Touring - Cross Country Bike Tour Support

For both a possible cross country bike trip by tandem and also a composition paper, I would like opinions about :

Is it better to have a private sag (eg someone follows you in a motorhome or van ; or rotating between riding and driving)

Or it is better to use a commercial (or charity supported )sag?


At fifty five years old, my husband and I are probably within 5 years of making the trip. My concern now is research for the paper.

Thank you,

I'd go totally self-contained. I've toured with and without vehicle support, using all the schemes in your poll.

Having a vehicle can at times be nice, but I like the independence of not having one. I find that one gets treated much differently when one does not have a vehicle, as when asking permission to camp in a small town city park--or a state park. You'll get invited into homes for meals and a bed when on your own--not so likely with a vehicle along.

My two cents. Ron, 55 in June :).

I am doing a cross country trip in June 2005 self contained. I am hoping to have another rider with me, but not to sure about that.

There are a lot of resources online.

Unsupported touring, whether camping or hostel-based adds a whole new dimension to travelling. You become far more self-sufficient, and its much easier to meet people along the route.
Travelling in a large/supported group, you can suffer from the "bubble effect", where you carry your own little portable world along with you, instead of interacting with the one passing by.
Supported rides are a good intro and I have enjoyed them, but I prefer the freedom of unsupported.
You can try for yourself on a shorter tour. A weekend is good enough to shakedown your equipment, but to get a feel for the rhythm of unsupported travelling takes a couple of days. Most self-sufficient riders camp, but you dont need to camp every night.

Just curious on those charity things. Who makes the money, the charity or the orginizer?

Joe

Great question, I've often wondered the samething myself. Some of the rides require thousands of dollars worth of pledges, plus a registration fee. Maybe someone could respond who knows.

Diane

Well if by chance you come thru Atlanta and need a night rest and a shower just drop me a line.

Sam

Originally posted by joeprim
Just curious on those charity things. Who makes the money, the charity or the orginizer?

Joe

It depends on the ride, and the charity, and it varies greatly. In some rides, less than 50% of funds collected go to the charity. I ride in one where I pay $125 to cover overhead and raise at least $750 for Habitat for Humanity; last year over 96% of money raised went to local HFH affiliates.

I think this business of asking for thousands of dollars to fly somewhere and ride is crazy, but some rides rae very efficient fundraisers.