Bicycle
Touring Resources
ONTARIO
QUEBEC
NEW BRUNSWICK
NOVA SCOTIA PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND NEWFOUNDLAND
MANITOBA
ALBERTA
BRITISH COLUMBIA
CANADA
INTERNATIONAL
BICYCLING
CLOTHING AND EQUIPMENT
BICYCLE REPAIR
TRAINING, NUTRITION AND HEALTH
Ten Tips
For Enjoyable Bicycle Touring
| 1 |
Wear A Helmet-
Helmets save lives and prevent serious injuries. While other
injuries can heal, a head injury can lead to disability or death. |
| 2 |
Check Your Bike- Use
a bike with a lightweight alloy frame that is in good condition. If you
are not certain have it checked out by a trained bicycle
mechanic. |
| 3 |
Get In Shape- Ride
30 kilometers (20 miles) or more several times each week. Ride the
distance that you plan to ride in a day at least once prior to the trip. |
| 4 |
Ride Safely And Be Visible- Always
follow the rules of the road. Wear bright colours to increase your
visibility. Use a headlight and rear light at night. |
| 5 |
Be Alert- Look
ahead constantly for hazards including turning vehicles, rail tracks,
sewer grates, road debris and broken pavement. |
| 6 |
Drink Water- Take a
large water bottle and drink before you are thirsty to avoid
dehydration. |
| 7 |
Pack A Snack-Carry
your favourite snack such as fruit, fruit juice and granola bars to eat
on the road. Eating dairy products (other than yogurt) and large meals
during a strenuous ride can cause indigestion discomfort. |
| 8 |
Dress For Comfort- Wear
purpose designed bike shorts to protect the contact area with the bike
seat (available in styles that look like walking shorts or form fitting
lycra shorts). Dress in layers so that you can adjust your
clothing to stay comfortable. |
| 9 |
Lock Your Bike- When
your bike is out of your sight lock the rear wheel, frame (and front
wheel if possible) to a secure object. A "U" shaped security
lock is best. |
| 10 |
Reserve Ahead- Always
reserve needed overnight accommodation in advance. Be certain that you
will have a comfortable place to rest and a secure place for your bicycle at the end of the ride. |
Ten Tips For
Enjoyable Bicycle Touring may be
reprinted provided that notice is given by E Mail to info@bikeontours.on.ca
and provided
that the following is included: "Reprinted courtesy of Bike ON Tours -
Ontario Canada - Bike Tour Guides
http://www.bikeontours.on.ca"
Drivers That Cyclists Love
Barrel
Drivers-They drive vehicles you can hear from miles away
barrelling up the highway. They rarely move at all to the right when
they
pass by.
Pass Right-These drivers are encountered
on busy streets with lots
of stores or mini malls along the way. They quickly pass by us and then
make
an immediate right turn in front of us. We put the brakes on to avoid
hitting
them. We wish we were in a tank and could proceed forward without doing
any
damage to us.
Careful Driver-This driver is almost
invariably an older driver who
is obviously driving very carefully by us so as not to hit us.
Unfortunately,
he or she is only about 6 inches away from us and is going along only
slightly
faster than we. This continues our nervous anxiety much longer than the
barrel
driver.
Honkers- There is no stereo typical
honker. It can be a truck, a four
by four or a sedate sedan. They come from behind honking wildly usually
about
six feet before they are going to pass us. This startling sound lifts
us
off our seats as the car goes flying by. Sometimes the driver is
glaring
and sometimes waving hello. We typically have a wave of our own we
would
like to give.
Yahoo-These drivers are typically young
men with three or four friends
with them in an old beat up pick-up or sedan. As they pass they yell
yahoo
or its equivalent enthusiastic sound. We not sure if this is a friendly
greeting
or an obscenity. If they have moved way over from us, we count it as
useful
enthusiasm.
Favorites- These are the drivers who
pull way over into another lane
when they pass us by. We wish there were more of them.
With Thanks From
"Ken and Carol's Cross Country Ramblings"
