Am I mad, newbie tourer

[Sweep]

Thanks for the update ollie.

Nice when folk return.

On electrolytes, have you tried zero tabs?

https://www.wiggle.co.uk/high5-zero-20-tabs-1/

Lots of flavours.

Difficult to see how they could upset a stomach.

Seem to work for me.

Now and again aldi does similar looking things.

[yutkoxpo]

Don't know if you guys want an update, but I'll give you one....

Thanks for that, well done & welcome back!

I think you've learned the most important lesson of touring on a bike - Planning at home does not necessarily match the road! For me, that's one of the great things about touring - the sense of adventure, most certainly not checking off a preplanned list of waypoints. That and nothing beats on the road experience for learnng.

The issues with the gps would have happened anyway - far better to experience that when you're still in familiar territory! I sometimes think the most important feature of a gps unit is that you trust it - every issue solved increases that. Dito with the bikes.

Electrolytes? Have never used them. A reasonably balanced diet, lots of fluids and listening to my body has worked for me. When the weather was foul for your weekend trip you changed your plans. Would you be open to doing the same if your body was protesting? I met a guy one time on the road who was heading north - it was his second attempt. His previous attempt ended with him in hospital far away from home due to serious saddle sores. I could not understand how things got so bad that he ended up unconscious in hospital. With a sheepish grin he told me "They weren't in the plan".

How is the wife getting along? The biggest challenge sometimes can be our cycling partners! Lots of practise, day trips, overnighters, picnics will help for longer/harder days.

Don't forget that your 50 mile days are fundamentally different from the same on tour - you're starting at home, finishing at home, probably have things to do before or after. On the road, you have 3 simple goals - get to where you want to go, eat and drink. And you have the whole day to do it! It's simpler and very liberating. And psychologically, very, very different. The miles in the legs help you physically, the enjoyment comes from the mind.

Keep practising and most importantly keep enjoying!

Best of luck!

[matata]

Hi Ollie,,,got you message on my thread,thanks. Ive cycled a bit over the years..we're 60 now and happy to do 40 a day but no more. I always do my sums on 10mph touring..so if were doing 40 miles in a day its 4 hrs cycling...this allows for punctures,we wees, reading maps and generally enjoying yourself.
I bought a brooks saddle about 1000 miles ago...its moulding nicely and me bum doesn't sweat and its comfy. If your comfy you'll enjoy yourself.We use Ortlieb panniers...problem solved. Cyclists love shaving weight but most of my weight is around my belly so until thats gone I don't get to hung up about it. I just see it as more exercise! The more carrying capacity you have the more you'll bring...I use two 20 litre ortliebs and the wife one, plus her all important hand bag.
You don't want punctures....we use Shwalbe marathon plus , prob for six years now and never had a puncture since! But they are not the perfect tyre as others will tell you
I service our own bikes 'cos i like tinkering, you learn loads and everyone on the forum is very helpful and someone will always know the answer.
Gearing...its never about top speed for us. If were going really fast i just have a rest. More important to us is light gears for the hilly bits. We use triple chain sets with awfully easy gearing...spa cycles is a good site to look up for details.
You've only got about 50 years to go so don't be too ambitious too soon. As I said on my post if at the end of our holiday we are planning our next then thats a great holiday!
i'm enjoying your thread..keep us posted..Nik

[Vorpal]

Thanks, bananas and coke I can digest, I'll look into some alternatives too, realised just how much I'll sweat now the warm muggy weather has hit the south east

Personally, I can't drink fizzy drinks when I am cycling. I prefer electrolyte drops in water, but chocolate milk is probably better than coke. Bananas are good for restoring some necessary minerals. So are salty nuts.

[Sweep]

Electrolytes? Have never used them. A reasonably balanced diet, lots of fluids and listening to my body has worked for me.

I always like your sensible balanced posts Hobbes and agree about the virtues of normal food when cycling hard and touring, but on the electrolytes I think perhaps you are just lucky. Have you never had cramps?

I well remember once getting it in both legs at once. That was interesting - would have had to have been a pretty dramatic bike malfunction to equal the effects of that.

The zero tabs do seem to help me.I do go through periods of forgetting them and then quite often come to grief.

These days I try to use them all the time on tough rides, particularly if hot.

Have also after a pause got back into using energy stuff in one of my drink bottles - reduces the amount of food and snacks I have to carry on top of the rack and reduces the chances of the dreaded bonk, as even with supplies of sort of real food I often find myself pressing on rather than stopping to scoff it.

Used to use SIS stuff but have recently discovered generic maltodextrin. Far cheaper. The zero tab adds a nice flavour. I favour cherry which is odd as I'd never dream of drinking anything cherry flavour off the bike.

all the best

<edited for wonky typing>

[Vorpal]

Electrolytes are not necessary for most people, most of the time. I don't use electrolytes very often. But I sweat easily and I find they help in hot weather, or when I am cycling all day every day.

Also if I get the hunger knock, or start to feel a bit wobbly, a combination of electrolytes, fluids, and food seem to do a better job of preventing the bonk than any one or two. Because of that, even if I am not using electrolytes on a particular day, if I am going long distance, I often carry a powdered mix with me, so I can add it to water if I need it.

[Sweep]

Agree that not needed for most cycling.

But I also sweat a fair bit.

On tough rides in warm weather will blind myself if I don't use a sweatband.

And at the end of such rides my base layer will have lots of white marks.

"body salts" of some description I assume.

So seems a good idea to replace.

These also seem handy to stave off a a bonk attack - curiously the cheapest seems to be sainsburys and I found them in my quite small local one.

https://www.sainsburys.co.uk/webapp/wcs ... -orange-x2

I thought I was too experienced these days to be hit by the bonk but recently hit it on the very last stages of a long ride.

[yutkoxpo]

on the electrolytes I think perhaps you are just lucky. Have you never had cramps?

Yes, when I first started cycling and had no real clue what I was doing. I was already well overweight and not exactly living the healthiest lifestyle.

After a while I figured out the value of hydration. Then when I started touring I learned the value of little and often. It was something I actually had to teach myself. Instead of riding for a long time and then drinking down a load of water, I started sipping as I went.

In truth, most of my cramps were not on the bike, but long afterwards, typically when lying down or even asleep. Better, more frequent hydration pretty much solved it.

These days I try to use them all the time on tough rides, particularly if hot.

Have also after a pause got back into using energy stuff in one of my drink bottles - reduces the amount of food and snacks I have to carry on top of the rack and reduces the chances of the dreaded bonk, as even with supplies of sort of real food I often find myself pressing on rather than stopping to scoff it.

I treat a tough ride differently. I'll stop every hour to hour and a half for a drink, something to nibble and sometimes a nap or a read.
It's easy to avoid eating or drinking by telling yourself "just over that hill" or "around that bend". That doesn't end well. When I go away on the bike, the purpose of the bike is to bring me from one place where I wanted to stop to the next place I want to stop. Sometimes, it's to get me as far away from the place I really don't want to stop!

I've never consumed an energy drink in my life! Caffeine & nicotine have been my stimulants of choice.

I biked the coastal area of Northern Spain in 40 degree heat, fully loaded and had no issues. Water was plentiful, food was fresh, healthy and delicious. Cerveza con limon was fantastic. In the German speaking world a Radler & pommes with lots of salt worked a treat.

Personally, I think it's an attitude thing. People who approach touring with a competitive/ high distance perspective will do different things to people like me who prefer to bumble along. Not just in electrolytes, but in all kinds of ways. Once you understand whatever style suits you best, a lot of these things fall into place.

[st599_uk]

A lot of the newer studies show that the onset of exercise-related cramp has little to do with electrolytes and more to do with muscle fatigue. I causes the neural system to have a panic, basically. You can stop them by giving your nervous system a shock - they recommend pickle juice or mustard.

https://www.irunfar.com/2018/01/holy-cr ... mping.html

[Ollie732]

Cyclists love shaving weight but most of my weight is around my belly so until thats gone I don't get to hung up about it. I just see it as more exercise!


You don't want punctures....we use Shwalbe marathon plus , prob for six years now and never had a puncture since! But they are not the perfect tyre as others will tell you.


I service our own bikes 'cos i like tinkering, you learn loads and everyone on the forum is very helpful and someone will always know the answer.
Gearing...its never about top speed for us. If were going really fast i just have a rest.

More important to us is light gears for the hilly bits. We use triple chain sets with awfully easy gearingNik

Most of my weight is around my tummy too, we've been running light (empty panniers) and suddenly thought that I should add weigh now in preparation.

Both our bikes were bought used, mine is an ex uber eats bike and has been used hard, hers although 7 years old had covered less than a 100 miles (owner said and believed) Got a good deal on some continental tyres which we ran for a while, now in the process of changing over to the marathons.

My father was a mechanic, whilst I was growing up it was down to me to fix my bike with him watching so generally don't have any worries about diving in and servicing them, only thing I don't have confidence in is truing the wheels, and the biggest problem with my bike (so far) has been broken spokes, I limped to the lbs on a ride and bought a new wheel on one ride, saying this, as I type, I have a pair of wheels in for re spoking (is that a thing?) going to 3 Cross spoke pattern (the front was originally radial and the back radial on the non drive side and 2 cross on the drive side) we have, almost, the same bikes, (she has the female version) and everything except the front forks is interchangeable, if there was a massive mechanical failure that we can't repair on the road ( thinking mainly on my bike) we could change out the part and ride off into the sunset alone, sorry I mean to a shop and get it replaced

The bikes we have are 2*10 on our planned route we have a max gradient of 10.7% one of the hills here is 17% 1st gear I managed to get up it, loaded, but it couldn't have been any steeper


In regards to electrolytes, (it feels like we have all come out) is I seem to sweat 10 times more than the other half and I've experienced headaches/fatigue during heavy work in the heat although my body is not dehydrated, spoke with the vet (I work with animals and find them better than doctors ) and took electrolytes then which seemed to help...

The Wife, its interesting to see different riding styles, from the outset, she is faster than I am up the hills, but on the flat and downhill I could plod along a bit faster, she's enjoying it lots.

[eileithyia]

Thanks for the update. I never use anything in my water bottle other than water.... it also mean I can keep them clean on tour.... think having to carry sterilising tabs and thoroughly washing out grotty sticky stuff from bottles and their caps.... ugh.

Good healthy diet and you'll be fine.