"Long Way Up" debuts September 18, less famous trek coming sooner

Some of us think it's great for motorcycling when celebrities show their love for the same things we're passionate about. Others among us look at a couple of guys of means traveling the world on free motorcycles with a camera crew and a team of fixers and think it has about as much to do with our motorcycling lives as Ricky Brabec's trick Dakar-winning race bike has to do with Andy Greaser's $1,000 adventure bike.

The latest film, coming a decade after McGregor and Boorman's last trip, is likely to be at least as polarizing as the ones that came before. In case you've somehow missed all the chatter up to now, the two did a 13,000-mile ride from Ushuaia at the southern tip of South America to Los Angeles on Harley-Davidson LiveWire electric motorcycles with two prototype Rivian electric trucks as chase vehicles. The first three episodes of the 11-part series debut September 18 on Apple TV+ and another episode will be released each Friday thereafter.

I say it may be more polarizing because before they could do such a cross-continent trip on electric vehicles, they first had to install dozens of charging stations along the way, making this an "adventure" that's beyond the means of, well, just about anyone.

If you're part of the segment of motorcyclists who think the Long Way movies are tremendous fun and great for motorcycling, enjoy the official trailer below (and if you're into the electric truck thing, here's some more about that). If you're not a Long Way fan, we've got something else coming for you next week at Common Tread: an account of a very different cross-continent excursion on a LiveWire, one that was not as finely planned, far less expensive, not captured by a film crew and accomplished solo by a more or less regular guy. More soon.