I love the smell of urinal cake in the morning
#26
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It's mostly a problem when I tour in my home state of PA. Wine and liquor sales are, for the most part, controlled by the state. "State Stores," as they are called, are few and far between in "Pennsyltucky." The ones you do find in the hinterlands are often only a open a few days/week. Under a new law that went into effect a year or two ago, a grocery store can get a license to sell beer and wine. Such stores are also rare outside of larger communities. Takeout beer is usually much easier to get, but beer is heavy, and I am not a big beer drinker. Makes me bloated.
#27
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All of that. Rain can be a downer if it doesn't let up. When it's warm, a fleeting shower doesn't bother me. When it's not, it can ruin the day.
And I can't blame my boss, who never hassles me about when I take leave and how I use it, but I only have so much, which gets divided between some persistent, annual events and vacations with my wife, and as a result, I take shorter trips. Shorter trips require more rigid planning. I've had to make some creative changes to my plans a couple of times to get where I needed to when I needed to. Or I've had to ride right up to and beyond dark to make mf goals. By the time I'm getting into the groove of the trip, it's time to head back. I need to plan shorter days, but then I feel like I haven't gone anywhere.
Or, of course, I need to plan longer trips where I can be more flexible about how much a ride, but a longer trip keeps me from home longer.
I will say that I generally sleep okay unless there are extenuating circumstances, like really bad weather or some unplanned stealth camping in a questionable location. Other than that, if I've biked all day and got my hammock set up comfortably, I can sleep pretty well. Sometimes it seems like I sleep better than at home.
And I can't blame my boss, who never hassles me about when I take leave and how I use it, but I only have so much, which gets divided between some persistent, annual events and vacations with my wife, and as a result, I take shorter trips. Shorter trips require more rigid planning. I've had to make some creative changes to my plans a couple of times to get where I needed to when I needed to. Or I've had to ride right up to and beyond dark to make mf goals. By the time I'm getting into the groove of the trip, it's time to head back. I need to plan shorter days, but then I feel like I haven't gone anywhere.
Or, of course, I need to plan longer trips where I can be more flexible about how much a ride, but a longer trip keeps me from home longer.
I will say that I generally sleep okay unless there are extenuating circumstances, like really bad weather or some unplanned stealth camping in a questionable location. Other than that, if I've biked all day and got my hammock set up comfortably, I can sleep pretty well. Sometimes it seems like I sleep better than at home.
#28
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#30
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its a take on a line from the film, "Apocalypse Now".
A pretty whacked film about a pretty whacked war.
and an aversion to those whatsit thingees that we pee onto that are put in urinals to combat smell I imagine, they look like a hockey puck, sort of (what can I say, I'm Canadian eh)
A pretty whacked film about a pretty whacked war.
and an aversion to those whatsit thingees that we pee onto that are put in urinals to combat smell I imagine, they look like a hockey puck, sort of (what can I say, I'm Canadian eh)
#31
Senior Member
I have found that my 2-4 day mini tours are always solo as none of my friends and family are into cycling like I am and those that could potentially could accompany me aren’t available when I am. That being said a few sips of whisky or a few beers in front of the campfire help being alone feel less lonely. One time I had a few too many and I the next morning I realized how miserable, unproductive and counterintuitive it was.
#32
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#33
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My job is the biggest inhibition.
Else it's the worrying over making whatever goal I set myself for each day, whether it be a destination, sight to see, what have you. When I'm already out there I tend to not worry as much.
Else it's the worrying over making whatever goal I set myself for each day, whether it be a destination, sight to see, what have you. When I'm already out there I tend to not worry as much.
#34
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Bad bumpy narrow roads and headwinds kill my spirit. Inability to find a place to camp is a downer. Back in the day when I rode my motorcycle on long tours, I could just sleep on a park bench or a picnic table for the night. Those days are gone. I'm older and more paranoid now.
#37
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Sometimes having to ride for long distances on heavy traffic, no shoulder roads. Or even those with shoulders. Don't like it. As long as the route is on low-traffic roads, it's fine. We sleep well, don't drink, and enjoy each other's company. And only have the one bike, so we can't get separated or have to deal with all the stuff associated with two or more bikes trying to ride together.
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Results matter
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Funny how someone who commented here has never toured.
#39
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#40
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He's been claiming this (falsely) about me for several years now. Just ignore the trolling.
Of all the things to make up, I would think bike touring experience would be pretty low in the fake credentials category.
Of all the things to make up, I would think bike touring experience would be pretty low in the fake credentials category.
Last edited by Cyclist0108; 03-13-19 at 05:03 PM.
#43
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I've always been WYSIWYG to the point of recklessness.
(OK, maybe not with the avatar.)
(OK, maybe not with the avatar.)
#44
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I love the smell of urinal cake in the morning
There was this previous thread on the Fifty-Plus Forum, “What do you find hardest about cycle touring now we aint spring chickens any more?”:
and apropos the title of this thread:
I didn't want to hijack another thread that seemed on the brink of going in this direction, so ...
What do you find are the most inhibitory aspects of bike touring (i.e., things that make you think twice about doing it), and what are your coping strategies?
(For me, it is insomnia. I seem incapable of getting a decent night's sleep, which gradually grinds me down over the course of a long trip.)
What do you find are the most inhibitory aspects of bike touring (i.e., things that make you think twice about doing it), and what are your coping strategies?
(For me, it is insomnia. I seem incapable of getting a decent night's sleep, which gradually grinds me down over the course of a long trip.)
… Last year, I avidly read the posts on BF about a perimeter tour of Lake Ontario, and I experienced some surprising mental discomfort that struck me as a sign of getting older.
While I would still enjoy riding about 50 miles a day for an extended trip, the thought of the uncertainty of finding a place to stay for the night was unsettling.
(Our previous tours were all self-supported and self-guided. If I/we were to resume touring, it would at least be a credit card style, if not an organized tour.) On that honeymoon though, finding a place to stay was a memorable part of the adventure:
I guess 30 years of a stable, predictable cycle-commuting lifestyle erodes that exhilaration of the uncertainty.…
While I would still enjoy riding about 50 miles a day for an extended trip, the thought of the uncertainty of finding a place to stay for the night was unsettling.
(Our previous tours were all self-supported and self-guided. If I/we were to resume touring, it would at least be a credit card style, if not an organized tour.) On that honeymoon though, finding a place to stay was a memorable part of the adventure:
I guess 30 years of a stable, predictable cycle-commuting lifestyle erodes that exhilaration of the uncertainty.…
Sleep. For the first time, we had a sag wagon this year when we did a tour of Niagara Falls & Canada. We did a combo of B&B's and camping, and because we had the sag, I could bring a nice thick foam sleeping pad for camping.
It worked out great. I had just resigned myself to not getting much sleep on tours anymore because sleeping on the ground was causing me hip pain….
It worked out great. I had just resigned myself to not getting much sleep on tours anymore because sleeping on the ground was causing me hip pain….
What killed it for me, besides the normal hassles of camping, was having to get up, get semi-dressed, and stumble out of the tent at 2AM trying to find the porta-john because I had to pee.
I took to not drinking anything after about 6PM to avoid having to do this more than once a night! Add "in the rain" to that a couple times and I knew my tour/camp days were over….
I took to not drinking anything after about 6PM to avoid having to do this more than once a night! Add "in the rain" to that a couple times and I knew my tour/camp days were over….
Last edited by Jim from Boston; 03-13-19 at 07:39 PM.
#46
Senior Member
#47
I hope (& assume) you guys properly dispose of the pee & the bottle --> separately. When I see pee-bottles tossed on the side of the road, from truckers(?), I ask myself --> can someone be more self-centered.
Last edited by BigAura; 03-14-19 at 06:27 AM.
#49
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I wasn't referring to you. And if you remember Squeezebox and BT Hobo you will remember that it's high on the list of some.
#50
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I love the time I get to spend living on a bike. I've done a couple month-long solo tours and a few week-ish ones since I got into it in 2016. The only thing that gives me slight pause is the time I spend not working. I'm self-employed. So when I'm touring, I'm not earning. I've only got about 15 years of working left in me, so one could argue I should be saving for retirement. I guess really though, I'm not waiting. I'm going on a freind's advice. He said you should retire early and often.
As for the hardest part of being out there, for me, it's that there aren't enough hours in a day. I love the time in the saddle the best and don't usually want to stop, but am forced to by the sun going down.
As for the hardest part of being out there, for me, it's that there aren't enough hours in a day. I love the time in the saddle the best and don't usually want to stop, but am forced to by the sun going down.