The Rally Adventure:

[ARValkguy]

I am a little bit suprised and disappointed. Of the 234 people that have looked at this thread you mean only 14 people have advise for a first time cross country rider. I really like the stuff I have heard so far but is that all we can come up with. WOW! I know there are plenty of you that do this sort of thing all the time. Come on what do you have for those of us attempting this for the first time. Isn't this a prime example of the type of information that should be shared in this format?

Kelly (where have all the road dogs gone?)

[redclfco]

I am a little bit suprised and disappointed. Of the 234 people that have looked at this thread you mean only 14 people have advise for a first time cross country rider. I really like the stuff I have heard so far but is that all we can come up with. WOW! I know there are plenty of you that do this sort of thing all the time. Come on what do you have for those of us attempting this for the first time. Isn't this a prime example of the type of information that should be shared in this format?

Kelly (where have all the road dogs gone?)

Three reasons, I thinks why the response is low.-

#1 Everybody got their poop in a groove touring by trial and error; what works for one does not for the next. You just have to buy a bunch of crap, throw 1/2 of it away, tie the rest of it back onto your bike, and see what makes it or not. Years of backpacking miles into wilderness taught me what I can take and make functional and what was purely something that looked good in the glossy mag, and not worth hauling up a trail on my back. That knowledge transferred to the bike quite well.


#2 Type of tour. Are you a lightweight mamsy pamsy over the hill hotel type of a guy or are you the type of guy where peeing in a Gatorade bottle in the middle of night in a tent that is blowing horizontal does not bother you? Would you prefer to evacuate your system into a warm porcelain bowl or does squatting in the woods over a shallow hole and slapping mosquitoes off your bum fit your style?
Either you like what Mother Nature has to offer in terms of early dawn vistas, solitude and experiences not found in a country inn and suite, and can live with the blowback involved in camping, or you’re a tighty whitey type of guy who prefers to end each day in a hotel? If you define who you are and what you're looking for in a tour, you may get more responses.

#3 Define what type of tour you want to have then plan plan plan and BRING SOMTHING WATERPROOF. And you will have a good time. Don't forget to throw your route out if you find it sucks and take off in the wild blue yonder. I think many who tour are too stuck on staying on the asphalt slab they planned on their GPS and drive right by what is cool about our country. Don’t be afraid to shut off the damn GPS and get lost; what’s the worst that will happen? YOUR IN AMERICA!

[wanderer]

MAJOR ditto: That could be a short story. Well said.

I've been "in the field" for decades and I'm still modifing my kit. Smalll bits at a time. Gives the mind something to do on the flat pieces.

[Ctrod]

I think no one wants to be so bold as to say they know the "absolute packing list" It's like asking whats the best bike ( I'm sure you'd get lots of responses, all different). What do you want from your trip? I always bring a soft sided cooler. I can use it to bring something to eat in a remote area, keep beer cold at night or put something in it I want to keep dry in the rain. It's an adventure, go with it. Thats the whole point.

[ORCHARDRT]

QUOTE #1 Everybody got their poop in a groove touring by trial and error;. . . .

The best advice
Collect all of the stuff you want
then
Pick what you need
then
Do a trial pack
then
do a test trip
or
if camping
do
at least a camp out in the back yard (state camp ground)

That is the first step of trial and error

Ben