Learn From My Mistakes Bike Touring Interview

Posted on by Darren Alff
12
Mar

Another bicycle touring and extreme cycling weblog recently interviewed me about my bicycle touring experiences and asked:

  • How did you get into bicycle touring?
  • What is the longest bicycle touring have been on (both in distance and duration)?
  • What is your favorite bicycle tour that you have done over the years?
  • What have been your best and worst moments when bicycle touring?
  • What piece of advice would you give to someone on their first bicycle tour?
  • What item could you not do without on your travels?
  • Where is your next bicycle tour going to be?

To find out the answers to these questions and learn from some of the mistakes I have made in the past while on my early cycle-touring expeditions, please check out the full interview by clicking here.

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Darren Alff

My goal as the "Bicycle Touring Pro" is to give you the confidence and inspiration you need to travel by bicycle anywhere in the world. I'm here to help you plan, prepare for, and execute your first bike tour and remove all the guesswork, wasted time and frustration that plagues so many first-time bicycle travelers.

0 thoughts on “Learn From My Mistakes Bike Touring Interview”

  1. Dennis says:

    Hi Darren; I like most of your suggestions; however, I must disagree (in part) with your opinion of odometers. Yes. If you know where you’re going and you can read the signs, odometers can be distracting and tiring when the miles go by so slow. But, in foreign countries, you can plot a course to an intersection and use the odometer to give you a clue when you’re near a turn. I ride in China and my map, compass and odometer are married into my plans. Just a Note: Good Travels. Dennis

  2. Matthew says:

    I agree entirely with Dennis’s comments. I too have toured in China. In China, a compass bell, paper map and basic odometer are invaluable navigation tools, especially when road signs are misleading or contradict themselves. Worse, when the sign shows a turn ahead for a town, and that town is thoughtfully written in English…but the town name isn’t on the map — just an obvious need to turn a particular direction X number of kilometres ahead of the previous town. I wouldn’t leave home without all three.

  3. Dennis says:

    (Unsolicited Comment from Dennis)

    Hi Again Darren; Since we’re talking about riding in China, I thought I would drop a note to new travelers/riders visiting China. This little tip will save them money at home and here. Plus, it might enhance their China-Experience. You said that you had ridden here; the following is a lesson I learned and perhaps you too. Simply put, the Chinese have a long history of travelers/adventurers, and they have (an almost inherent) respect this type of person. Conversely, they have have little or no respect for a tourist. This might seem an exercise in semantics, but it is very real. If you ride the latest, glistening, whiz-bang bike and deck-out in the latest high-tech sportswear, you can look forward to being distanced and fleeced at about every turn. But, if you look “rode hard and put-up wet”; your bike has a healthy layer of road-crud; your panniers have broken zippers (duct tape); you need a shower and a shave, and you look half-starved: Well, they will welcome you with open-arms and a big, honest smile. This paragraph is just an observation on an avoidable mistake… Darrren, I realize this is an unsolicited comment (so you can delete or edit), but I am watching a friend make this mistake right now, but he wants the newest and best for his adventure….. One Family on Two Wheels_ Good Travels_ , Dennis

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