Originally Posted by
Machka
Shakedown tours ... plural ... are definitely beneficial, and I don't understand tourists who don't do them. Makes no sense at all.
We did the TA with no shakedown tours and had no regrets. Bike touring isn't that much different than other forms of self supported camping like canoe, kayak, or backpack camping. So yeah shake down tours may be a good idea, but skipping them isn't really that bad of a move if you are used to packing fairly light for one of those other disciplines. Bike touring is more forgiving that the other forms of travel i mentioned in that you can easily buy stuff, send stuff home, or have stuff sent to you from home. When canoing, kayaking, or backpacking there is much less ability to adjust as you go and therefore more need to get it right the first time.
It may seen strange, but quite a few of the folks we met on the TA were doing it as their first tour and none of them seemed to regret the decision.