spokenword

Topics like this, for me, are probably the biggest distinguisher between touring and long-distance cycling. The requirements for gear, training and nutrition are a lot less stringent for touring, because you're going at a pace that you dictate. Whereas with long-distance cycling, while the pace can be leisurely, you are constantly aware that there's a clock ticking behind you; and people obsess on proper lighting systems, real food vs. high-tech supplements, sleep strategies, etc.

Or to put it more simply: if I go on a tour, I eat pancakes instead of hammer gel. I sleep six hours instead of two. I think more about using my camera than using my dynamo lights, and I plan my stops around swimming ponds and ice cream shacks rather than 24 hour convenience stores and public toilets.