Went on my first mini bicycle tour

[Sparafusile]

Last weekend I earned a new merit badge in badassity by cycling my bike from my home town Greenwood to West Lafayette Indiana. A total of 106 miles EACH way to visit a friend on his birthday. I also spent some time visiting Purdue (my alma mater) by bicycle for a grand total of about 245 miles ridden in two and a half days. I had never ridden a century before leaving last Friday - now I've ridden two! One stepping stone to riding cross-country next summer! Who else has gone bicycle touring?

Attached is my trusty steed, a Surly Long Haul Trucker.

[mathy]

Way to go! I am a fellow long haul trucker owner. Husband and I's fall vacation is probably going to be cycling the Katy trail across Missouri. I just suck at the planning so I'm hoping I can get it together in the next few weeks.

[Thegoblinchief]

Nice! I'd like to do touring but it will probably have to wait a few years. The LHT is definitely a bike on my radar.

If you're not already aware of these sites, check out Crazy Guy on a Bike (journals and ads) and Warm Showers (hosts for overnight stays during cycle tours if you don't want to camp or buy a hotel).

[GuitarStv]

That's pretty awesome!

[Sparafusile]

If you're not already aware of these sites, check out Crazy Guy on a Bike (journals and ads) and Warm Showers (hosts for overnight stays during cycle tours if you don't want to camp or buy a hotel).

I have read both of their sites, they are both good. There are a couple really good documentaries on YouTube about touring too. I think my favorite was titled "The man that cycled the world", but that's just one of many.

[FLBiker]

Very cool!  I love bike touring.

My first experience was doing some sort of organized trip across Minnesota w/ my dad and brother when I was ~17.  It was great -- they set up food stops along the way, and you camped each night.  No idea what it cost, though.

Then in grad school, I biked around Oahu (over 2 days) several times.  I then moved to China, where I spent ~30 days biking in Qinghai (on the Tibetan Plateau, but not Tibet).  It was awesome.  Some of the mountains were pretty intimidating, but once we were up on the plateau it wasn't too bad.

My preferred ride (for commuting as well) is an aluminum MTB w/ no suspension (for weight).  I'd like to check out a proper touring bike, though.

[Sparafusile]

That's awesome. I'd love to bike in various parts of the world, but I've realized that there are a lot of places in the continental US that I haven't seen up close and personal yet. One country at a time.

I do recommend a true touring bike. I switched from a cheap $200 bike (which I bought after this blog post http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/04/18/get-rich-with-bikes/) to a LHC with the correct handlebars and geometry and the difference was profound. The part that made me the happiest was the fact that I had a good saddle for once and stopped getting sores on my bum.

[MissionPossible]

Ever since I have started biking to work a couple months ago I really am blown away at how I didn't do this sooner. It was a game changer for me.

I have been really obsessed with the idea of getting a nice road bike and doing some long trips in the hopefully not too distant future. There are good routes in BC and right below in the US too. I think it would be blast to just bring some camping equipment, single person tent etc and hit the road. I find biking very peaceful.

I've been watching a lot of YouTube videos which are getting me really excited about it. And with camping etc it would be relatively inexpensive to do, and you'd see so much in a way that very few people do. Just one more thing to look forward to in early retirement!

[FLBiker]

I do recommend a true touring bike. I switched from a cheap $200 bike (which I bought after this blog post http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011/04/18/get-rich-with-bikes/) to a LHC with the correct handlebars and geometry and the difference was profound. The part that made me the happiest was the fact that I had a good saddle for once and stopped getting sores on my bum.

I've never had trouble with the saddle (I think I had a gel cover in China) but I did have some ankle pain.  I wonder if that was geometry related?  At one point, I thought I was going to have to cut the trip short, but I took a day off and taped my ankle up (getting that tape in the middle of nowhere was a trip -- I found this semi-abandoned hospital w/ a doctor living in a shed out front).  I also started tracing the alphabet in the air w/ my foot whenever I stopped, which seemed to help.  Maybe a better bike would have made a difference?

And I love the bike / tent camping combo.  I strapped a rucksack to my rear rack w/ a tent, sleepingbag, etc.  I was more comfortable camping in random places (as opposed to campgrounds) in China (or even Hawaii) than I am in Florida, though.  Not sure if this is justified.

[GuitarStv]

When you're doing bike/tent camping . . .

How do you get your bike shorts and 'nads clean enough each night?  Infected saddle sores would really suck, and I'm guessing that you would be stuck stopping in areas with minimal cleaning facilities.

[Sparafusile]

Usually there is a sink handy. If not, use a clean creek. If not, use baby wipes. Last resort, assuming you're not in the desert, use some drinking water. Synthetic things are pretty easy to clean.

[FLBiker]

When you're doing bike/tent camping . . .

How do you get your bike shorts and 'nads clean enough each night?  Infected saddle sores would really suck, and I'm guessing that you would be stuck stopping in areas with minimal cleaning facilities.

Ha, good question!  I never had sores, so I wasn't super worried about this.  I generally used creeks.  I wasn't in places with sinks or showers or anything.  During 30 days, I probably took 4 showers.  In China, there are places where you can pay for a shower -- I'd bring all the clothes I had in with me and wash them out.  Looked like my bike was covered in streamers afterwards as I dried them out.