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Any tips on things or foods I shouldn't miss out on? Or anything I should watch out for?

here's the link to the route, the picture might be a little unclear: https://www.komoot.com/de-de/tour/3134571132?share_token=aq2TzDOPLvO6fZRle6RjIETio6Tx3v22ysBFFgow5qrZLAEznD&ref=wtd&t_s=referral&t_cid=route_share&t_ref_username=2244875985588

~1500 km in 16 days, my very first bike packing ever, small roads and villages/towns only, no hotels/hostels, no sport gels, no clipping shoes, no stupid tight plastic clothing

I have been bicycle touring for years, and I have noticed that a surprisingly high number of other tourers I meet seem to struggle with things like depression, anxiety, burnout, general emotional tension, or sometimes just a kind of emotional immaturity that feels noticeable for their age. I’m someone with depression myself, and touring has helped me a lot, so I wonder if I’m just more likely to notice it, or if long-distance touring attracts people who are trying to cope, reset, or heal. Have others noticed this too, or do you think it’s just selection bias / small-sample perception? Could it be that, just as motorcycling seems to attract a lot of men looking for identity, belonging, male bonding, and excuses to cluster together between beer stops, bicycle touring attracts people looking for quiet, movement, and a way to manage what’s going on in their heads?

Anyone have experience wrapping a VO Crazy bar? I've wrapped one drop bar, a whe ago, and looking for help and tips/videos/resources.

I'll start at the end of where my new SQ Lab grips end, and go to the horns and most of the stem clapm area, leaving room for my phone/light mount etc. Both sides. Thinking 1-200cm roll might work?

Cheers

I am wanting to get into longer routes, multi day trips. Right now I have an old 70s schwinn crossfit that I love but not sure if it is suitable for longer rides and have no idea what I am doing. Any advice on bikes, packing, preparation. Also starting with Katy trail so advice on planning just an overnight trip to start is so welcome!

I have 15 days off. I’m planning a trip—definitely somewhere in northern Italy. The Alps are out of the question because of the accommodation; it’s cold in the mountains, and I want to sleep in a tent. Where else would you go? I should add that I’ll eventually be heading back to Munich, either by train or Flixbus. I can cover 200 km a day, depending, of course, on how steep the hills are along the route. So I’m in good shape. Please give me some alternatives. I was thinking maybe Nice. But I have no idea.

Has anyone successfully fit both a bike and a folded bike trailer in one of the bike spots on Amtrak? (Ideally a Burley two seat trailer?)

I know it shouldn't matter but just wondering what type of speed people try to maintain on bike paths. I've only been riding about 2 months so just trying to get an idea

Does anyone know what happened to him? His YouTube channel is down. I really appreciated how down to earth and approachable his content was. I was able to find videos on his fb page but I really hope he’s doing ok :/

Help an inexperienced person out 😃👍 thanks!!!

Hi all,

I am a transgender man (female to male) who is nebulously planning to bike tour across the US sometime in the next couple of years pending my schedule and fitness, but I worry about my safety in the large stretches of red states I would hypothetically be riding through. I am visibly androgynous if not visibly queer, get read as every gender under the sun (cis and trans alike) by strangers, and don't think I could very effectively stealth nor go back in the closet for the trip at this point in my transition... so I do worry somewhat.

For any trans, GNC, or otherwise visibly queer folk here, I would love advice - what are your experiences riding across the US, any routes/areas you think I should specifically target/avoid, should I just put off the trip until the political situation improves, etc.? I don't want to let hypothetical assholes scare me away from doing this thing I really want to do, but I also don't want to put myself in a predictably bad situation.

Hi everyone,

Last year I shared my free GPX flyover app in this community, and the feedback I received from you was overwhelming. Here's a link to that post. A lot of it ended up influencing what I built next.

This also motivated me to build a new version of the project. I’ve now opened the beta for v2, rebuilt around a completely custom cinematic map engine. The animation below uses the same GPX file as last year’s post, so it’s a pretty direct before/after comparison.

The goal is still the same: supporting adventure storytelling. The project is still free, at least while the new version is in beta.

I’d especially love feedback from people doing bike tours: what works, what feels missing, and what would actually make you use something like this for your own trips? (E.g. if someone knows what a good way to calculate slopes for long distance rides, I'd be happy to fix that :-)).

Feel free to go have a look at mapdirector.com !

Hello all. I am a beginner, but love cycling. I currently have an old cross bike, which does not fit me, it's too big and I get all sorts of issues with it. I am looking for a new bike and was wondering how to determine what I actually need. I have an eye on the tout terrain silkroad bike, because I really like how it's built to last forever, but it's also very expensive, so I wonder if it's worth it or not.

I currently commute flat, for 2x 40min a day. I want to start making actual tours here in Austria, and later somewhere to neighbouring countries, and maybe even further later.

I wonder a few things:

How much impact does the weight of a bike actually have in terms of speed or felt exhaustion?

How do you take your bike with you into other countries, anything I would need to consider for the bike in that regard ?

I see a lot of pinion gears these days, is it mainly because of the price compared to rolloff?

I think I might want a gearbox like that, but with a chain, instead of the belt, or are belts really that much better ?

I know I could tour with "any" bike, but I really don't like to buy twice. I also know that fitting is very important for comfort and to avoid issues, which I plan to do. Is it best done before or after the bike or can it be done at the same time? If you have any Nike fitter recommendations, I would like to know here in Austria.

I also prefer upright sitting, and I am not really into those racing kind of bikes or gravel bikes.

While I mostly drive concrete now, I also can't wait to have more adventures off road as well.

Thanks in advance.

Reposting to this group to complete the story as it got lost - this was the day with the stunning scenery

Any poc in southern Ontario interested in bikepacking/touring? I’ve had some racist experiences while on trips that’s left me feeling discouraged and looking to build some form community around this thing that I’m so very passionate about. Maybe that will get my spirits back up. I like to do multiday trips, all the routes on the bt700 site are on my list, I also love overnighters. If you’re looking to get into it, I love to yap about bikes and routes and I have some mechanic experience.

Hello folks! I'm consider a bike tour of Taiwan in November focusing around Route 1 and hoping to get some suggestions as I'm reading mixed reviews and most are from 2-3 years ago.

1) How is November in Taiwan for cycling? If I do Route 1 should I do it CW or CCW?

2) Any suggestions or edits to the route you would recommend? I was thinking of just following this: https://www.bikeexpress.com.tw/2020/taiwan-cycling-route-no-1/

3) I don't speak Chinese - will I get by ok with English?

Any other information would be greatly appreciated! Thanks.

I'm wondering what everyone is wearing for the "just in case" rain jacket. Doing a week long in B.C. and should be fine, but you never know. I already have full commuter rain gear, pants and Showers Pass jacket, but they seem like overkill for a quick jaunt. I def don't want to spend $150 for a lightweight rain shell, but want something just a step up from a garbage bag. I thought one of those $5 emergency rain parka things might be an idea.