NINE months on the back of a motorbike travelling up to 25,000 miles is not most couples’ idea of a dream holiday.

But for Jean and Bruce Porter it is the trip of a lifetime and they are put their faith in Lowton motorcycle specialist Tony Kilbryde and his team at Pitstop Motorcycles team to prepare their Aprilia machines for the marathon journey.

Tony explained: "Preparation consisted of a full service and fresh lubricants, new chains and sprockets and brakes pads and we made some radiator grills to hopefully prevent any stone damage. New parts were fitted to the bikes for peace of mind and we fitted Pirelli Scorpion dual purpose tyres.

"The bikes are fitted with Yamaha 660cc single cylinder engines that have a great reputation for reliability so Bruce and Jean should be able to relax and enjoy."

The pair flew out to Toronto for the first leg of their epic adventure, which will see them journey through 17 countries in four continents.

But when they arrived they were in for a shock - a bike storage bill for $1,400! Relief came when they negotiated a 95 per cent refund with the shipping company.

Starting in Canada the couple plan to ride overland through the US to Mexico and Central America including Belize, Honduras, Guatemala and Costa Rica.

They will then travel down the west coast of South America stopping in a number of countries including Columbia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Argentina.

From Buenos Aires they will fly to Madrid before making the journey home through Europe to St Helens.

Bruce, aged 47, who took voluntary redundancy after a 26-year career working in IT, has been riding motorbikes for nearly 30 years and Jean, 45, who is taking an unpaid career break from her job with the NHS, passed her test in 1995.

Bruce, from St Helens, told the Journal on the eve of their departure, “You could say we are finally having a gap year, before we are too old to enjoy it.

“We both want to see things and meet people with a different way of life to ourselves.”

It isn’t the pair’s first motorbiking adventure though, in 2007 they went on a three month trip across the US, a taster for this year’s expedition.

They have also travelled across the Pyrenees, the Alps, to Nordkapp in Norway and driven to all the Cardinal points in the UK without using motorways.

On Monday of this week the couple were in Virginia having crossed the US border at Cornwall and travelled through New England, New Hampshire and a wet Pennsylvania.

*To read the couple’s blog go to ytc1.co.uk