8 Things We Wish We Knew Before Our First Long Bikepacking Trip

We dive into the cycle touring / bikepacking tips we wish we knew before our first long bike tour! These tips would have saved us a lot of pain so we hope you can learn from our mistakes or share this with someone before their first big bike tour.

#bikepacking #cycletour #biketour

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Liz & Alex

About us: We are Liz and Alex, a married couple that makes outdoor adventure and travel videos. We started this channel documenting our around the world trip, and we continue to travel and share our outdoor based adventures on this platform. We strongly believe that dreams are meant to be pursued, so we hope to motivate others to get outside their comfort zones and do the same.

[dimrub]

Very nice video, and on the whole, I agree with the advice. However, this seems to be geared more towards the 'epic' end of cycling tours. So my #0 advice would be: when you start thinking about bicycle touring, start small, go for an overnighter, then for 3-4 nights, then a week. Figure out your gear and get accustomed to riding hours on end over multiple days. Only then start thinking about any continent spanning journeys. Certainly ones where you'll cycle for 8-12 hours per day (seriously??? That's crazy as far as I'm concerned - I don't think I ever cycled more than 6-6.5 hours while on a multi-day tour). On the other hand, with shorter trips, your leeway in terms of waiting out the weather may be more limited, due to prebooked accommodations, so my take on that advice would be - don't be shy of cutting an occasional corner using a train or a bus. As for WS - there's quite a lot of controversy around this app in the last few years, but luckily, other similar services exist.

[andrewstroud]

Thank you for another excellent video!
One of the most important concepts in any bicycling is the 'fit'. Apparently in the UK and Australia it's common to have fitters who will bring you into a studio and watch you pedal a stationary bike. In something as dynamic as repetitiously pedaling a piece of equipment every little variable makes a difference, from the saddles, pedals and handlebars to centimeters of distance to set them. Then there are the rest of us folks who spent decades and thousands of miles figuring it all out on our own. Fortunately in this interconnected modern world there are YouTube videos which explain the fitting processes pretty well. Of course many people have completely different ideas on the topic, so some discretion is involved. Bonne chance!

[shawnmetts]

Thanks for sharing! Got a lot of inspiration from your videos. Flying out to do the eurovelo 17 later this week. First tour!

[blackadder]

Great video - thanks for the tips! Just wanted to add that Warrmshoers is a RECIPROCAL hosting community, and I thoroughly recommend all touring cyclists become active members, both as guests AND hosts.

[johnpickett]

Excellent advice. One caveat: when making saddle adjustments make very small ones. Just a millimeter or two can make all the difference.

[b.griffin]

The problem with Warmshowers is the implied obligation to host others down the road.

[stevemullin]

Alex, when you rode without padded shorts did you still use antichafe cream? I wear merino wool underwear but I'm looking for underwear that are seamless too reduce chafing.

[Velo_Safari]

What about budget? Also, how do you arrange for visas etc when you’re touring around the world?

[tomsitzman]

Does anyone know where to get real sheep chamois bike shorts, like we used to wear back in the day. I have had it with the thick spongy inner. they are hot and uncomfortable on day after day rides. I now ride with a lightweight thing padded under short or ride commando. Your saddle can slowly slide down especially on bumpy roads or tails. This can happen in one day or over weeks and before you realize the problem your knees ache and your butt is sore. Make a gage of some type for a quick Measurment, i.e. fingers. or a small rule. I carry one to true a rim. If you have brought more stuff than you need, send it home or drop it off at a church thrift shop or to someone you meet on the road.

[splashpit]

I think the biggest mistake is trying to do too many Kms a day it seems to be only a US thing as they don’t get much in the way of annual leave so everything is rushed but 130+ kms a day is crazy to me .

[ajnabial-finlandi]

You would have needed touring bikes with better rolling tyres. Nice videos thou. Been there :)

German bakeries are the best!

[arcoulant]

You will take to much stuff so send it home if you have not used it.