José Antonio Fernández has returned to Pamplona after his VespaExtreme: Dakar 2017 solidarity adventure. With this expedition, framed in the project Vespa Extreme - Wheels for Life, he has managed to raise 248,000 euros that will go entirely to the research of neglected diseases through the Tropical Health Institute of the University of Navarra (ISTUN).

Fernando de la Puentedirector of research and development of the University, emphasized that the figure achieved is a great financial aid to boost the ISTUN's development , where some 50 researchers are currently working to find solutions for the diagnosis, treatment, prevention and control of diseases that affect more than 80% of the world's population.

In this way, he thanked José Antonio Fernández himself for starting the initiative, as well as the main sponsors(ACUNSA, Artai, PROFAND and Ubesol), companies that provided motorcycle equipment to test it in the extreme conditions of this adventure, the donors, and the ISTUN researchers themselves who have followed the expedition and advertising . He also wanted to thank the companies that already collaborated with the ISTUN and that encouraged to carry out this adventure in favor of the center's research (Obra Social la CAIXA and Fundación Caja Navarra, and the ROVIRALTA Foundation).

The goal of the trip was to raise awareness about the status of global health and the impact of so-called "neglected or forgotten" diseases, as Paul Nguewa, director of ISTUN, explained. "The prevention and control of these poverty-related pathologies require the implementation of quality research programs. To achieve these levels of excellence, a lot of financial support is needed from companies, foundations, governments and... individuals."

José Antonio Fernández stated that this solidarity trip has been "a great opportunity to contribute something to society" by practicing one of his favorite hobbies: riding a Vespa". The adventurer emphasized that in addition to raising funds for the research in tropical diseases and raising awareness in society about this problem that affects millions of people "the trip also aims to be a call to normal people like me, who work in a business, who have a vacation and savings, and who can devote some of their time to some solidarity project . Not only the "professionals" of solidarity (missionaries, staff of NGO's...), many times authentic heroes, are the ones who have to carry out these projects".

The difficulties of the expedition

The Pamplona-Dakar-Pamplona journey has led José Antonio Fernández to travel 10,000 kilometers alone, crossing Morocco, Mauritania and Senegal, without any logistical support subject .

In his account of his adventure, he noted that despite the poverty of the countries he traveled through, "their inhabitants were constantlyshowing smiles". "In Morocco people are very friendly and hospitable at all levels and social strata, from the mechanics who changed my wheel and invited me to breakfast to a big businessman who took me to his house for lunch." In Mauritania, he said, the standard of living is close to poverty, but despite this, people smile: "When I stopped to give candy and pens in a village, children came out from everywhere and jumped on the bike in such a way that I came to fear for their safety...".

He also explained that making this trip by vespa, "not from a tourist bus or from a resort, allows you to materially enter people's homes, chat, and get to know their lives and see how happy they are despite having absolutely nothing. Even so, the culture shock is strong, especially in Mauritania where misery and the desert is the dominant tone".

In this sense, he spoke of the security problems he has experienced in this country. "There are many kilometers of road and track in the desert and it is possible to meet not only ISIS terrorists but gangs of outlaws who can steal everything, kidnap you or kill you without further.... there life is not worth anything. For this reason I could not make the tracking public online, nor post photos or videos on social networks during the trip".

Another difficulty was the poor condition of the roads, with potholes in the pavement and roads invaded by sand. "In the Sahara, the asphalt was very abrasive and there were areas where the dunes could cover the road itself; and in Mauritania, half of the roads are asphalt and the other half are irregular tracks with many transverse ruts that make progress very, very difficult and the scooter suffers a lot".

Finally, temperatures reached 48°C in Mauritania and the wind chill was even higher with the motorcycle suit and helmet. "These high temperatures also took their toll on the tires, especially the rear tire, which lasted half as many kilometers as expected and I had to change it back in Morocco." Food was also a factor in wear and tear. "My per diem expenses for more than half of the trip (Mauritania and Senegal) was mainly based on dates and bananas. I lost about 5 kilos".

Next expedition: Mongolia

José Antonio Fernández announced that his next solidarity trip of project Vespa Extreme is already planned. This time he will travel to Mongolia, where he has already found a possible hospital to take the financial aid. "It will be about 30,000 km and I will travel through countries like Turkey, Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and Russia. A trip that I have already begun to prepare (visas, etc.) and with which we want to double the funds raised in Dakar".