Bonding with a bike
I wonder if most people who ride long distances have love hate relationships with their bikes of if they feel mostly positve.
I would imagine there is something special about depending on a simple piece of equipment like a bike to take you long distances and get you there safe and sound.
I don't have experience traveling with a bike but I remember my old honda I got well used in the md 80s. That little car took me all over the place and I once drove it home from college with a broken clutch by not coming to a complete stop all the way home.
I did not realize how much I loved the car until traded in and looked back to see it when driving away with my much newer next used car.
The funny thing, I saw my old car still running around town a few years later (had an old sticker in the rear window) and my newer cars engine lasted less than one year after I bought it.