Category: Other stories

  • How I really learned to cycle on a long bicycle tour – Important cycling skills

    How I really learned to cycle on a long bicycle tour – Important cycling skills

    You don’t need to be an experienced cyclist to start a long bicycle tour. I know this as a fact, because I was a complete novice at cycling just two years ago. I (really) learned to cycle on a long bicycle tour.

    Of course I knew how to ride a bicycle. But my top speed never surpassed 15k/ph. Rides were 20 minutes tops and off-road cycling isn’t necessarily a thing in the Netherlands. Have you seen how many beautiful bike lanes we have? Who in their right mind would leave those on a somehow always rusty and squeaky granny bicycle. 

    Lycra-wearing-show offs

    If you asked me back then, I would say that road cyclists were just annoying lycra-wearing-show offs taking over our beloved calm bike lanes. So my shock was big when I found out that my new lover was one of them. ‘You will never get my in lycra!’ is what I said to Robin. I think it took him barely one month.

    Somehow he had managed to convince me to go on a bicycle tour. We were both so excited. How hard could it possibly be? It’s just cycling right. I had never cycled up a hill, but I figured you just go a little slower. Inspired by Astrid Lindgren’s Pippi Longstocking I thought of it like this: I have never tried that before, so I think I should definitely be able to do that.

     

    Learning to cycle

    Pippi and I were right. I was capable of doing that, I just had to learn a lot of new techniques. Because riding up a hill doesn’t mean you just go a little slower. You might actually pedal faster. And there were many other lessons along the way. These are the most important cycling techniques that I learned on our long bicycle tour.

    Cycling techniques I learned on our bicycle tour

    Cadence

    Spin, don’t push! If you’re grinding too hard on your pedals, your cadence will drop and your power output will decline. In layman’s terms this means that when I feel like I can’t make a smooth circle with my pedals, I’m in a gear that is too high. You can put extreme force on the pedals for a little while but if you keep doing this you will eventually only go slower. 

    Gearing

    To get in that right gearing you have to use your shifters. Don’t shift with too much tension on the chain, it will cause a lot of popping and grinding. If you continue to pedal softly you can shift smoothly.

    Most touring bikes are equipped with two or three chainrings in the front (left shifter) and around eight to ten rear gears (right shifter). Make sure the chain isn’t too diagonal. So if the front gear is close to the bike make sure the rear one isn’t too far. Naturally the same goes for the opposite.

    Moving the chain closer to the bike makes cycling easier, and moving the chain away from the bike makes you faster.

    Braking

    Left is your front brake and right is the rear. You use the rear brake to slow down and the front to actually stop. The front brake is most powerful, so be careful. You don’t want to fly over your handlebars. If you’re going at top speed and you need to slow down fast, put your weight on the back of your saddle and squeeze both brakes. 

    Be extra gentle with hydraulic disc brakes, these are even more powerful than the mechanical ones.

    Climbing

    See a climb coming up? Try and get some momentum. When you’ve caught on some speed gear down before you have to start pedalling again. You don’t want to shift with full tension on the chain and gearings.

    Some like to stand on the pedals and some prefer staying in the saddle. The Rule of thumb here is that when a climb is under 10 percent it is better to remain seated. If the condition of the road is extremely bad you might want to stay in the saddle as well. Not enough weight on the back wheel might cause it to spin. Or if the weight distribution isn’t low enough and the climb is extremely steep, your front wheel might come off the ground. Sounds scary, but you will instinctively push  down on your handlebars to not fall.

    If you have front panniers, store your heavier items here while climbing. This will help with a lower weight distribution, which is better for climbing.

    Feel that burn in your legs? That’s your muscles crying lactic acid. Don’t worry about it, it will disappear as soon as you’ve reached the top.

    Instead of focussing on this pain, pay attention to your position. Flat back with bent elbows. Bend at the hips to lower your centre of gravity. A flat back helps open up the chest to maximize lung capacity.

    Take the outer corner if possible, this way is much flatter. If there is no traffic on the road, you can try to zigzag your way up. This also makes it less steep.

    Descending

    Well done, you reached the top! And what goes up must come down. This can be just as daunting as going up. Remember to always ride in a pace that is comfortable for you. Keep looking on where you are going, so you can properly react in time.

    Make sure to adjust your speed and brake before the turn. Keep your butt planned firmly on the saddle to avoid losing traction with the back wheel. Lift up your inside knee and apply pressure to the outside to maintain balance. The pedal on the side to which you are turning is always up.

    If you have to use your brakes for a longer period of time, try alternating the front and rear brake. This way they can cool off a bit in between turns. Please don’t squeeze the front brake in full force when you are riding down hill. Unless you want to learn how to fly of course.

    These are our bikes, just in case you were wondering.

    Bad terrain

    Looking at a pothole will probably lead you straight into it. Instead, try to keep your eyes one or two meters ahead of you. Hold the handlebar with relaxed arms and wrists and don’t clench. Don’t worry about a little gravel, the profile on your wheels will guide you through it.

    Try to stay about one meter from the side of the road. This way you have enough room to avoid rocks and potholes.

    Letting a little air out of your tires can give you better traction if you keep slipping.

    Saddle sores

    Hygiene is key. Make sure to properly clean your shorts and sitting area before and after every ride. We use coconut oil instead of chamois  because it’s antibacterial. If you keep having problems, see if you need to adjust your saddle. My saddle had dropped a teeny bit which was causing me a lot of saddle sores. As soon as I raised the saddle the pain disappeared.

    I (really) learned to cycle

    The more I rode, the better I got. I got more confident on my bike and learned from my mistakes. The times I fell off weren’t nearly as scary as I had anticipated. I didn’t even get hurt. Maybe a minor scrape but honestly, mostly my ego was harmed.

    All I had to do to become an experienced cyclist was believing in my own capability of learning. Pippi was right all along. I had never tried it before, and I was definitely able to do it.

    Follow all our adventures on Instagram.

  • Bikepacking videos – Part I

    Bikepacking videos – Part I

    With most of us in lockdown, there’s a need for quality entertainment. Here’s our contribution in slowing down the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Stay safe, stay home and watch this!

    Bored yet? These are some of our favourite bikepacking videos, which will take you across the globe. Let us know in the comments if you have any movie tips for us.

    Torino-Nice Rally

    This short film follows Joachim Rosenlund’s grand adventure. The rally brings him from the Italian metropolitan city of Torino to French Riviera town Nice. In 700 kilometres he faces old military dirt roads, scenic Western Alps and a few cols you might recognize from the Tour de France.

    The Baja Divide

    The Baja Divide is a Mexican back country desert track with a total length of approximately 2,700 kilometres. Riders pass beaches and deserts between the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Cortez. They shelter from the sun under date palms, enjoy delicious burrito’s and have lots of punctures. Bombtrack captured it all in this excellent film.

    The Frozen Road

    Everyone enjoys cycling in pleasant temperatures. But Ben Page definitely isn’t just a fair-weather cyclist. In The Frozen Road the filmmaker takes us to Canada’s remote Yukon Territory facing temperatures of -40C. The best thing about the flick?  Every single second of this month long expedition is self-filmed.

    GBDURO

    This film about the GBDuro is slightly different from the other films on our list. It’s a race! Pro-cyclist Lachlan Morton races from the UK’s most southerly point to the most northern point. It shows awesome footage and got us hooked on the tunes of Builder’s Tea. 

    Al Hajar Traverse

    One of Robin’s personal all-time favourites is the incredible video by three friends cycling the Hajar Traverse in Oman. It doesn’t take long before they realize that their planned route is impossible to cycle. By being flexible they still have an amazing adventure. The film captures the typical Middle-Eastern and Islamic vibes spot on. The scene somewhere halfway where the riders are zigzag through the narrow medieval alleys is epic. 

    El Silencio

    The last video on the list is about bikepacking the Peru Divide across the mountains of Central Peru. We love how Jay Ritchey shows the beauty (the wonderful scenes of the remote and rugged Cordillera mountain ranges), but also the ugly that comes with a cycling expedition like this. 

    Follow all our adventures on Instagram.

  • COVID-19 UPDATE (how to keep a calm mind)

    COVID-19 UPDATE (how to keep a calm mind)

    We wanted to share how we are dealing with this whole crazy COVID-19 situation. We have fallen back on plan B, C, D, hell even plan Z. We tried to not let corona get the best of us. Here’s what happened and what we’ve learned from it. Spoiler, we’re not coming home (yet).

    We were cycling in India towards Myanmar when shit really hit the fan. Most countries including India had gotten their first cases, but up till then it all seemed quite controllable. When the outbreak in Italy got out of control, a lot of governments decided on taking harsh measurements.

    A lot can change, and it did

    Pretty soon India also closed its border with Myanmar. At this point we figured it would be a few days. It would still take us three weeks to ride to the border, so we just carried on. We created a WhatsApp group with other cyclists heading or already at the same border to keep each other up to speed.

    Our reasoning behind continuing? A lot can change in three weeks, no need to panic and drastically change our plan. And we had a back-up plan, which was to fly from a city not far from the border to the nearest international airport. 

    How to keep a calm mind

    (Which is very hard in these unsure times for everyone, including us)
    • Don’t look at your phone or the news first thing in the morning. Have breakfast first
    • Limit the time you spend on social media, news or WhatsApp
    • Try meditation, the Calm app works really well for us
    • Ride your bicycle (or try a different form of exercise indoors, if you’re not allowed to)
    • Ask your friends and family not to share rumors. Only look at official statements regarding the ever-changing situation
    • Try to live in the moment and appreciate what’s in front of you (reading tip: The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle)

    As we were cycling we kept having a feeling of unease. Robin had already started to be a little fed-up by India. We had been in this and in its neighbouring countries since November, and it’s quite an intense place to cycle. We talked a lot with our friends, our family and of course with each other.

    Evacuate

    When we woke up to the news that the WHO had officially declared COVID-19 a pandemic and the US had closed it’s border we knew we had to take action. We did not want to get stuck in India so we had to evacuate.

    We were planning on flying to Bali from Myanmar, so we decided we would just do that now instead of two months later. We would rather be stuck in Bali than in India.

    Cooch Behar > Guwahati > Kolkata > Kuala Lumpur > Bali

    The nearest airport, Guwahati was 300 kilometres away, so we cycled to the train station, only to learn that they wouldn’t let us bring our bikes on the train. So instead we took a taxi that would take us there. There were still ten flights every day, so we decided we would buy our tickets as late as possible. We still didn’t have boxes for the bicycles and things were changing so rapidly now, we didn’t want to lose money on a cancelled or missed flight.

    Key in an emergency situation: make sure you are as flexible as possible. Don’t financially or emotionally tie yourself up to one solution. Be ready to change your plan but think it through first, if possible talk about it with someone who is neutral. (Chances are big your family is panicking the fuck out too, so maybe not only talk to them.)

    Flying with bicycles

    First thing the next morning we went to the nearest bicycle store (we had made sure our hotel was close to the shop) and luckily they had boxes for us. We packed our bikes in three boxes, they somehow never seem to fit in two. Then we were off looking for a taxi. This we should’ve done beforehand, because we couldn’t find one big enough. After two hours of negotiating, waiting, negotiating again, and a lot more waiting we were finally on our way to the airport.

    At the ticketing counter of IndiGo the nice lady assured us that we had to buy our tickets now and could add three pieces of sports equipment at the check-in counter for €30 a piece. The flight would leave in 50 minutes, but that was plenty of time according to her. Guess again. We were only allowed to take two pieces of sports equipment, and they wanted to charge us the excess baggage fee over the other box. This would sum up to €250 for the three boxes instead of the €90 that we had been promised.

    At first, we got mad. Then we realized the attendant was really trying to help us when we said we didn’t have that much money. Check-in had officially already closed so all the attendants were trying to figure out how they could help us without us paying an exorbitant fee. After a lot of calculating they came up to €95 which we gladly accepted. Another attendant rushed us to our gate, and we prayed our bicycles would get the same rapid guidance to the plane.

    Stay calm

    From Kolkata, we planned to fly to Denpasar (Bali, Indonesia) with a layover in Kuala Lumpur. We had waited with booking the flight until we had our bicycles with us again. Luckily they had made it too. We checked that Malaysia would still let us transit and Indonesia would still let us in and bought our tickets at the Air Asia counter.

    The nice young lady here assured us that we could add the boxes at the check in. After our previous mishap, she checked it twice and confirmed. It was cheaper to book the tickets online, and we couldn’t add three pieces of sports equipment on the website, so we had to do it at check in. 

    Of course the same problem occurred as in Guwahati. But this time they wanted to charge us €1400. We were both exhausted, stressed and really upset with the whole situation. Luckily Robin found it in himself to stay calm and talk to the people who were able to help us.

    Losing our cool

    The manager Robin was talking to was acting like a real jerk. Whenever someone with a suit and a tie walked past he would just abandon the conversation to shake hands and say hello. In the meantime we were losing our cool over there.

    A lot of meditation practice helped Robin keep his cool and in the end we found a loophole. The woman at ticketing had forgotten to mention some term that applied, but we believe that the true moments when things suddenly changed was when we mentioned we have a website with 30k views.

    The price tag of our evacuation

    Our next two flights went pretty smooth and Sabina’s father had arranged a pick-up and hotel in Bali. You have no idea how relieved we were when we had finally made it there.

    The price tag of our evacuation

    Taxi Cooch Behar – Guwahati     € 80
    Flight Guwahati – Kolkata € 80
    Fee for the bicycles €250 €95
    Flight Kolkata – Denpasar € 300
    Fee for the bicycles €1400 €150

    This is actually not too bad and probably a pretty good price considering all the last minute bookings.

    When life gives you lemons

    Meditation has helped us a lot in dealing with this. It has allowed us to stay calm, breathe, think and act. Our cycling experience also helped us cope. When you are cycling up a hill with an extreme headwind on a road that is literally falling apart, one might also panic. How am I ever going to do this, this is never going to end. But then the wind turns, or you reach the top and the road suddenly improves. And you realize, nothing is permanent. Everything changes, thus gets better in the end. Yes it might get worse before that, but knowing that it will always get better gets us through hard times.

    Our current plan

    Things are still changing extremely fast. Our plan was to do a border run to Singapore when our 30-day visa expires. We can still fly to Singapore, we only have to oblige to the 14 days stay home notice the Singaporean government has put in place. Getting back to Indonesia is a bit trickier now, since they have stopped issuing visas on arrival, and you now need a visa provided by an embassy together with a health declaration issued by your home country. These measurements are in effect at least until April 20th. There is talk of emergency visa permits, but we don’t know if we are eligible for this. We still have three weeks left on our visa, so we will just see what the situation is like by then.

    We realize that this pandemic is not to be taken lightly, and we follow as much of the social distancing safety advice as possible. But we are at a beautiful place, and we are going to enjoy every second of it. For all we know our trip might be over in three weeks. It would be a waste if we’d spend these days worrying about things we cannot change.

     

    Give us a ring or shoot a message

    Our minds are with our families and our friends back home. And also with all the amazing cyclists we have met along the way or have got to know on Instagram. If anyone needs someone to talk to, we are here. Ask us anything you want, we’d love to think things through with you or simply offer a listening ear.

    Follow all our adventures on Instagram.

  • Saving enough money to cycle the world

    Saving enough money to cycle the world

    While we cycle the world, we will have no income. That means we have to live from our savings. So how did we save enough money? We didn’t have trees growing free cash in our backyard, or dollar bills raining from the sky into our wallet. This is how we saved enough money to cycle the world.

    Thankfully, we both had the opportunity to get a college degree. Sabina worked full time for five years, and Robin for two. This means that we had an average income. We didn’t want to seek other employment that would be better paid, since we both liked where we were. Our normal wages had to do.

    (All pictures in this post were made on our trip to Zeeland)

    How to get control over your finances

    Do you actually know how much money you spend? You probably know how much your boss pays you. But do you also know where it all goes?

    Sabina used to transfer money to her savings account directly when she got paid. At the end of the month, small chips of the big chunk went back to the debit card to pay the bills. She had no idea how much money was really available, since it all went back and forth.

    Robin paid for a lot of stuff with his credit card, so he basically paid for it a month later. But guess what, one month later he already forgot he spent it. So sometimes the bill would add up. Add unexpected expenses, like dentist bills and the financial control is far gone.

    Make a budget spreadsheet

    It was time to get back in control. And there is only one very tedious way to do so. We made a budget spreadsheet, and wrote down every euro that came in and out.

    This is when we started to notice how much unnecessary stuff we bought. Snacks at the train station, whilst commuting to work. Very expensive nights out with friends (you’ll have just as much fun, maybe even more, on three beers instead of nine). And all sorts of subscriptions, like Netflix, the gym and magazines.

    We weighed every single euro that we spent, since we knew we had to put it in the spreadsheet and justify it. This might seem childish, but how badly do you want to cycle the world? No one ever said it was easy or fun. 

    How to save money

    Here’s a list of things we saved a lot of money on.

    Housing

    Can you find a cheaper option? And think about it, the smaller the space, the less stuff (money) you need to fill it.

    We rented a house from a Dutch organization called Villex. They basically let people live in empty houses, waiting to be demolished. We had a three month notice, but luckily the houses weren’t torn down before our departure date. This meant we could rent a three bedroom-house for €400 a month. Well worth the risk.

    A friend of Sabina who’s also saving for a world trip, found a different approach for budget friendly living. She resides in a tiny house in her friends yard. Here’s to say there are plenty of ways to save money on housing. You just have to get creative.

    Telephone bills

    Do you really need that new iPhone with the expensive subscription? Sabina bought a secondhand iPhone when her old one broke down. Our subscription was about €16 a month. There are plenty of cheap options out there.

    Netflix, Spotify, library, etc.

    Do you really need it, or can you maybe join a family account? We spent € 10 a month. We could’ve saved more here, but you do need some entertainment once in a while.

    Health care and insurance

    Do not save on this, you might need it. And then it will cost you a lot.

    Car

    Can you get financial compensation for the distance you cover for work? And when you need to park your car, are there cheaper or maybe free options instead, just a stroll longer? Don’t forget to include gas and insurance in your budget. Selling it also helps. 😉

    Groceries

    Make a weekmenu, buy groceries at a budget supermarket and most importantly, stick to the menu! This was a hard one, since we’re two lazy mf’ers who like take-away and potato chips.

    We used discount codes for meal boxes, and bought fruits and veggies that weren’t the prettiest but therefor cheaper. There are plenty organizations that sell food for a cheaper price, which would otherwise be discarded. 

    Clothing

    You can make money on this. Instead of buying clothes, you can sell the ones you have. As Marie Kondo would say, ‘does it spark joy’? If it doesn’t, sell it. Sabina had a challenge to not buy new clothes for a year. It was actually very easy to do. Eventually Robin’s wardrobe made a great substitute for fashion boutiques.

    Gym membership

    Unnecessary if you plan to cycle the world for a year. You have a bicycle, go and cycle. And do Yoga With Adriene instead of an expensive yoga class. YouTube can help you train at home in all sorts of ways.

    Leisure

    We treated ourselves to one cultural getaway a month. A concert or a visit to a museum. Life has to stay fun, even when you’re saving up. Instead of dinner in restaurants with friends, we invited them home or went for a walk in the woods.

    Become a minimalist

    But the one thing that really helped us, was getting in touch with our minimalist mentality. And it didn’t just effect our bank account. Less stuff makes your mind less cluttered too. 

    Save the head space you use, when you try to decide which shoes you’ll put on if you have more than 25 to choose from. Realizing and experiencing the benefits of this mindset, made saving much easier.

    Every expense we didn’t make felt like a victory, instead of a loss. It wasn’t something we didn’t get, it is an extra meal on our journey, or a warm shower in a hotel room after a week of camping.

    Find your priorities

    Once you know what you really want, saving will become much easier. Ours was saving enough money to cycle the world for at least a year. Too many people spend too much on stuff they don’t want, to impress people they don’t really like. Find stuff you like and spend your money on that. 

    If it truly makes you happy (like our bicycles!), and it’s going to keep making you happy, splurge. But ask yourself that question every single time. Ander after that, only then swipe your card.

     

    Disclaimer: We know that we are very privileged and have walked a road much more paved than most people on this planet. Knowing this we will try our hardest to give back to the local communities. We will buy groceries at local shops, share our food, and stay in guest houses rather than hotel chains. Tips on conscious travel are more than welcome in the comments bellow or send us a dm on Instagram!

  • This is how I convinced my girlfriend to go biketouring with me

    This is how I convinced my girlfriend to go biketouring with me

    When I first mentioned the idea of cycling on our world trip, my girlfriend thought it was utterly nuts. But guess what. Last month we both quit our jobs, and ditched our desks for two shiny new bicycles. World here we come.

    Let me start off with saying you should never try to change a person. If your partner isn’t an outdoorsy kind of person. Don’t drag them into something they don’t want. It will save you and your partner a lot of drama. Find a middle way, or decide which is more important to you. If you are so lucky that your lover shares your thirst for travel adventures, read on. I’ll show you the ropes.

    Look, this is our new home!

    Never ever do this

    Rule number one? Never ever ever nag or whine that you want it so bad. Nagging is annoying, and your partner will be less likely to embrace the idea as its own. Which is what we are going for.

    Because let’s think about it. If you’re standing in the middle of no man’s land, you’ve ran out of food. The hail storm broke your tent, so now it’s leaking and you’re ice cold. THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT! Your partner will be mad at you, not at the conditions.

    And at this point, you’re also tired, hangry and cold. Do you really want to put your relationship through that test? I certainly don’t. Conditions are going to be shitty at certain points. In return however, you will get the best trip of your life.

    Brainwash

    Well, that sounds a bit harsh. But people are generally more likely to be excited, for something they (think) they came up with themselves. So instead of convincing, it’s more a game of influencing. Let me say it again, only if it suits a person. Influence, not change.

    This will take time, so be patient. In the meantime you can do your own research. There’s plenty of stuff to figure out. Don’t be sneaky about it, just don’t share it all the time. Explore routes, do research on bicycles. Find the right equipment for you and follow some of your favorite biketourers on Instagram (like ours!). We also enjoyed following other couples.

    At first I followed the couples myself. But when something stood out – not particularly related to bike touring, but of which I knew Sabina would like it – I would show it to her. Not even mentioning that these people are having so much fun because of what they were doing. Saying, oh look how much fun bike touring is, will not help you. They’ll see it themselves, just be patient.

    So how do I influence?

    We both already knew we wanted to travel. For a long streak this time, both quitting our jobs. Quite the commitment, if you ask me. So the stakes were high.

    For us it all started with talking about where we wanted to travel. This is something that you can easily daydream about together. Ask your partner where he or she would like to travel. And off course also share where you want to go. Not necessarily biking. You just want to go there. Don’t say that you only want to go there if you can do it on a bike.

    It will not only pressure your partner, which will backfire. It also limits yourself. What if your partner can’t get enthusiastic for the whole idea, but is for the country. Will you not budge, and rent a kickass 4×4 instead?

    Build the bucket list

    What countries are on both your lists? Build this up to a rough route together with your partner. You’ll have fun doing this. Watch travel documentaries, find blogs and see if you can score a Lonely planet of the country. Key? Do it together!

    Once you have your route, you can start doing research. Lots of biketourers and other travellers have made amazing content, which really helped me convince Sabina.

    (The story continues after the video’s)

    These are some of our favourites:

    The Way of Manaslu

    Sabina loves hiking, so Nepal stands very high on our travel wishlist. Eaglewood Films made this amazing film about their way around the World’s 8th tallest mountain, the Manaslu.

    TWOBIKETO: India

    Probably our favourite cycling couple we have followed. Matt and Rebecca have really inspired us. We really like their Instagram too.

    The trail to Kazbegi

    Georgia is where it will all begin! We’re not going to Kazbegi like Joey Schusler. But we will ride to Omalo, where their epic trip began.

    Wild Horses

    The sceneries in the Silk Road Mountain Race are to die for. We can see ourselves cycling here, just at a slightly slower pace! 😉

    Take time

    If you notice that your beloved is starting to lean towards biketouring, still don’t push it. Your beloved is probably just curious why you’re so interested in biketouring. He or she might start to have questions about it. And remember all that researching you started months ago? Guess who’s the comforting, well informed and safe to travel with-partner now!

    Appreciate their interest in something that you’re passionate about. Also show interest in your partners passion. You’re in a loving relationship, show it.

    Don’t overkill it

    Be careful not to shower your beloved with a storm of information once they start to ask more serious questions. Let him or her figure some stuff out on their own as well. This might mean you need to take a step back, did I already mention you need a lot of patience?

    Be careful that all the info you’ve gathered doesn’t make you a know-it-all. This might make your partner feel unequipped, to take on such a big venture. Doing own research builds self trust. Besides, it’s also fun to get new outtakes on your trip, from the one you want to make it with in the first place.

    Money makes them wheels go round

    Once you start planning your trip, you and your partners promptly see how expensive traveling is. Well, not so much on a bike. You have your transportation under your bum, and your accommodation in your pannier. That saves you some serious bucks. This can also be a good thing to pitch in when you start talking money. Not as an argument, just as a passing thought. Subtle right.

    Have some fun

    Don’t hang yourself up on the whole idea of biketouring. Don’t make it a make or break it (unless it is). If the idea doesn’t latches on, maybe now isn’t the right time. Or you can go on a shorter trip by yourself or even together.

    Don’t let it get in the way of how you feel for each other. Find a good compromise, have a different adventure instead. That route that you planned? You can still go there. No need to feel sorry for yourself, just go outside and do it. In whatever way suits you and your partner.

     

    Disclaimer: I dreamt of bike touring my whole life. But I didn’t actively scheme to convince my girlfriend. We wrote this blog together, after thinking how Sabina went from cycling noob to full time bike tourer. We are both very thankful we can share this journey together.