I'd be interested to hear peoples takes on this. Me.....i don't think so (or at least, not from my experiences so far!)

Me too, i've got 5 weeks in Feb/March and wil be wild camping my way around Morocco and W Sahara. I wont be getting 'tooled up'

+1
Maybe being 5 foot-not-very-much and built like a matchstick has something to do with it, but even if i was an 18 stone bruiser, i'd rather avoid a situation where i was going to seriously hurt someone.

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I will look out for your safe return then, any tips would be gratefully recieved I'm off on the 16th April.

I'll let you know how i get on for sure

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Hi Tim congrats on the lard loss, my take on feeling unsafe is if you belive it is unsafe you will look like a potential victim, however it can make you more aware of your surroundings as well as paranoid.!

I have done both judo & karate for close to 30 years and know without doubt any confontation can be won with confidence to challenge the aggressors, I mean verbally or in body language, head up eye contact and hands where they can be seen, if they persist then let them have your stuff you can buy more if they want something else run away if you can.
Dignity is for the dead.!

weapons of all kinds need experience in use and are for very last resort eg if they are preventing you from leaving then club them and leave asap and get at least into the next district before stopping.

in my own situation I was wild camping in Senegal and was woken by soldiers checking out my stuff through the windows in my truck.
I was confronted by well dressed & equiped soldiers telling me i must give them this or that and then asking for .!.
I gave only my fiche and then got angry with them for being so rude, I asked lots of questions about who they were and why they were in my camp all without letting them answer, they drifted off after 15mins or so with only my fiche, i found that later as i traced my wheel marks back to the road.

Tim you know the score you been there and worn out the T shirt, but i do wonder when the crap happening in muri turns north west.

Phew...!

I too felt perfectly safe wherever we went Morocco. The people could not have been friendlier, or more willing to help.

If bikers look threatening enough to have been left alone (touch wood), I'm currently practising driving my 4*4 in my bike gear, with my lucky pants on of course. If I leave the heater fan on and my visor down that should push any pepperspray well away from me. I also have the Birdy Song poised for instant release on the stereo to stun and confuse any would be attacker.