad to continue his journey without having to wait weeks for spares.

The "kindness of strangers" is what Resad will remember most from his Africa-to-Singapore journey.

"I'll remember the people who housed me, prepared food for me, and helped me when I was in difficult situations," Resad said.

Home

When asked about the highlight of the trip, Resad quickly said, "Being home."

"I could not believe it when I saw the sign, 'Welcome to Johor'," Resad recalled, sharing that he almost teared in that moment.

On Aug. 9, as Singapore was about to celebrate its 60th birthday, Resad rode across the causeway, completing his 40,000km journey home from Cape Town.

It also marked the completion of his round-the-world project after eight years.

The other riders at the homecoming told me that what Resad had done was no easy feat, and it was an achievement that inspires them.

Riding for charity

Mid-conversation, Resad's voice grew soft and said, "Sometimes, I get flashbacks when I'm on my own."

I asked if these were good or bad flashbacks, and Resad was quick to answer that they were bad ones.

"I think about some of the things I've seen, how some families had little to eat," the biker answered.

Resad's ride from Africa to Singapore and around the world was not only to fulfil a lifelong dream.

It was also to give back.

Resad wanted to bring awareness to and raise funds for local charity Free Food for All (FFFA), a food aid programme that serves free meals to those in need in Singapore.

FFFA was founded in 2014 and began with twice-weekly food distributions at Darul Aman Mosque in Eunos.

Resad told me that FFFA now provides three meals a day throughout the week to beneficiaries via home deliveries and distribution points.

"I'm doing it for charity because I grew up in a poor family. I can't do it in a big way. Free Food for All aimed to raise S$300,000, so my role is to create awareness," the 55-year-old said.

He told me that Liqui Moly, the German automotive products manufacturer which supported Resad's adventure, will be matching all donations to FFFA collected through his fundraiser, dollar-for-dollar with a cap at S$5000.

The next one

Despite having just returned from a demanding bike tour, Resad's next adventure might not be far off the horizon.

He plans to go to nearby places such as New Zealand, Japan and South Korea.

He also wants to share his experience to other riders by acting as a "guide".

I asked Resad when his next one will be.

"Probably end of next year," he anticipated.

For now, it's all about resting, family time and finishing his second book.

"We are deeply grateful to everyone who has contributed so far and we encourage more to join in so we can continue helping those in need," Firdaus, FFFA's Fundraising and Digital Marketing Manager, said.

You can contribute to FFFA's cause here.

Top image via Rahim Resad