Old 01-11-10, 11:37 AM
  #12  
raybo
Bike touring webrarian
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: San Francisco, CA
Posts: 2,069

Bikes: I tour on a Waterford Adventurecycle. It is a fabulous touring bike.

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Another way to start touring is to use one of the hospitality sites, like couchsurfing.org or warmshowers.org, to find hosts for one or more nights and to tour with only changes of clothes and biking food.

Another idea is to do supported tours. That is, you get someone else to take your gear (i.e. car) to your next destination for you while you ride your bike there. I once tried to arrange such a trip with a friend who had an RV. He would drive the RV to the next stop while I rode there. It never worked out but I liked the idea. Obviously, you can also go with organized tours, as well.

While touring on a road bike is doable, it does limit the kinds of tours you can take. To do "grand" bike tours (say 1000 miles or more), you will likely need to get a bike specifically designed for touring.

That said, not every one wants to carry 15 pounds in camping gear and sleep on the ground.

Ray
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