Bicycle tours and touring bike tips
Pass on gas this summer and hop on your bike instead of into your car.
Summer is the perfect time to head out on the open road and with the
high price of gas; cycling is a great travel alternative and a great
gas saving tip. Obviously, biking from place to place is not for
everyone. From cycling enthusiasts with padded shorts to amateur
cyclists with an interest, there are plenty of ways to hit the open
road without paying a gasload. Why not turn your bike into your
vacation vehicle and save money on gas? Touring bike tips
Never traveled by bike? No need to worry, there are multiple
organizations that offer courses aimed at educating cyclists on how to
travel by bike and other touring bike tips. Escape Adventures offers
over 20 mountain bike tour adventures in 10 states and Canada and 13
road cycling tours in 11 states.
Also, Adventure Cycling offers introductory courses taught by
trained and passionate instructors for both road bike and mountain bike
travel. If you’d like to take a bicycle vacation in the company of more
experienced riders, you can take a supported tour where the food is
catered and your gear is carried. All you have to do is ride your bike
along beautiful roads and paths - and past those gas stations.
Want to head out on the open road alone? Take advantage of the
Cyclist’s Yellow Pages (CYP), the top international guide to bicycle
trips, gear and tour companies. It is prepared and updated annually by
Adventure Cycling for the most current cycling information. There also
are tons of cycling sites and forums out there. Here are just a few:
The National Bicycle Tour Directors Association, which lists bike tours
of three days or longer; Bike Forums, to participate in bicycling
discussions and cycling blogs at Cycle-licious.
Would you like more information on bicycle vacations - try contacting
your local bicycle group. A great place to find the group nearest you
is www.thunderheadalliance.org/links.
Also, you can get tips on no-gas bike riding from the League of
American Bicyclists. Last, who would know more about nearby riding
opportunities than your local independent bicycle dealer? To track down
dealers near you, go to the National Bicycle Dealers Association.
Worried about transporting a bike during your road trip?
Consider getting Bike In A Bag’s new touring bike.
Just to point out the obvious, biking your way from place to place
won’t necessarily be cheaper or the best gas saving tip if you don’t
currently own a bike and the gear to go with it. On the up side, buying
a bike and using it (even if you drive from town to town and use bikes
to get around once you’re there) will eliminate the need for
post-vacation diet and crazed workout sessions. You might even come
back looking and feeling better than you did when you left and plus
you’ll be saving the environment and saving gas money
