Interesting few comments from some well known people on the site .....

I think she is doing a great job ... and it is what it is .... great !
Shame some people find negatives in what she has done .
We have all broken rules in maroc ... going to fast,, wrong way down streets,
etc .
So to sum up She is doing a great 10/10 job !

kk

Not me! Although I have never been to Morocco but give it time, I did cycle the wrong way down a dual carriageway in Mumbai yesterday which is probably safer than going in the right direction, at least you can see what is about to just miss you when facing it.

Back on subject from what I have seen she does a good job but I prefer to hear live talks about people's travels.

No, not me either. No reason, just not inspired to follow her travels when I have my own agenda.

Ha ha... I was turned onto this thread by a friend who knows of my "IB" (irritable bowel??) encounters. I caught hell / was expected to "answer for" the IB a few years ago when she knowingly and illegally flew her drone in Torres del Paine National Park.

I certainly wouldn't be surprised to hear she's doing it again.

The drone flying is a valid criticism if she doesn't have a permit ... in general it does feel like a few people are very quick to criticise her (not just here, in general). Nobodies perfect but I don't remember seeing these sorts of comments over, say, Lyndon Poskitt's videos

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I must admit I considered taking a drone to Morocco last year and trying to 'sneak' it in but didn't in the end. Of course I'm not trying to make an 'on the road' style living so it's easy for me to take some sort of moral high ground but laws are laws and if you decide to go your own way you have to be prepared for the consequences. I'm pretty sure though that most of us here will have 'bent' the odd regulation here and there over the years for pragmatic reasons. Of course if she did have a permit how many of her critics would stand up and apologise?

Quite how much of that criticism is just envy in a fur coat is hard to say as I haven't seen any of her videos, but I'd be surprised if there isn't an element of sour grapes in at least some of them that somebody has managed to put together a lifestyle that many would aspire to but don't have the capacity or the qualities to pull off themselves. If you can, do, as the saying goes but the second half seems to have morphed these days into, instead of teach, carp.

Who are all the "critics" (with an s at the end)? Are some people's replies hidden from me in this thread? Just because someone takes the time to reply to a thread that asks a yes/no question and says "no" doesn't make them a critic. Tastes vary and having the desire to watch some random YouTube channel isn't for everyone. Some are busy doing other things.

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No, not here, we're all even handed and charitable. It's more what you read on YouTube and Facebook (my main sources of world news ). I might not follow IB but I've been aware of her and what she's been doing for years - overlanding on bikes is a pretty small world when all is said and done - and there's plenty who 'find fault' for whatever reason with her travels.

From a personal perspective I don't watch her exploits (or anybody else's come to that) for the same reason I don't tune in to Adventure Rider Radio or some of the other fixtures in the firmament; it all takes more time and commitment than I'm willing to put in and as I think bikes take up a larger share of my life than they ought to already there's no room for any more. Having said that I've no issue with constructive criticism in any walk of life, but negative criticism of the type she often attracts (or did in the past anyway) is just unsavoury. Whether it bothers her or not I've no idea but I don't think you can attract the number number of followers she has without some of them reacting negatively.

Am currently in Vietnam, riding a bike. It's 6 hours ahead of the UK, hence the timing of my posts. Between the daylight riding and the nighttime eating, drinking and sleeping and in the morning before the riding, there's a brief window of opportunity to read and write on the HUBB. Or not


Ahh, get you. Don't watch any bike travel related stuff on YouTube (so IB has passed me by almost completely. I estimate she had been travelling and broadcasting for 18 or so months before I'd even heard of her). Also gave up on most bike travel content on Facebook (too much drivel and spammers, err I mean attempts at "marketing", except HU Facebook, long ago, so any IB discussion never appeared in my field of vision. Looks like I haven't missed much ...

The only bike related content on YouTube I watch is road racing like the TT or rally raid like the Dakar.

I visited British bike friends in Portugal about a year ago and the lady of the house insisted on getting her IB fix, so we watched 3 episodes in succession (she was in Central America). I thought Noraly was actually quite a pleasant human being and her episodes were surprisingly "normal", especially in comparison to the utter Long Way diatribe, or other self publicists' "contributions", supposed by their sycophantic fan boys on Instagram/Facebook. I had similar experiences to Noraly when I rode there more than 2 decades ago, so (pleasant?) memories were bought back...

Have never heard an episode of ARR. Ever. Judging by the individuals involved, it struck me as an attempt by them to keep their names front and centre so they can continue to flog their wares. But I'm not their target audience, so it's a win/win all round. With the exception of GJ, none of the rest share their "expertise" here on the HUBB...

An aside: Every attempt at individuals trying to promote their own (probably sh1te, but I wouldn't really know as I never see it) YouTube video on HU FB leads to an unfollow/ block by me. I've a big appreciation for good still photography and interesting, personal writing though. And if it isn't to my taste, it's so easy to scroll on by in a nanosecond. To judge whether a video is poor (as it will invariably be, when I did try watching them) takes minutes/ multiples thereof; time I'll never get back that could have been spent planning trips, doing trips, earning money to pay for trips, chatting with locals/friends and drinking cerveza.

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I have to commend Itchy Boots, simply for the fact that while in a challenging situation, in addition to figuring it out, she sets up her recording gear and records it. Anyone who has been in similar dilemmas knows that the last thing on your mind is to set up a camera or go-pro to record it. She does it over and over again - travel adventures, interactions with locals... I suspect each episode involved editing down several hours of video. Of course, for her, it's her job and income. For me it's an adventure motorcycle trip.

In this new post truth world, who's to say what's the right or wrong way down the binary Mumbai dual carriageway anyway?

The OP asks a binary question and when the answer is 0 rather than the hoped for 1, then it's a "shame some people find negatives in what she has done".

I propose the motion to this house, that from now on, no "nit" shall ever be picked again!

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