^ And at how many of those checkpoints did they hold a gun to your head?

That is what happened to me. I was courteous and polite for a whole hour and then the guy saw me take his license plate number down when I got to my bike. That is when he took me into the back and took his gun out.

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http://www.journeyrider.net Latin America blog (07-8)

Gatogato
You should have gone to policia federal and report that incident inmidiately.
This could be a real case of police abuse or just an Edgar Alan Poe story.
Bringing this again with no tangible results........you are still alife......so maybe you just painted all that with full colors.Only you know.
I think all bikers know what is going on there.So you are supposedly the only one that experience this claimed abuse.Move on.
Again where all are warned,before that happend to you.......
Locals with no insurance(they deserve to pay for ride without) get ripped off too.
I know for fact many travellers fake their insurance papers or ride without them......so be prepare to pay if they find out.
All said before here how to deal with them......
Have a nice ride Gatogato.
Karl

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http://vientoderipio.blogspot.com/
America is a nice continent,not a country.All people who lives in this continent are americans.Discover it in peace!

Read Mossproof's post from 3 posts ago. He had the exact same gun pointing happen to him.

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http://www.journeyrider.net Latin America blog (07-8)

The cop at the checkpoint held a gun to your head? So with the gun at your head he then demanded you pay him $400? So what did you tell him then? I'm surprised you didnt mention that before as it seems like it would have been a significant event in your trip.

If a cop, or anyone held a gun to my head and demanded money, IMO, there is no more to negotiate. I'd pay him. I would very much like to hear how you got out of paying him anything as I'm sure its a very interesting story. Please continue with more details about having a gun held to your head at this checkpoint.

The press and the Argentinian government would love to get the information of what happened to you I'm sure.

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http://www.southontwowheels.com

I'm more curious why it is that any thread which comes to include Gatogato degenerates so rapidly and so thoroughly. The man has contributed bits of value from time to time, but more often something more akin to theatre of the absurd--the accusations following getting ripped off by his "new girlfriend," for example. Now this. Gatogato, have you wondered why you so routinely attract such mayhem and abuse? Have you thought about altering your approach so as to be taken more seriously?

Mark

(who rode up to Iguaçu through Uruguay and Brazil, taking in some nice beaches along the way and rendering considerations of the famous Ruta 14 roadblocks entirely moot)

Someone here should make that "mordida" or "coima" event on a video(helmet device or so.Then post this on youtube.
I am talking with a local news reporter to do a 15 min report on tv about this unpleaseant moment for tourist.
Anyone dare to do that? or maybe allready done?
Karl

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http://vientoderipio.blogspot.com/
America is a nice continent,not a country.All people who lives in this continent are americans.Discover it in peace!

Almost ready to get into Argentina and read this whole story... wow

We didn't have any big issues with this bribing thin, only a bit in Peru and Bolvia which was easy to bluff out of. This seems a bit more serious, although I happily read people do get away with it mostly.

Getting guns pulled out seems a bit scary... and would maybe make me pay.
The thing I still want to solve, is the 'original document' thing. Mostly, when I give copies, they ask for the originals. Only my driverslicense is copied nicely, so I say it is an original. (close to impossible to get that renewed without flying back to The Netherlands....)
How do people handle this? Make supernice fakes, or state that you only have copied paperwork with you and the rest is in a friends house nearby...

I do agree, if people just pay... this wil never end. Play the game!
We meet way to many fellow travellers who have paid huge fines, e.g. 100USD for 'not wearing a T-shirt while driving a car'... As long as people pay stuff like that, we might consider changing this website to 'www.cajeroautomaticounlimited.com'.... ;-)

Have to admit, it did put a big smile on my face a few times, nothing beats driving away with all the needed stamps and paperwork, and only hearing a vague 'plata, plata' from a police officer behind you ;-)

Lol Mark, it is always nice to hear from another "expert." Traveling with you sounds about as fun as taking an all inclusive Caribbean cruise.

The nice thing about "advrider" is you don't have to deal with the elitist pricks that one often finds on this site.

If you did not have any problems on your trip then good for you, but why do you elitist pricks (talking about a minority here, usually the guys with the Touratech bikes) feel the need to talk bad about someone else's adventure?

Well Mark, congratulations! You read this thread and avoided possible peril by taking an alternative route around Ruta 14.

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http://www.journeyrider.net Latin America blog (07-8)

Well, I suppose I'm an elitist *****. I suppose I'm probably riding a Touratech bike, too. And I guess it's my imagination which tells me that the same people I'm seeing here, myself included, are also found on ADVrider.

Gatogato, your question ("but why do you....feel the need to talk bad about someone else's adventure?") is the one I was suggesting you ask yourself. Why are people constantly harassing you? No one talks bad about my trips--except you, of course, and you're not even talking about me; you're imagining someone who doesn't exist. What do you think the difference might be? Is it possible you've got some degree of control over this?

Just asking.

Mark

Ohh Yuck!!! There you go again….
Well maybe isn’t too bad as was a boring Sunday and this could be funny.

Hey “Expert” Mark, how are you doing??

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Javier...
Dakar Motos “ ”

I just wanted to add a comment. Before heading on our South American adventure I had read up alot about corrupt cops (including this post) and was ready and waiting to meet one at every corner.

Since starting out in Santiago, Chile, travelling down south to Ushuaia, Argentina north to Buenos Aires, Argentina, through Uruguay, a little Brazil, Paraguay, northern Argentina and now in Bolivia, we haven`t had one single problem.

In fact in Chile and Argentina the police were extremely helpful with routes, assistance, and even one time offering us use of their email (in the small town of Cochrane).

We didn`t travel through the infamous Ruta 14 but I don`t have a single bad thing to say about any of the police.

We`ll be eventually travelling to Peru where I hear its bad and maybe Bolivia will be our first, but so far not the issue I thought it would be.

All the best with everyone`s travels

Reece

Aotearoa to the Andes

Hey Javier, long time! I now have a regular job and am saving money so that I can properly entertain you and Sandra when you ride through here.....which was happening when, exactly? Soon, I hope. I even have a few motorbikes in the garage, and they are whispering your name.

Abrazos y besos para usted y su bella esposa!

Mark

Mark, yes long time!
We are trying to save money too to can visit back the many nice people we had met last years. This 2012 will be the UK turn (we hope) see: http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...giesland-62825

But who know, maybe a 2013 USA !!!? Soon we hope too.


Abrazos y besos de los dos para vos tambien!
Saludos

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Javier...
Dakar Motos “ ”

Wouldnt private messages be a more appropriate way to express your mutual sympathy, or is this another episode of the Javkap viral marketing on the south american forum.

Gato might or might not have experienced some gun threat on the route 14. The only place where i got threatened and insulted by a police officer over 20 years wasting time and cash motorcycling on the roads all over the globe was in..the United States (South Carolina). I found police officers in South America to be much more open minded, sympathetic and willing to help than in Europe and the US, where their function seems to be limited to collect fines, while the "serve and help" values have been forgotten. In a productive environment, spending time helping doesnt pay back the public investment.

Anyways, may be i just got lucky, but doubt isnt a valid excuse for the bullying behaviour of a few regular members against gato"s testimony, and his personality in general. Could you guys spare us this unnecessary agressivity while keeping giving needed tips for newcomers (called "noobs" by Javier with a J), the forum would be most thankfull.

My two unwelcomed centavos.

Here in northern Spain, and almost everywhere else on earth recently experienced the ongoing, according to some researchers, electric magnetic storm known as CME or Coronal Mass ejections. When I used to work at a 24 hour crisis center, I noted that there were many more crisis on the night of a full moon than other nights. The recent worldwide solar storm might be effecting the police and victims of Ruta 14, like a full moon does?

Perhaps, and I have sort of been observing this, the Ruta 14 extortions and descriptions of same by those who post here, may have been effected by unusual solar activity. Perhaps a research project could be launched to determine what factors are or are not contributing to the extortions on Ruta 14. I volunteer.

I will return to Argentina later this year and ride up Ruta 14 until I get extorted at which time I will ask if I might stick around for a week or so to monitor the extortion of others for a research paper I am writing.

i am sure we can find an appropriate venue to present the paper when my research is completed.

Just want to uphold our elitist image...

Javier if you and Sandra need a place to stay in northern Spain, you got it.

xfiltrate

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Motorcycle Parking Buenos Aires, Argentina
www.xfiltrate.com