My Love-Hate Relationship With Hotels
May 30, 2008 by Darren Alff · Leave a Comment
It’s easy to point out the benefits of staying in a hotel when on a bicycle tour. On the other hand, it’s a little more difficult to point out the drawbacks.
Hotels provide a number of amenities that are important to the traveling cyclist. When staying in a hotel you have a toilet, shower, drinking water, shelter, television, possibly a free meal in the morning, and a whole host of other amenities. But hotels also have some negatives.
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The Revolution Will Not Be Motorized
May 28, 2008 by Darren Alff · Leave a Comment
(Portland, OR) The cycling equivalent of Woodstock is coming… but instead of joining rock fans on a muddy farm, one million cyclists and supporters of clean, oil independent transportation will gather for celebrations and purpose filled action in 50 states for upwards of 300 rallies. More remarkable, all of these unified, localized events will roll out on the same day.
Dubbed One Million Bicycles, it’s the brainchild of Joe “Metal Cowboy” Kurmaskie, a nationally recognized magazine columnist (Men’s Journal, Outside, Bicycling), author of several best-selling bike books, cycling advocate and performer at hundreds of bike clubs, festival and corporate events across the country.
Inspired by U.S. Congressman Earl Blumenauer’s call for a “national bike movement” during a speech at Bike Gallery in January, Kurmaskie decided to think big while keeping a small carbon footprint. Read more
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How To Secure Your Bicycle & Belongings When Going Inside A Building
May 25, 2008 by Darren Alff · Leave a Comment
The other day I received an email from BicycleTouringPro.com reader Josh Wildman. Josh is currently in the process of planning his first long distance bicycle tour, so here is what he had to say:
Hey Darren,
I was just wondering how you trust your bike is secure when you go inside places for hours at a time; such as the movies or a casino. If possible, could you explain your method with enough detail so I could do the same? Also, do you leave all your panniers attached to your bike or do you carry them inside with you?
Thanks for all the great advice, Josh Read more
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Tips For Protecting Your Sunglasses & Mirror
May 25, 2008 by Darren Alff · Leave a Comment
When traveling by bike there are typically a few small items that you need to treat with extra caution so as to not damage them. Two such items that come to mind are your sunglasses and your mirror.
For some cool tips on now to protect and organize these items while out on tour, check out the video below:
Recommended Sunglass Cases:
Hard Cover Sunglasses Case
- Hard acrylic cover for extra protection.
- Adjustable height fits various size sunglasses.
- Measures: 6″ length x 2″ width.
- Height: 1.75″ to 2.75 maximum approx.
Large Zip Glasses Case- Sleek, black glasses case that zips.
- Great for protecting your favorite pair of sunglasses.
- Handy belt loop on reverse side.
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Can I Really Get Free Hotel Rooms For My Bicycle Tour?
May 24, 2008 by Darren Alff · Leave a Comment
Yes! Yes, you can!
You can easily get big and small name hotels to give you free accommodations for your bicycle tours. And I’ll show you how to do it!
It was on my 4th long distance bicycle tour that I began to toy with the idea of staying in hotels. The only problem with the idea was that I was a poor college student with very little money in my bank account. A couple nights in middle of the road hotels would very quickly bankrupt me. So I had to figure out another way to make my “hotel dreams” come true.
As a long distance cyclist, I had a lot of time to think about how to approach the situation… and in 2004 I developed a system that has provided me with thousands and thousands of dollars worth of free hotel rooms over the past four years.
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The Cyclists Awareness Test
May 23, 2008 by Darren Alff · Leave a Comment
Watch the video below:
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Don’t Criticize Me For Carrying A Spare
May 21, 2008 by Darren Alff · Leave a Comment
While cycling in Aruba recently, I came across a group of young Dutch boys standing in the middle of the road with a confused look upon their faces.
When I approached the group of five, one of the taller boys came towards me and said something in Dutch. I don’t know exactly what he said, but I knew what he wanted.
He and his friends had decided to go out on a bike ride and not a single one of them had thought to bring a pump, patch kit, tire levers, or spare tube. One of the boys had a flat tire and they wanted to know if they could use my tools to try and patch up the deflated tube. Read more
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Did You Get My Postcard?
May 20, 2008 by Darren Alff · 1 Comment
I recently mailed out a few hundred postcards to the subscribers of BicycleTouringPro.com. The postcards featured 8 different images from my recent bicycle tour of Aruba.
(If you didn’t get a postcard, it means that you are currently not a BicycleTouringPro.com subscriber, or I simply don’t have your mailing address on file. It’s also very likely that your postcard is still in the mail. If you’d like to join the BicycleTouringPro.com, you can do so by clicking here. It’s very likely that I’ll be sending out more postcards like this in the future.)
Believe it or not, I actually sent out these postcards for a reason! Read more
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Selecting A Mirror For Your Bicycle Tour
May 20, 2008 by Darren Alff · 7 Comments
A mirror is an essential piece of equipment for anyone traveling by bike. Having the ability to see behind you is of great importance, as it is something that could potentially save your life!
I’ve met people in the past who have been hit by a car, attacked from behind, and pushed off the road by a passing RV. But the reason I don’t have a story like that is because I refuse to get on my bike without a mirror.
A bicycle traveler should be constantly aware of his or her surroundings. Without a mirror, you’re putting yourself at risk and increasing your chances of catastrophe out on the road. Read more
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Will You “Twitter” The Bicycle Touring Pro?
May 19, 2008 by Darren Alff · Leave a Comment
If you’re a web savy computer junkie, or simply someone who’s taken note of the Web 2.0 movement, then you’ve likely heard about “Twitter.”
If you are unfamiliar with Twitter, watch the short 2 minute video below. The video explains it a lot better than I ever could.
The best way to start learning about Twitter is to sign up for an account right now and start following some people.
If you’d like to follow me and find out what I’m doing, all you have to do is go here: http://twitter.com/bicycletouring and start following me. Read more
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