A Beginners Guide to Cycle Touring: How to prepare

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

I've only been hit by a car once.  I was riding on the edge of the lane, and a large pickup with an extended side mirror clipped me in the shoulder.  It didn't really hit me hard, but it scared the bejeezus outta me.  I freaked out so much that I rode into the ditch. 

I'm convinced I got hit because I was trying to be "nice" and give the motorists as much of the lane as possible.  Well, I thought I had given the traffic enough space, and that truck driver must've thought he had enough space too.  Obviously we were both wrong.  Oops.   

Maybe that experience clouds my judgement some.  In fact, I'm certain it does.  If your experiences lead you to a different behavior, that's cool with me.  We all make our decisions and take our chances.  For me and my experience, I stay left.  I find that it's best to be obviously in the lane, or obviously out of it.  Ambiguity leads to hairy situations.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

i lost my license in 1982  i got it back in 2000.

How many people did you kill while drunk driving and why aren't you in prison?

riley you are consistent in your keen powers of deduction and reason i didn't start drinking hard till after i lost license. did get a dui in 92 though blew a .08
i lost license fora seriesof tickets culminating in a 95 in a 35 and a 155 in a 55   same week same judge.i pulled 12 months county time for it.to be technically accuratethey didn't actually take my license. i voluntarily surrendered it prior to my court dates aspart of a legal scam .funny thing was when i finally got license back i got "good driver "discount from state farm. i was more a pothead before i stopped driving.was safer

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

i hate those mirrors! 5 miles of my commute in fredericksburg was on rt 17. i rode a mountain bike and stayed close to guardrail. traffic going by at 50 plus will hurt ya.  was a guy in greenbelt md killed by one of those mirrors in a hit and run that i often think the driver might never have realized he hit the guy

i had 4 good accidents and in 2 of em i hit the car when i was a courier. one i made a real fast switch from left to right behind a car  lady saw it  scared her and i ramed the back of her car and went right over it.  last one was my front forks broke off as i was curb hopping at less than 5 miles an hour. broke zygomatic arch and eye socket. at probably 3 miles an hour. feet were in clips and i whipped face into curb when forks broke(through my negligent maintenance)

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

Broken forks scare me. 

My old riding partner lost a fork once.  It happened back when I was just starting to get into serious road riding.  I had just bought myself a spiffy Specialized racing bike.  Spent every penny I had at the time (which wasn't much, I was a poor college student).  I though it was hot stuff.  Well, my partner had just bought himself a new racing bike too, only he had enough money to buy one with a newfangled (at the time) carbon fiber front fork.  I was seriously jealous.  My fork was mere steel, and suddenly my stuff wasn't as hot as I thought it was.  I worked lots of overtime trying to save up for my own carbon fork.  Those things were wicked pricey at the time, and it took me weeks to get the money.  Right before I bought mine, his shattered.  He was riding over a railroad crossing, and must not have taken enough weight off the front wheel.  He left an awful lot of his face on that asphalt.

I decided not to buy that carbon fiber fork afterall.

[Jamisjockey]

"Cycling on the far right edge of the road is dangerous.  If I have to ride inside a lane of traffic (such as on roads that don't have a wide shoulder) I stay at least 1/3 of the way into a lane.  "


why do you think that?  my experience was considerably different

My experience isn't.  If I ride right on the line, I have cars damn near take my head off with thier mirror.  If I take up 1/3 of the lane, they will take thier time to pass, usually within 5-15 seconds of encountering me.
The difference for me seems to be on the 2 lane back roads.  Most people out here will be very careful passing out in the sticks.  But if I'm on a 4 laner, they treat me like a speedbump.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

are you moving along prettty good?  ifyou can keep up with traffic its not too bad. what i hate is someguy whose conditioning has him pumping a long hill at 6 mph and he wants to own the lane.the worst offenders are guys my age who buy a high tech bike all the gear and wanna strut their stuff. if you are that slow move over everyonce in a while give folk a chance to go by. i ride mountain bikes so i ride the shoulder slower but much safer. i lived near where the guy in greenbelt got killed so mirrors scare me.i'll play in traffic but only if i can move at close to its speed. i live on the worst kinda roads  narrow  no shoulder and ussually a deep ditch. i rode em for 7 years everyday wet  and dry  andin the dark a lot. i am a big believer in not being there when cars come by. I switch from oneside of the road to the other depending on which direction they are coming from. traffic isusually light enough to do that. and i usually ride alone which makes it much easier.  the packs magnify the problem. perfect world would have a lane or at least a sidewalk but thats not in my lifetime

[Jamisjockey]

I feel guilty when I'm pulling a hard climb and need the lane, but sometimes its the safest thing.
In our "gimme, gimme NOW!" society, most people think that they are being delayed behind a cyclist and get all in a tizzy over it.  In my experience, which includes 7 years of road cycling and thousands of miles, people are rarely delayed behind cyclists by more than 30 seconds.  If you're that late, that 30 seconds matters, you're fooked already.
 
Instead, when you pull in behind a cyclist grinding up a hill, take three deep breaths.  Relax.  Check ahead to see if you have room to pass.  Unless the road is heavily congested, you're going to be past the cyclist before you can even figure out what color his/her bicycle is.
<insert chosen roadway here> is not an Indy 500 track.  Freeways are off limits to cyclists.  You're going to get where you're going, probably faster than you think.
If a cyclist is going slow, you'll be able to pass faster, as he's not covering as much ground as you in that short of a time period.
 

Sidewalks are dangerous.  Blind driveways, pedestrians, debris, damage all pose dangers even to the most casual of cyclists.
Bicycle paths aren't much better.  I've had more honest close calls on bike paths than on roadways.
Bicycle lanes and wide shoulders that are adjacent the lane of travel are the best. 

I've only been hit by a car once.  I was riding on the edge of the lane, and a large pickup with an extended side mirror clipped me in the shoulder.  It didn't really hit me hard, but it scared the bejeezus outta me.  I freaked out so much that I rode into the ditch. 

Sounds to be exactly like my experience!  I was clipped by a mirror in '93 in Yuma, AZ. Home of the snowbird, the old bastard kept driving.  I went down pretty hard, broke my helmet and blacked out for a few seconds.  Bike was a cheap mid-eighties Diamond Back road bike, it was built like a tank and suffered no damage.
In '90 I was riding through base housing on Cherry Point.  Car decided to make a U-turn from a parallel parked position.  I was a tri-geek back then, all tucked over on my aero bars....broadsided the car door....
Got back on the bike in '01. 
Of course, with my back being trashed right now, it'll probably be a few weeks before I can ride. 

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

i am super paranoid about passing bikes. will only do it when its real safe/easy. we  are blessed with packs of "less than skilled" riders who seem to like to style and profile their new gear 3 wide on narrow twisty back roads.  great way to clean up the gene pool.

out here we got a couple monster hills 1/2 - 3/4 mile long that are no fun  and you gotta really watch out when all the vip commuters start whipping by. i hate em.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

i uesed to ride a lot with  bunch of guys who were of the "take a lane school" i rode as much or more than any of em but spent less time hurt/hit.i lsten and if i hear one coming up behind me i get over to the wrong side of the road switch back after the go by. and if they are coming both ways i stop if needed to get outa their way. slows me down some but old bones heal slow. now when i was younger i was wilder  and in city traffic was as bad as any corier and hada attitude. pulled some yuppie outa his beemer sunroof on wisconsin ave when he gave me a lil deliberate swerve. then i saw a guy get killed  made me a lot safer

[Jamisjockey]

Its interesting, but I think our experiences vary greatly.
Last year was a little slow for me, I only put about 1500 miles on the road.  Years before that had as many as 3,000.
Most of my close calls involve residential and commercial areas.  Dingbats that just have to get to walmart *right* now, and speed up to pass, nevermind I'm at 25mph, and then swerve into the shoulder or my lane, slam on thier brakes to make the right turn.  I'm on 'em in a flash.  That, and pulling out of blind driveways.

My team generally only rides single or two abreast, or in a rotating paceline on the back roads.  We get our pack riding practice in at the Prince William Nat'l Forest Park, doing the scenic loop on Wed's during DST.  Of course, our average speed on that loop tends to be slightly above the 25mph posted speed limit.
 

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

brother your in a different class than me if you hit 25  i might on a down hill  a steep one.  see 25 isn't bad  its when i see someone doing 3 mph flopping from side to side with 25 cars behind him trying to get around without a head on that i get ticked.  heck i hate the women in my neighborhood who push strollers in the curb lane when theres a sidewalk   more yuppies

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

No kidding.  If you can keep up an average pace of 25+ mph over a long ride, you're outta my league.  I'm happy to consistently make 18 or 20 mph averaged over a long ride, and that's only if I'm riding for pure speed.  Most times I'm content to slow down and enjoy the scenery, maybe 15ish mph tops.

[Brad Johnson]

I watched a guy ride a bicycle 25 mph once.

Brad

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

i almost never ride so fast that i can't breath trhrough my nose or carry on a conversation.buti can do it a long time

[Jamisjockey]

No kidding.  If you can keep up an average pace of 25+ mph over a long ride, you're outta my league.  I'm happy to consistently make 18 or 20 mph averaged over a long ride, and that's only if I'm riding for pure speed.  Most times I'm content to slow down and enjoy the scenery, maybe 15ish mph tops.

25ish is a pack ride.  I generally can do 18-20 on a solo ride.  Right now I'm in sorry shape, and the busted back isn't helping.  Takes me about two months of consistent group riding to bring myself back up to that level.  As long as my back heals, I'll be able to drive the pointy end of a pack upwards of 26-28mph on level terrain for 3-5 minutes at a pop by the end of May.
My strong suits are sprinting and hard pulls in a paceline.  Weakpoint is climbing.

Back is feeling better today, but I think I overdid it a bit.  Helped my buddy deliver his Penske to Maryland today.  Round trip 80 miles, driving.  Been on my feet alot, too.  Back is feeling really tight and sore right now....
 

[MillCreek]

I don't like the way bicyclists take up the road we pay for with our gas taxes.  They make me nervous when I have to pass them as they ride right next to the lane.  I always try to move way over (into the opposing lane if possible) to avoid hitting them.  I wish they'd stay further to the right.

I like to point out that most bicyclists have drivers licenses, own cars and drive on the very same roads upon which we ride our bikes.  I know I do.

[Jamisjockey]

I don't like the way bicyclists take up the road we pay for with our gas taxes.  They make me nervous when I have to pass them as they ride right next to the lane.  I always try to move way over (into the opposing lane if possible) to avoid hitting them.  I wish they'd stay further to the right.

Maybe owners of high fuel efficiency vehicles should pay extra taxes to help contribute thier fair share to the road system.

[mtnbkr]

I did a 17 mile ride yesterday and I'm going to do a 20-30 mile ride today (depends on what the group wants to do).

I love how my LHT rides.  I love the stability, the smoothness, etc.  Rough sections of pavement that nearly shook my teefs out on my old bike are tolerable, if not comfortable on my LHT.  I like that I can run fatter tires and explore that gravel road to "somewhere" without worrying about a flat. 

I've also been using my bike more and more for errands in the immediate area.  Yesterday, I did two grocery store runs (.9mile round trip) and met Mike at the gunshop (3 mile round trip). 

Chris

[MillCreek]

In regards to that LHT, Mike at BikesDirect is coming out with a titanium cyclocross this summer.  So far, the estimated price is going to be around $ 1700 for a full Ultegra build.  I plan on getting one and putting some 700 x 32 tires on it for some off-road goodness. The problem will be finding space for a sixth bicycle in the garage.

[lupinus]

I've been meaning to start riding again haven't really bothered in about 8 years.  Great form of exorcise especially for people like me with bad knees.

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

I did a 17 mile ride yesterday and I'm going to do a 20-30 mile ride today (depends on what the group wants to do).

I love how my LHT rides.  I love the stability, the smoothness, etc.  Rough sections of pavement that nearly shook my teefs out on my old bike are tolerable, if not comfortable on my LHT.  I like that I can run fatter tires and explore that gravel road to "somewhere" without worrying about a flat. 

I've also been using my bike more and more for errands in the immediate area.  Yesterday, I did two grocery store runs (.9mile round trip) and met Mike at the gunshop (3 mile round trip). 

Chris

Yeah yeah, rub it in why don't you.