January is long and I miss my bikes

[Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!]

January is 576 days long. I miss biking season, so I have determined to use this time to plan for more biking during bike season. A year ago, this was not a thought. I had no idea what I was missing; I was either a lone wolf riding around doing Leah Things or I was a club rider riding around with different groups in the club. And on those club rides people would say to me, “Got any bike trips planned?” and I never did. What’s that Hobbit line? “We [Petersons] are very respectable and never have any adventures at all.” 

Mostly their bike trips were fully supported rides with some theme or specific purpose, and I wasn’t all that interested. No one was talking touring or bike camping, and anyway, Leah Peterson doesn’t camp. I was pretty (self) limited, just riding around doing the same things most weeks.

Ok, well, summer of ‘25 my college boy wanted to try bike camping, and inept as we were, we got the gear, planned some routes, rode them, camped and toured and LOVED it. See here: https://groups.google.com/g/rbw-owners-bunch/c/lT31xPiKVKk/m/ENio65vuAQAJ

And now I’m hooked. I miss everything about bike touring; even the hard things, like rainstorms and hills and exhaustion. Must I really wait until spring? Like, April???

I had two amazing trips summer of ‘25. We saw gorgeous Lake Michigan shoreline. Niagara Falls. Fell asleep to waves lapping the shore of our campsites. My boy is a dream; he’s good for stimulating conversation or companionable silence. Sometimes we each had an audiobook going and we rode along with our books in our ears,, pedaling in rhythmic silence. The perfect bike touring companion, I had him, but he’s going to get a job and leave me. So now I’m in limbo; I want him as my bike partner but he is unsure where he will be this summer. I want to plan trips but I don’t want to do them alone. You would think the bike club might render me a pal. But their bikes do not haul like ours. I have one friend who did the GAP with me, but she could only carry her clothes; she had no capacity to carry a tent or panniers on her carbon bike, so we stayed at Warm Showers. And even if you find a pal, you need what I call RIDING CHEMISTRY. You cannot just go with any rando; you must be in similar shape, want to see the same sights, have similar disposable incomes, value gourmet coffee…

I’ve thought of setting off alone. But I wonder if that’s safe or will even be fun. Part of doing these trips is having someone to enjoy them and relive them with. Plus, how scared would I be alone in my tent at night when the animals come out? What if something happens like a mechanical or a crash? 

Ideally, one would do this with a spouse, but mine is not a cyclist. Where do you meet people you might like to travel with? I’m sure there are plenty on this forum who can at least empathize. And with the next winter storm barreling towards us, what else have we got to do?

Leah

SW Michigan

[Piaw Na]

Leah,

I actually wrote a whole book about bicycle touring, including companion selection which I agree is the most important factor that can make or break a trip: https://amzn.to/3Zq2vzI (kindle version: https://amzn.to/4bFG6G0). Since it's winter you'll have plenty of time to read. :-)  I myself am blessed with a plethora of friends who were brave enough (foolhardy enough?) to come on my trips over the years. Some even bought the entire package (cycling, sailing, backpacking), so to speak, coming on multiple trips of different types over the years. Back in the old days I would also respond to "call for companions" requests on the Adventure Cycling newsletter/magazine. One thing I always do (and mention in the book as well) is to do a "qualifier" trip with whoever wants to come with you. That's an overnight trip to a close location that simulates an actual trip. It lets you decide whether or not that person is compatible. Every time I've done a trip with a new companion without a qualifier I've learned to regret it. Sometimes I do the qualifier anyway just to shake down new equipment and make sure it works.

By the way, it's a myth that regular road/racing bikes cannot carry loads. My wife's Ritchey Road Logic saw 700+ miles in the alps last summer. Modern bikepacking bags are more than sufficient for credit card touring and even some light camping, and in many cases even eliminate the need to mount fenders on the bike as the long tail of the waterproof saddlebag doubles as a fender. It would be an ill-fitting bike that cannot use a modern bikepacking style saddlebag to carry a load.

[Leah Peterson]

Piaw, but how do you mount racks to a carbon frame? My friend said that is frowned upon and I believe it. This was as much stuff as she could carry without racks. You can see the seat post bag - there would be no room for a tent.

On Jan 21, 2026, at 4:49 PM, Piaw Na <pi...@gmail.com> wrote:

Leah,

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[Jim M.]

Tailfin has a system for attaching to axle and seatpost, so no need for eyelets. Very pricey, but I believe others have developed similar systems.

https://www.tailfin.cc/cargopack/?v=0b3b97fa6688#features

jim m

walnut creek