Lessons I have learnt on this trip.
This page is dedicated to the lessons I have learnt about bicycle touring in general, specifics about this trip and for myself personally.I think they will probably occur in that order, but who knows where and when a revelation will occur.I hope to be as honest as possible with myself regarding personal lessons. Those regarding bicycle touring and this trip will no doubt be known to many others already. Especially those that have been there and done it already. Who knows, they may even recognise some of the lessons that they also learnt along their own personal highway.
We start off with some simple and straightforward lessons. These will be known to many I am sure.
Newer posts will be added to the top of the list and will be asterisked for a while to show they are new.
* Treat timetables with contempt.
There is no such thing as a fixed time in Asia. Even though the bus left the depot bang on 10.30 it doesn't mean that it's leaving town straight away. No more than 200 metres down the road we stopped again for another 30 minutes while passengers and goods were taken aboard. I'm not sure what the hold-up was down to nor why the passengers didn't come to the bus depot but stoppages and hold-ups are all part of life here.
* Always check the room, wifi and shower before aggreeing a price.
I've been caught out a couple of times now. I've asked whether the shower is hot and whether there is wifi. On more than one occasion I have been assured that the shower is hot and that there is wifi, only to find out that neither statement is true. This is a bargaining tool when agreeing on a price and nothing you say later is going to affect the price once it has been agreed. The quality of room vary amazingly even though the price may hardly vary at all. Haggling is a part of the ritual and should be entered into with gusto.
* Don't accept a tow from another vehicle.
I tried it and ended up rolling down the floor after coming off the bike. Luckily I received only minor scrapes and a broken brake lever
I am finding solo riding quite a pleasure
Normally I prefer to ride with other people. It's much more sociable and you get to have a laugh along the way. However, this trip has been solo so far, and I am focusing on it so much that I am ignoring the foreigners that I see when I stop. It seems that whenever people see me they start talking in English if they know it, and most Europeans speak at least some English. Not wanting to adopt a herd mentality I am keeping myself to myself when I stop, keeping eye contact with other foreigners to a minimum. I'm not sure how long this will last should my ipod be unrepairable though (see below). Is it possible to become stir crazy in a continent ?
Ipods do not like being rained on
During a rain storm while walking around the market in Tacheleik, Myanmar I wrapped my phone and camera in a plastic bag. For some unknown reason I failed to take the same precautions with my ipod which sits on the front end of the bikes top tube. It fits nicely into a velcro attached bag that I have previously taken off and stowed away when there was a risk of rain. Why I didn't think of it this time i do not know. I am now awaiting a battery replacement in Chaing Rai tomorrow to see if the hard drive will work again. If not, I am stuffed. Not happy at the moment.
No matter how steep the road is, you will find an even steeper one further down, or should I say up, the road.
I should have fitted a stand to my bike.
Everytime I stop I need to find somewhere to prop the bike up. I'm constantly having to leave it against fence posts or pillars and not always in sight. I haven't felt the need to keep a constant eye on it but being able to get off a bike, flick out a stand and walk away from the bike would have been a great help as well as giving peace of mind. The bike could be left in sight and standing safely.
You can never have too much padding between your saddle and you backside.
For Rickie Cotter, Ricky Dickenson and everyone else that has ridden a 24 hour race, RESPECT. You were already high in my estimation, but after riding for over 9 hours out of 12 up and over the mountains in Western Thailand I am beginning to understand the pain that you feel. But I don't understand why, after enduring it, you would want to repeat it.
You can never carry too many toe-straps.
Thanks Shane for throwing a couple of extras into the box. They are already essential items in my luggage.
We start off with some simple and straightforward lessons. These will be known to many I am sure.
Newer posts will be added to the top of the list and will be asterisked for a while to show they are new.
* Treat timetables with contempt.
There is no such thing as a fixed time in Asia. Even though the bus left the depot bang on 10.30 it doesn't mean that it's leaving town straight away. No more than 200 metres down the road we stopped again for another 30 minutes while passengers and goods were taken aboard. I'm not sure what the hold-up was down to nor why the passengers didn't come to the bus depot but stoppages and hold-ups are all part of life here.
* Always check the room, wifi and shower before aggreeing a price.
I've been caught out a couple of times now. I've asked whether the shower is hot and whether there is wifi. On more than one occasion I have been assured that the shower is hot and that there is wifi, only to find out that neither statement is true. This is a bargaining tool when agreeing on a price and nothing you say later is going to affect the price once it has been agreed. The quality of room vary amazingly even though the price may hardly vary at all. Haggling is a part of the ritual and should be entered into with gusto.
* Don't accept a tow from another vehicle.
I tried it and ended up rolling down the floor after coming off the bike. Luckily I received only minor scrapes and a broken brake lever
I am finding solo riding quite a pleasure
Normally I prefer to ride with other people. It's much more sociable and you get to have a laugh along the way. However, this trip has been solo so far, and I am focusing on it so much that I am ignoring the foreigners that I see when I stop. It seems that whenever people see me they start talking in English if they know it, and most Europeans speak at least some English. Not wanting to adopt a herd mentality I am keeping myself to myself when I stop, keeping eye contact with other foreigners to a minimum. I'm not sure how long this will last should my ipod be unrepairable though (see below). Is it possible to become stir crazy in a continent ?
Ipods do not like being rained on
During a rain storm while walking around the market in Tacheleik, Myanmar I wrapped my phone and camera in a plastic bag. For some unknown reason I failed to take the same precautions with my ipod which sits on the front end of the bikes top tube. It fits nicely into a velcro attached bag that I have previously taken off and stowed away when there was a risk of rain. Why I didn't think of it this time i do not know. I am now awaiting a battery replacement in Chaing Rai tomorrow to see if the hard drive will work again. If not, I am stuffed. Not happy at the moment.
No matter how steep the road is, you will find an even steeper one further down, or should I say up, the road.
I should have fitted a stand to my bike.
Everytime I stop I need to find somewhere to prop the bike up. I'm constantly having to leave it against fence posts or pillars and not always in sight. I haven't felt the need to keep a constant eye on it but being able to get off a bike, flick out a stand and walk away from the bike would have been a great help as well as giving peace of mind. The bike could be left in sight and standing safely.
You can never have too much padding between your saddle and you backside.
For Rickie Cotter, Ricky Dickenson and everyone else that has ridden a 24 hour race, RESPECT. You were already high in my estimation, but after riding for over 9 hours out of 12 up and over the mountains in Western Thailand I am beginning to understand the pain that you feel. But I don't understand why, after enduring it, you would want to repeat it.
You can never carry too many toe-straps.
Thanks Shane for throwing a couple of extras into the box. They are already essential items in my luggage.
Walking into a step wearing just flip flops hurts.
Specialist equipment requires specialist tools and knowledge.
If you have the first, you need the other two as well. When riding in a foreign country is is unwise to expect the same level of knowledge and expertise that you have at home. Therefore you need to come equipped with all of the tools necessary to sort out your problems on your own.
If it's not inside a bag that is securely attached to the bike you will lose it.
I have lost a long sleeve T-shirt and a bandana simply by tying them to parts of my luggage. They were supposed to be drying out after washing but are now lying on the roadside somewhere behind me.
If you have the first, you need the other two as well. When riding in a foreign country is is unwise to expect the same level of knowledge and expertise that you have at home. Therefore you need to come equipped with all of the tools necessary to sort out your problems on your own.
If it's not inside a bag that is securely attached to the bike you will lose it.
I have lost a long sleeve T-shirt and a bandana simply by tying them to parts of my luggage. They were supposed to be drying out after washing but are now lying on the roadside somewhere behind me.