Tour Guide

I know I'm not the most experienced tourer in the world, but I feel like I picked up on a few things while on the road that might be useful to other people. Specifically how to tour on the cheap, and get what you want without paying for it. So here are some lessons I learned.

GEAR

Know your gear! Know your bike! If you buy anything new for your trip make sure you use it a couple times before leaving. Set up your tent by yourself, and take it down. See how long it takes you. Can you fit your gear inside? How warm is your sleeping bag? Do you havea cook stove, what kind? are those band aids your bringing shit? Figure this stuff out before you leave so you have less to worry about. My tour was realy cheap and my gear was ghetto so I made the mistake of not knowing what was liable to rip out on one of my bags. Luckilly I brought a sewing kit to fix stuff up.

Be prepared. Sewing kit, duct tape, lighter, band aids, tools, tubes, patches, sun block, toilet paper, phone charger, bring this shit or you will regret it.

Pack smart. Certain things you will want easy access to while your riding. Namely food, atlas, sun block, rain gear on certain days. Put this stuff in a different bag, or on the top of a bag. I put lots of this in my tent bag which was easy to open and close. Make sure you have enough snaks for your riding, and put the rest away. There is no point in eating all your food in one day. The more stuff you use the more you need to spend on your trip.

Lock up. I never had to worry much about theft, but be smart. When you go to a store bring your bike in the entry way, or have someone watch it. You dont want your stuff getting stole. You will grow a bond with your bike anyway that will keep you watching it like a hawk wheever you go. It's kind of funny, but as you go you will find yourself getting closer and closer to your bike and watching it more and more. When you are stopped for the day put as much of your stuff in your tent as possible and lock up. If you are crashing on someones floor and they have guests over make sure you are sleeping next to your stuff. Don't be afraid to be blunt about the fact that you want to keep an eye on your stuff. Just tell them Your life is on your bike, people seem to understand that.

The hardest thing is balancing what you think you need and what you do. If you have questions over wether to bring something, usually dont. There are alot of guides on this sort of thing, but just make sure you pack smart.

FOOD

Bring your own! Yes, bags of trail mix can add up in weight, but it uis alot easier, and cheaper to bring your own food, than buy it on the road. Dried soups, banana chips, trail mix, and granola bars will keep you going for a long time. Plus the weight of the food only goes down as you ride.

I'm not an expert on what to eat while touring, but the best advice is "eat before you're hungry, drink before you're thirsty." Keep your water full, this is easy enough at gas stations, or just knock on peoples doors out in the country. Use your own discretion on the houses you pick to ask though... Heres sometyhign I randomlly pulled of the web. "Eat Well. It can be a challenge to eat healthy when you're on the road, but when you're touring is when you most need to do so. Emphasize fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and beans as much as you can. Meat and dairy slow you down and increase your recovery time. (I'm not kidding, and this isn't just unsubstantiated opinion.) I tend to eat fruits for breakfast. To make sure I'm getting enough vegetables there are always frozen vegetables -- very easy to prepare, and if you buy them in the morning they'll thaw nicely for lunch or dinner. Canned beans are cheap and can be really satisfying. Oats cook easily and make you happy. Look for whole-grain cereals like Cheerios and Grape Nuts." You will feel it if your not getting what you need. If this is the case take some time to go to a gas station or store and buy what you think your missing.

Kwik Trip is saviour. Extremely cheap bread, and banananas. Bring a jar of peanut butter along and you will be set. Alot of days I went to kwik trip in the morning for my days food, spent $1.80 and I was set all day.

Dumpster dive. Dumpsters are always full of goodies. Check out bakeries, aldis, moveis theatres, and gas statations. Some smaller grocery stores may have dumpsters still, but most have made the transition to compactors. Note however that sometimes after riding bike all day the last thing you want to do is crawl around in a dumpster and not find anything. When I go to water parks and stuff we would watch the familes eating pizzas, and when they set the box on the garbage go grab it, lots of time there is up to half a pizza left. Take only what you need, and don't make a mess of everything. There is no point in taking 3 heads of lettuce with you. Leave some for whoever else may be stopping at athat dumpster.

Super 8 motels across the country all offer continental breakfast. If you are near one take full advantage of it. I didn't need to do this usually, but as long as you look like you belong there no one will ask you any questions. look for other hotels offering continental breakfast.

Just ask. This is the best part. Note however it is probobly alot easier to do on your own than with a group. Find local restraunts with empoty parking lots and just ask if they can help you with some food. I would usually ride by the target once to try to catch attention, then turn around, lock up outside the window, go in, and say "Hey, I'm David. Im just passing through on my bike on my way to____ I'm kind of broke and was wondering if there was any way I could wash dishes or help out in exchange for a meal." The initial reaction of people is usually one of shock, don't let that intimidate you. Make sure you arn't just asking some waitress, look for a manager or cook, someone wearing different clothes than everyone else. They can only say 2 things yes or no. If they say yes you are set, if they say no you havnt lost anything. If they seem hesitant to answer ask if the owner is in. Owners seem to be pretty sympathetic, managers not so much. if they say yes take advantage of the food while you can. Get a fair amount and take your time eating. make small talk to make sure they know your not some worthless grifter. be courtious and say thanks. Don't leave a bad taste in their mouths in case another biker ever comes through there again. This all works suprisingly well as long as you are nice to the people, and dont come off as a dirty grifter. One time I was denied, but the person standing next to me gave me $10 for food anyway. Another time the barista said they counted everything, but she would buy me food anyway. This is a good way to get free food, and get to know the town. While in Marshfield they even invited me back for breakfast the next day. Always say thank you.

Just because your touring doesn't mean you can't look for deals. Shop around the grocery store. Graze over the fruits eating grapes and veggies. Take a basket put a bushel of grapes and some cherry tomatoes in it, walk around picking at them bring them back, buy a loaf of bread and leave.

SHELTER

I only slept in my tent 3 times on the road. Its pretty easy to find people to help you out. When you get into a town ask if there are any bike shops, cool cafes, records stores, co-ops, etc. Whatever you are intrested in. Go in talk to people, and simply ask if they know anyone that might let them pitch a tent in their yard, or crash on their floor. 3 answers yes, no, or I dont know. If no, ask if they know any good places outside of town to pitch a tent. Then you at least uyou have a backup. If they dont know, then ask them if there might be another place in town to go to ask. About 50% of the time people told me they didnt know. I would hang out and talk to them for a while, give them my phone number, and get a call a little later from someone. Or else they would give me a number to call which would somehow end up with me getting a place. Staying indoors is nice because then you get to meet the locals, stay dry and warm, and lots of times people will make you food, or give you food/advice for the road. Take advantage of their tv to check the weather if possible. I also find it helps to reassure people that you will be gone by 9 or 10 the next morning. Leave a thank you note before you go.

Tent under trees. It gives you shade and shelter from rain.

When you are coming into a town keep your eyes peeled for places to set up camp if need be.

Hotels. Hotels are expensive, but lots of times will work with you to find a fair price. make sure you tell them your story, and keep trying to talk them down. make sure you bring up the fact that you are on a tight budget. I would only stay at a hotel if you had and absolutly shit day, or the weather for that night was looking really nasty. The only hotel I stayed in was the one I got for free. Look for locally owned places, they are more flexible. Be courteous, but also be persistant in exausting all possibilities. offer your help around the place. Always say thank you.

Get contacts from friends. This is another reason it is a good idea to bring your phone along with you.

DIRECTIONS

Get a good atlas of wherever you are going. Keep it easily accesible. You will use it every day.

Dont be afraid to double check directions. It is better to stop and double check stuff before you end up 10 mile sout of the way riding back into a headwind, it sucks.

Ask people. Dont be afraid to ask locals for directions. Be careful though. Make sure you say your on a bike so they don't try to direct you down some freeway. Locals often have different names for streets, so make sure to ask if something is synonynous with something else. Make sure you ask for distances in miles or blocks. 10 minites in a car means nothing to me on a bike. If you have question, just don't be afraid to ask.

Write directions on your hand. This is especially usefull for getting out of a town, and getting on your main roads for the rest of the day.

Pace yourself. There are two types of tours, point to point, and mileage. Any tour is usually a mixture of the two. Mine was almost exclusivly point to point after a while because I learned that my initial plans were above my skill level, and just wasn't what i wanted to be doing. Dont be afraid to be flexible in your plans, and be prepare dto make changes. It will happen.

Weather

Be prepared. No, there is no way to look cool with a poncho, or putting sunscreen on along the side of the road, but it's bette rthan burning and freezing. Be prepared for both heat and cold. I brought a thermal to throw on over my t-shirt in the morning and tkae off in the afternoon, and hat kept me nice and warm.

Rain sucks. I rode in rainy days because they way I looked at is was stay put and get wet and be bored. or ride and be wet. The choice is yours, but just make sure you put on your rain gear and try to keep everything as dry as possible. Take the time to dry stuff out the next day when the sun is out.



I guess thats really all the advice I can think of right now. I feel like there are hundreds of other small things, but Im tired of typing.

The weather has been awesome recently and I've been really lazy. Still no job, thank god. I will finally start updating this thing again. Tonight is the freakshow at the stones throw which should be fun. I'm going to go ride my BMX and sit by the train tracks all day.