axolotl

I've posted this one before, too.

Many years ago I was on a road in central Switzerland and came across two touring cyclists going the other direction. We stopped and chatted. They were from the Tidewater Virginia area. One of them asked me if the next town had a bike shop. I asked him why. He said his rear wheel was badly out of true. I told him if he took his panniers off and turned his bike upside down, I could true it for him. He did, and I did.

Fast forward to two months later. I was in Dingle, Ireland, biking with a friend. We were staying at an unofficial hostel. The doorbell rang and I was closest so I went to open it. When I did, I saw two guys, one of whom said to me in a soft Virginia drawl, "Don't I know you from somewhere?". I was afraid to ask about his wheel, but he said his wheel had been fine since he met me. He bought me a pint that evening.

manapua_man

Being chased by a crackhead with an exacto knife for about 10 miles, and seeing him collapse while I kept on going.

simplygib

There are so many magic moments, but the one that probably stands out the most was from my first-ever tour. My gf and I were grinding up a steep grade near Globe, AZ, in the midst of a miserable storm. I had a nasty head cold that was nearing its peak. There were ferocious headwinds and horizontal rain, combined with the spray of passing big rigs. The road turned and the wind began to cross from our left. Keeping the bike on the road became a monumental task, and eventually a big gust literally blew me over into a puddle of mud. I couldn't take any more. I stood up, started stomping around in the mud, profanities flying into the wind at the top of my lungs. After the little meltdown, we started off again, and ten minutes later we crested the hill. On the back side the storm eased, then broke up. The wind lessened, then became a slight tail wind. The sun peeked out, and we cruised effortlessly downhill, eternally grateful to be lucky enough to experience mother nature on her own terms.

djb

I have good French friends, and the wife can do the "ranting French woman" thing pretty good, but I suspect teh Italians win. Funny how diff cultures are with diff aspects of emotions, how and how much you show.

djb

that is quite a sad story, you really should have paid him for the crack and avoided all the extra exertion on both your parts.

Jude

I haven't done any real bike touring yet, so both these are from a backpacking trip across Israel.

We hiked into a little desert village, it and another town of about 500 each being the only civilization for miles. There was a "trail angel" there, trail angels being people that take in hikers on the National Trail. This family had a couple little cabins in the back yard, as well as a shower and kitchen for our use and a small zoo, of dogs, peacocks, goats, camels, horses and so on. Five minutes after we got there, we were sitting around with some of his multitude of kids cutting sugarcane stalks. We ended up staying for two nights. The first morning, one of the goats gave birth and two little kids were staggering around when we woke up.

Another time, we found a little dry streambed with steep banks and a lot of trees that we thought would afford some privacy. About 15 minutes after setting up, a massive flock of sheep, accompanied by sheepdogs and Bedouin shepherds, came pouring down into the wadi and sort of slowed past us like some kind of woolly river. One of the more memorable moments of the trip.

mev

There are a number of moments, but one I'll relate here happened on a trip I had organized for friends while in college. Overall plan was a four day ride from Boston, stopping in Nantucket and then returning via ferry from P-town.

We had a wonderful cycling day set up on Nantucket, and decided to take a loop ride around and back to the hostel. One couldn't help but look around at all the sights. Unfortunately, one of the riders, Elaine was looking a little too much at the view and cycled straight into a parked car. I saw it all happen in slow motion as I was leading up the rear. Fortunately, Elaine was ok but her steel frame bike had a massive bend in the down tube. Owners of the car who were bird watching nearby and were kind enough to take Elaine into town. The rest of us cycled there and met up for the prognosis. It didn't look good. No viable alternative to get a bike frame expect perhaps try scrounging the dump the next morning. Most likely however, Elaine was looking to a bus ride back to Boston. So we locked Elaine's bike remnants to a post. The rest of the crew cycled to the hostel and I joined Elaine in as we walked back with my bike to the hostel.

As we got to the hostel, the other friends came out beaming. Meet Marty, he wants to give Elaine a bike! Huh? People don't just give away bicycles, so we wondered what else was to the story. Turns out as our crew got back to the hostel, they were talking with others of experiences and related that it was a beautiful day except for Elaine's bike crash. Marty took an interest. He was from NYC and had come to Nantucket for a week of vacation, buying a used bicycle before his trip. He was now heading back and probably wouldn't have much occasion to cycle in the city. He was genuine about his offer and wouldn't take money or other things for his generosity. It really was a kindness of strangers moment, for which we are grateful (in hindsight, wished had kept contact info to pay Marty back rather than paying it forward, but didn't think of it then).

So, the particular memory that comes back to me isn't as much this sequence of events but the feeling the next morning as we cycled through rest of Cape Cod with Elaine on her new bike, some spare parts scavenged from the old steed and were heading up the back roads and headed to P-town. Kindness of strangers enhanced that memory of a cycling trip with friends.

OldZephyr

Back in the 80s my wife and I decided to take Amtrak from Wisconsin to Buffalo, NY so we could tour the Finger Lakes region, Letchworth State Park, etc. The train arrived in Depew (a Buffalo suburb) early on a beautiful Sunday morning. It was going to be a long day for us (around 80 miles or so), so we quickly assembled our bikes and pedaled off.

About a block or two out of the train station I noticed a grunching sound/feeling in my bottom bracket, sounded like a shattered bearing. Ugh. It was clear that something bad had happened, we had no tools or bearings to fix that kind of problem. So we tried to find a bike store open early on a Sunday in Depew -- but of course nothing was open. Still, we left a message on the answering machine of one bike store explaining our predicament, had breakfast at a diner, and we kept using a pay phone to call the shop at intervals in the hopes it would be open.

As it turns out, the owner happened to stop in to his shop (even though the shop was closed) and when he heard our message he waited around figuring we would call again (which we did). We walked my bike to the shop, and he fixed the problem with the bottom bracket on the spot, even taking parts from a bike in his existing stock, and charged us very little for his work. We were so grateful and we managed to make it to Letchworth just before dark.

Our bicycle trips have been filled with kindness from people along the way. I think that's because most people do want to help others, they just don't want to get hurt, and because a person on a loaded touring bicycle is not threatening, people are more willing to help.

B. Carfree

Like many others, there are so many wonderful memories that it is hard to pick one. Back in '89, my wife and I were on our way from Davis, CA to Spokane WA for my grandparents' 50th anniversary on our then-new tandem. (Little did we know that this would turn into an extended tour of B.C. and Alberta too). The day before we needed to arrive in Spokane, we stopped in the town of Washtuckna intent on staying at a small hotel we had seen listed in a phone book. When we got to town, most of the residents were at the local tavern/eatery, it being Friday night. Everyone insisted that we couldn't stay at the hotel. After a lot of evasive discussion, we found out that the hotel was the local house of ill-repute. The townsfolk invited us to shower at their local pool and camp in the park, as long as we broke camp by 8:00 A.M. when the sprinklers come on. Just outside of town, a wheat farmer came racing up to us on his ATV. We chatted for a while and he expressed a real longing to do a long bike tour, but couldn't take a season off from the field. When we suggested he try something in the southern hemisphere he just lit up. I wish we had taken the time to get contact information as I'm sure he has done many wonderful tours by now.

aenlaasu

It was around the hottest part of the day on the first day of my first tour which was only 2 days long. We (me and my husky) had just finished a long 5 mile stretch in full sun and needed a break in the shade when I came up to one of the many country churches scattered all over the mid and southern parts of Sweden. It had a beautiful grassy sward, perfectly clipped and tall old trees. We were only too glad to stop in the shade to drink lots of water and let it settle for a while.

Less than 15 min into our rest, a car pulled up and a woman got out with a pair of young teen children. The woman greeted me and said she had seen Loke and I about 15 miles earlier as we'd cycled through a small town. As she asked about our ride, other people began to arrive. I asked if it was regular services. She answered it was a funeral and I offered my condolances. By then, the we were sitting in full sun again and I started looking for thicker shade. She then asked if I needed water. Of course, it's always a good idea to fill water bottles every chance you get, so I accepted her offer to show me into the church where I could refill.

I topped off, used the bathroom, washed my face and the back of my neck to cool down a little and stepped out of the bathroom. The narrow space I emerged into was PACKED with mourners as they gathered near the entrance of the secondary chamber where the funerary services were going to be held. All black suits and dark, nice dresses and there I stood. A sweaty woman smelling of sunscreen and insect repellent, dressed in battered sneakers, faded ball cap, lycra leggings and a cycle jersey witih a camera bag and pair of water bottles in her arms. No one gave me so much as a sour glance. Not wanting to risk leaving white streaks of sunscreen or the delightful aroma of bug-repellent on their nice clothes, I wedged myself in a corner to wait for the bottle neck to clear.

Surprisingly, no one seemed to notice me except to give me curious looks or ask if I was the one who owned the bike and husky outside. They treated me as if I was as somberly dressed as the rest and anyone who greeted me I apologized for my intrustion and offered condolances. One woman even kissed my cheek as she thanked me for my kindness. Instead of harsh words for my 'inappropriate' appearance or intrusion, I was quietly accepted and made welcome to the shelter of the church. Once they filed into the room for the service, I slipped back outside. I think I will remember that simple kindness and acceptance for a long time.

chineezguy

A number of years ago, a friend and I started a tour in Redding, CA. We took highway 299 west to the coast. Our plan was to stop in Weaverville and camp. We couldn't find the campground and stopped at a real estate office to get directions. He told us it was 3 miles out of town. Needless to say, we did not feel like riding 3 more miles and he must have seen it in our faces as he told us to go next door to a church a talk to the pastor, who lived in a house behind the church. The pastor gave us permission to camp on the lawn. We said our thanks and started walking away. He called us back and gave us the key to the church and told us we could use the bathroom and kitchen. We were total strangers, yet he trusted us.

On the same trip, I ran out of water with nowhere to get more. I stopped on the side of the road and held my water bottle upside down at each passing motor home. One eventually stopped and gave me a choice of water, wine, beer, and soda. I wished I could have had all four.

neilfein

I've posted this before: On the fourth day of a five-day tour zig-zagging New Jersey, I was riding from New Hope, PA to Princeton, NJ. I was riding in the shoulder of an eastbound road, about five miles out from Princeton, and rain started to fall, heavily this time. I looked down at my cue sheet and it was soaked and falling apart. It was glorious.

Somehow, this epiphany became etched into my memory. This was only my second tour, and my first solo tour (mostly solo, after the first day). I ended up writing a song about that day called The Rain is Back.

thestoutdog

OMG, I ran an Irish Pub for a few years in Germany and forgot about the glorious Kilkenny, thanks for reminding me.

Lou Skannon

July 2005.

I had just finished the Camino de Santiago Compostela and had gone on to Finsterra for a few days. At sunset on the first day, I went to the most westerly beach in Europe. A school of dolphins chased a shoal of fish into the bay just as the sun kissed the sea. Magical with flashes of gold and silver.

I camped on the beach for three nights and as I left early on the fourth morning; I turned for one last look at the ocean; the dolphins were there again. Taking a tour of the bay.

Only the second time I had seen them, it was like they came to say goodbye.

awesomejack

On a month long tour last May, Memorial Day weekend.

I see a bunch of parked RVs and tents set up at a steel building with a runway next to it. I go in to check it out and it turns out its a bunch of skydivers hanging out for a weekend. I spent two nights there and the agenda was pretty much skydive all day long, party at night. It was good times and good food.

Gotte

My touring partner and I were pretty much beat; forty miles into a fifty mine day. We'd been lost too often, surprised by unexpected hills, the rough trail through the woods between Munich and Bad Tolz had punctured us three times. It was around eight and the light was fading. We were on an empty country road, just cows and birds for company. We stopped and decided to have dinner there, laying out the bread and cheese and ham and chocolate in their wrappers on the fast cooling tarmac.
The sandwiches were good. But that chocolate. That chocolate.

Gotte

Excellent. That's a great one.

djb

I agree..that is special.

Gotte

Great memory.

Ranger Dan

1) Touring in England on a tandem with my soon-to-be wife, we had a flat tire. As I was repairing the flat, a lady came out of a nearby home and provided us with tea, served from a tea set on a silver tray.

2) We were sleeping in our tent in northern Scotland in the middle of summer, so although it was nearly midnight, there was still a glow on the horizon and it was still somewhat light out. We were awakened by a noise just outside the tent. When I opened the tent flap, I found myself nose to nose with a hedgehog. I think both the hedgehog and I were equally surprised.

3) Mixed emotions on this one: Away from home for more than a year, I remember watching a wallaby while I sat on a picnic table in an otherwise deserted campground, eating my Christmas dinner alone. The location was somewhere in NSW, Australia.

ArizonaRuss

I plan on doing my first major tour next summer across British Columbia. If I just have one of these moments mentioned in the thread, then I'll be doing alright for myself! In fact, reading this thread has inspired me to begin planning this tour. So thank you!

Gotte

I hope you have a great time. I imagine BC to be a great place to tour.

Bike Hermit

There was a small stage carved out of one corner of the restaurant in small town Texas. A young fella on guitar, wearing his day job uniform, some sort of security guard looking outfit, and an old timey cowpoke singing and playing guitar. They played both kinds of music...country and western. I don't know what it is about Texas, but even in low profile places like this the music is good and the players have soul. They got into a particularly good groove on one song and the couple at the table in front of me simultaneously jumped up and started dancing....the twist. They were probably about my age, we'll just say baby boomers. I thought I was recording the whole thing on my Droid but found out later I didn't have it in record mode. Dang. It would have gone viral for sure. Only in Texas!

Spokie

I was in Long Prairie, MN at a Burger King, having coffee before setting out for the day. A total stranger comes to me and asks if that's my bike. After about 5 min. of chatting, he gives me directions to his lake house and the key. It's exactly where I'm headed for the evening. The next day, it rains all day, so I stay a second night. That's the night the tornado hit Joplin, MO. Even in MN, the winds and storms were exceedingly violent. He really did me a solid.
Almost every day I have toured has stories like this. The people we walk this earth with are AMAZING.
Bike touring puts you up close and personal with total strangers, and you really get exposed to how amazing they are.

VT_Speed_TR

My best memory is the worse riding condition day I ever experienced. 60 miles of the C&O trail from Cumberland, MD to Hancock in rain, mist, mud, and puddles.

It was also when I learned that the worse riding condition day spent with great friends is far better then a clear day riding alone.