Touring 101 needed

lester8908

Hi Im completely new to the world of touring but me my friend are trying to plan a trip across the country. I have alot of unanswered questions. First I need a good route. We will start in North-west Arkansas and head west towards colorado springs. I need a good route with many oppurtunities to stop and pitch a tent. It also needs to be a round trip because we will be short on money and once we get to our destination we plan to ride back taking a different route just to make it more enjoyable.

Ok next, I am going to get the Trek 520 because I think that, that is a great bike for what we will be doing. What is the estimate for how fast that can go on flat ground with a full load? And how many tubes and tires will I need to bring. I have no idea how much wear and tear there will be on this trip. I just need to know all the replacement parts that I will most likely need, and how many I will need. I need to know the best pannier. They will have to hold a small tent and sleeping bag. Plus all my other supplies.

What will I do for food? I want this to be as low budget as possible. Should I go to the local military surplus and stock up on MRE's or what. Im sure I will have a ton more questions later. But until then help me out with these

lugger

Hi Lester,
The wisest part of your posting is where you say you will have a ton more questions. You sure will! The logistics and details of touring are very complicated. They take a lot of help, experience and time to understand. Your asking for help is great, but let's talk about the kind of help you need. I think you need a guided group tour. I think you and your friend will be unsafe and probably very miserable if you go touring without someone who has experience touring and is happy to guide you into touring.
There are organizations that plan and lead tours so people can learn to tour in a safe and fun way. You can find them by asking around at bike shops, at bike clubs and online. I went on great bike tours with American Youth Hostels. I went on a great wilderness trip with National Outdoor Leadership School. Joining an established and recommended group and bringing your willingness to learn and help is Touring 101. After one or more organized group tours, you should know a lot of what you need to know. Be adventurous and be careful. You can be both.

philso

Lester,
What Lugger has to say has many good points, especially being able to learn from someone with lots of experience. But here's something else to chew on. my 1st bike tour was when i was 17, about 50 miles or so from rhode island to martha's vineyard island. i used a little trailer to carry a pile of junk. 3 days at about 50 miles per. that was in march. a couple of months later, about 10 days or so up to canada and back. left the trailer and half the junk behind. the day i turned 18 in august i set off for mexico. i made $300 last 2 months. essentially, what i brought along was some tools, a few clothes, a light sleeping bag, and a tarp. i mostly ate outside of a supermarket someplace. didn't feel i needed to cook, so didn't need a stove or fuel. when the weather sucked, i often slept under an overpass, but on rare occasions at a youth hostel or YMCA. instead of needing an atlas for a trip of that length, i had 1 map of the u.s. and 1 map of which ever state i was in. my trip itinerary was never planned in any detail more than a day in advance. you meet people and you hear of places, so ... sometimes i stayed at campgrounds, but after a while, only when i felt i needed a shower, because of all the winnebagoes. summer days are long. get up and start pedaling, take breaks when and where you feel like it. I averaged 100 miles per day.
so, here's my 2cents worth. get real familiar with your bike, and have the tools you need for break downs like replacing a spoke, fixing flats, and jury-rigging a derailleur so it'll get you to the next town. take a hard look at the things you think you may want to bring. going to need tubes and tires? not likely. bring a patch kit and a pump
you and your friend, start out on an overnighter, then 3or 4 nights, then...?
a lot of it depends on you and your friends personalities. you 2 should look at luggers suggestions and my suggestions and then figure things out on your own.
1 piece of advice, bring a camera and keep it and your film in a waterproof bag. i hardly took any pictures of my first big trip and those i took got ruined from getting the film wet. all i have now i 1 pic from a relative that i stopped to visit.

lester8908

Thanks for the advice we will probably start out small and work our way up. I dont have 10k for a tour.

geoffs

I did my first tour by myself around Europe for 6 months and managed fine without to many dramas. I started off doing about 40-50 miles a day. After 6 months I would ride up to 120 a day which was about 6-7hours on te bike.
I did have a friend in London who had ridden from London to Sydney go through my panniers before I left and toss out all the things that I wouldn't need. This reduced my load considerably!

When we travel now (Co-motion Tandem) We use Ortlieb panniers, cromoly pannier racks, Therma-rest sleeping mats, a Macpac Apollo tent (2man big vestibules), 850gr sleeping bags that compress to zip, MSR Firefly stove.
Things need to be reliable.
Learn how to do some maintainence on your bike. Check out the touring@phred mail list which has a huge amount of info.

Cheers

Geoff

lester8908

I was also wondering if that Bianchi Axis is a good enough bike for 2000 miles. I like that bike do to the fact that I could still do shorter distance bike races with it but it was still partially for touring.

geoffs

In a word. No. Stick with the 520.
With the Axis you would need to replace the wheels and the fork which doesn't seem to make sense. Once you have toured for 2000 miles you will be so fit that the weight of the bike wont matter that much.

Cheers

Geoff

Durangodave

You might be interested in a thread called "What I Learned by Riding Across America." It's not exactly a comprehensive guide to touring, but there's a lot to learn there.

Also, I would second all the advice to try a small trip first.

Enjoy!

__________________
"I must (deride me not) be somewhere where I can, without disaster, bicycle." Henry James, 1896

spartanstorkbir

Try Adventure Cycling for the route. The Tent and sleeping bag will go outside the panniers. I would take some smaller trips first to get the hang of it and to build up your skills and equipment. Have a small amount of food on the bike to keep for emergencies and buy the rest along the way.

Lee

BigBlueToe

Cycle touring can be done an a shoestring budget, or you can spend, spend, spend. My first touring was done on a Raleigh Gran Prix 10 speed with a department store rack, a $30 single-wall nylon pup tent, a cheapo sleeping bag I got free by listening to a condo sales pitch, and panniers I sewed myself using pack cloth. Now I have a little more money (not a lot) and have a 21-speed touring bike, nice panniers front and rear, a very lightweight tent, lightweight sleeping pad, etc.

As far as the bike is concerned, don't scrimp on the rear wheel. At the end of a tour down the west coast I was breaking a spoke a day on the stock mailorder wheel I had.

Before a similar tour last summer I went to my local, trusted bike mechanic and said "Build me a rear wheel that won't break spokes, even with a big load." He ordered good parts, built the wheel himself, trued it carefully, trued it again right before I left. I didn't break a spoke.

There are some emergency spokes you can get which I recommend. They're actually cables with hooks that fit in the hole on the hub, so you don't have to disassemble anything. You tighten them down (you'll need some sort of spoke wrench) and they'll take you to the next town with a bike shop. They've saved me several times. I've never been able to get my wheel very true with them, but if I loosened the quick release on the brakes, I was able to ride.

Another tip: if you find yourself breaking spokes more than once or twice, forget about just replacing them. Once they start to go, they keep breaking. Better to replace them all and start over. On that trip down the coast I was paying bike shops $25-30 each time to replace the broken spoke and true the wheel. It would have been cheaper to just say, "build me a new rear wheel". Plus, each time I'd have to wait around in the shop while they found time to help me. The time wasted was huge on a tour like that.

Okay, that's the rear wheel/spoke advice.

Next, what to carry. Weight is critical. Everyone takes too much the first time. Most of us take too much the second and third times. You'd be surprised how little you need to carry, especially if you're not too worried about being a little dirty.

• Raingear is pretty important. Get something you can ride in. However, my experience is that Goretex isn't necessary. I sweat so much when I ride that the "breathability" factor isn't a factor. I get wet inside from sweating. However, around camp you really need raingear when it starts to rain. Also, raingear can be your outer layer when it gets cold - no need to bring a jacket
• I bring two jerseys and two pairs of shorts and use each twice before considering washing. I could easily go three days in each. Being a little stinky is better than carrying too much. You can wash them in the shower with you to save a laundromat stop. Hang them up at night, drape them on the outside of your gear while riding the next day and they'll be dry when you get to camp. I also bring tights for cold mornings.
• I bring sweatpants, a long-sleeve t-shirt, a fleece vest, shorts to sleep in and a couple of t-shirts to wear around camp. That's it.
• Don't carry a lot of food. The nice thing about bike touring (as opposed to backpacking) is that you're always passing stores. I typically stop in the last store before the campground and pick up food for that night and the next morning.
• I recommend carrying one spare tube, plus a patch kit. If you get a flat, put in the spare tube and buy another at the next opportunity. If you get a second flat before you can buy another tube, patch it.
• Tire problems are much more rare. If you get a cut tire you can insert cardboard, a dollar bill, etc. None of them are great; the idea is to make it to the next bike shop. I know people who carry a spare tire. It's not a bad idea.
• Get the lightest tent you can - even if it's a little snug. I'm 6'4". My Clip Flashlight tent is a bit small for me. It's hard to dress in and I can't really stretch out like I'd like. But I love how light it is! A little inconvenience is well worth it for the weight savings.
• Get the lightest sleeping bag you can. You don't need a 0 degree bag for summer touring. If it gets that cold you can wear your tights and your sweatpants, etc. inside your bag.
• If you need a pad to sleep on (I do) get a 3/4 length, light Thermarest. It's enough, it's light, and I've never had one spring a leak.
• If you are going to cook, get a stove that runs on unleaded gas. You can get it at any gas station, and therefore don't need to carry more than you will need for one night and morning.
• Panniers - There are lots out there. Make sure they are either REALLY waterproof, or that you buy the rain covers that many offer as accessories. Also, buy both front and rear, and put as much weight as possible in the front (You'll also need racks, front and rear. Blackburn are the standard and work well.) There are a combination of factors which make rear wheels most likely to break spokes. Front wheels almost never do. If you put as much of your weight as possible on the front, you likely still won't break front spokes, and you will lessen the chances that you'll break rear spokes.
• Plan on eating a ton of food. I spend a lot of money on restaurants while touring.
• Have a little extra money in your budget for motels. There may be days where you really need to treat yourself to a motel room, or the weather is just too lousy.
• Like other people, I suggets some "shakedown" trips prior to the big one. See how far you can pedal in a day, get in shape, learn what stuff you absolutely need and what you can live without. See if you really like bike touring; not everyone does. It would be nice if you could get a little rain experience on your practice trips. I discovered that my tent needed seam sealer!
• Have fun!

nun

Check out

http://www.crazyguyonabike.com

chephy

A guided tour may work out well for many folks, but it has some disadvantages. First, it might be considerably more expensive than an independent tour. Once I looked up a guided tour across Canada and was amazed at the price - over $7000 Canadian (that's over $5000 US). For someone who wants to go low-budget, I don't think this would be a best solution.... Although you can probably find cheaper tours, I don't know.

There are other features of the guided tour that are undesirable for some. For instance, you can't plan your own route and activities, you can't talk to the locals, you can't stop and admire something you found interesting, you can't take a quick detour to check out a curiosity along the way. Also, some people just don't like large groups of relative strangers and feel uncomfortable in them. The chemistry between the riders might not work out. Et cetera ad infinum.

Now to the "miserable and unsafe" part. I am sure there will be some days and nights when a newbie tourer would feel miserable. That's just inevitable. However, if he makes adjustments as he goes along, he'll probably get much better by the end of the tour and have a whole lot more fun. I know this - my friend and I started multiday touring just this very summer and none of our three tours so far was a disappointment. In fact, we had a blast! But we were quite familiar with our bikes by then and certainly knew how to perform basic bike maintenance.

And as for being "unsafe"... I don't know the situtaion in the U.S., so I can't comment. I am from Canada which has a lower crime rate and my friend and I generally felt pretty safe on the roads while touring. We learned some basic things about wildlife in the areas where we were going, and even though we went into the heart of the bear country, the only animals that ever bothered us were chipmunks and farm dogs (I grant, those can be nasty, but weren't in our case).

greypilgrim_oh

I know I'm coming into this discussion late, but for those interested in learning more about reducing the weight of your gear, consider checking out the Backpacking Light website, http://www.backpacking.net/.

Doug

nun

You're "preaching to the choir", I completely agree with applying the philosophy and equipment of ultralight backpacking to bicycle touring. I just completed a week long tour around Massachusetts using a saddlebag and a credit card. Of course this is not a good example of loaded unsupported touring in the wilderness, but it applies the philosophy of ultralight. I had one change of clothing, bicycle tools and spares (spokes and tubes) and no toiletries as I stayed in motels and they provide you with everything you need.

When I go on a longer tour requiring camping I'll add something like a Tarptent and minimal ultralight camping equipment, no cooking stove though, with the goal of keeping my added weight below 30lbs, maybe I'lll shoot for 20lbs. The biggest challenge is minimizing the weight of the saddlebag and panniers (I plan to only use rear saddlebag and panniers). For a long time I've used a traditional Carradice saddlebag, 2lbs with a volume of 24 liters. Although I really like the Carradice, because I'm a bit of a traditionalist, I'm looking for a lighter saddlebag, here are some very light homemade panniers I found.

http://www.backpacking.net/makegear.html

The equivalent Carradice rear panniers are about twice the weight, 3lbs a pair rather than 1.5 lbs)