SOLO MOTORCYCLE TOURING

I recently attended a women's motorcycle event where the organizer, Sue Bossley of Adventure Pacific Motorcycle Tours and Events asked if I would do a short presentation about solo motorcycle touring. It was hard to keep it short because you know how I DO love to talk!   I made a bunch of notes in preparation, but if I had said all that, they would have been listening to me all day, so I thought maybe I would just add them to my blog for future reference.  

Here is my advice, tips and general blathering about long-distance solo motorcycle trips:

In the words of my beloved sister “Be amazing!  Oops…..too late!
Love and safe riding! 

Nothing annoys me more than someone saying “When you plan that much you are missing the whole point of being a rider!”  No, you’re not missing the point at all. Riding is about freedom and individuality and enjoying yourself. Your style of riding and road-tripping is about YOU and your comfort level. No one else’s. Full stop.  So if planning your journey gives you the level of comfort needed to enjoy the ride - bring it on!
 
Thinking About It:
Prepare yourself for adversity. Remember that the negativity comes from a place of care.  Don’t be discouraged!

• • Aren’t you scared? It’s dangerous for a woman to travel alone.
  • Isn’t your family worried?
  • What if you are hurt, lost, bike breaks down…(insert objection here)?

What if NONE of those things happen? What if you have a grand, life-changing adventure?!  What if you come back from it empowered and full of pride?

What if ALL of those things happen and you have to stop your trip or delay your next destination or end up in the middle of nowhere?!  Well, you don’t have hero stories without adversity!
 
Advice:

• Start small – take a long weekend trip. Take a week away or travel some well-known areas overnight.  These small trips will give you a good idea of how many kms a day you can manage and how comfortable you are on your own.
• Have a sense of humour. You will get TONS of comments about being a woman out on the road alone.  Sip the nectar from the sting. You are paving the way for a new generation of women riders. Besides, it’s fun to have people think you’re a hero!  Accept the compliment and just think “Well yes, actually – I AM amazing!” 
• Talk to people about your adventure. Get into it with someone positive who will feed your confidence and get excited with you.
• Let someone you trust in on your general route. It will change as you go, but they’ll have an idea.  I didn’t generally blog about the route I'd be taking the next day – there are weirdos out there, though they are not around every corner as media would have you believe.  😊

• Don’t be too afraid of staying with people. Use your radar and listen to your gut.
  • Friends
  • Bunk-a-Biker: network of riders opening their homes, yards for camping, etc.  Lots of people have used this and had great experiences, women included. I wish I’d known about it before I headed out.
  • Network with other riding buddies! They may have friends happy to take you in on your route.
• Stay gassed up – especially with more than 200 kms between larger centres. Small towns often don’t have gas or close up by 6 p.m.
• Go easy on yourself.  When you need to rest…rest! If you have to turn around and go home sooner than expected that’s ok.  It’s all experience and you may even come out of a trip going, OK, I did it, but this is not for me – I was just mega stressed all the time.  That’s ok too.

Failure is not a stumbling block – it’s a launchpad for the next adventure! 

Trip planning:

• Plan, but don’t restrict yourself.  If your personality is someone that has to know where they are going to be every day, then stick to your plan until you gain the confidence to vary it. 
• I had an elaborate plan on spreadsheet, with kms between destinations, routes, and notes about people I could stay with. It was a good thing to do because it made me more comfortable with the magnitude of the trip – broke it down into digestible bits and also got me excited about the achievement. The trip on paper grew from 15,000 kms to 18,000 kms and ended up being 27,184 kms by the time I was actually done!
• I booked hotels ahead twice and regretted it both times.  You will see things along the way that you want to explore and booking ahead means you have to be somewhere else. 

Planning Tools I Used

• Google maps and an excel spreadsheet – this was how I planned my whole trip (photo sample below).  Then changed things the very first day.  Still a great way to feel it out and get comfortable.

• Travellerspoint – this is an online trip planning platform that provided info on accommodations and attractions in the different areas that I found helpful.  You can blog on this site too, if you want to tell stories, but don't want to make a whole website.  
• Paper maps – yes, they still exist!  😊  I had one for every province and territory before I left. Sometimes you are out of cell range and GPS is not an option. 
• Others – talk to people!  Striking up conversations over lunch or breaks on the road will reveal secrets of areas you didn’t know about.

The Mental Game:

• If you have been inspired for your adventure, take a little talisman to keep the inspiration alive (several talismans in my case).
• Stay talking with people you meet about what you are doing – it keeps you motivated.
• When you’re tired, rest.  Take a day or more break now and then to recuperate. I would often travel 4-5 days in a row, then take 2-3 off and just explore the area I was in.
• Look at your maps or planner and see where you’ve been to keep the sense of accomplishment going.
• Journal, blog or just keep a wee note pad handy to remind you of your adventures and people you met as you go. You will forget what you did 2 days ago very swiftly!
• I had little business cards made up to give out to people I met so they could follow my blog. By week 3, there were 900 people logging in to read it on a regular basis. So I wasn’t really alone!­

Packing List:
Consider the duration and location of your adventure. Adjust your packing list to the route and destination.

• Remote travel needs more backup like emergency shelter, a satellite tracker or phone and maybe more tools.
• A month through a highly populated area probably means you can travel lighter. 

I found this link recently and it’s probably the best one I’ve seen, breaking things down into categories, depending on the type of trip you are doing.  https://www.madornomad.com/the-complete-motorcycle-trip-packing-list/
 
I would add to that list:

• CAA or other roadside assistance information. Make sure it covers motorcycles!
• Zip ties, duct tape and a first aid kit.
• Acupressure ball – can just be a couple of tennis balls in a sock!
• Resistance band – light and easy to travel with to aid stretching. Mobility is so important and becomes restricted with many hours of riding every day.
• Phone charger – not sure I saw that on the list in the link.
• Hopes and dreams
• Curiosity
• Your good luck/safe travel charms, whatever they may be!

Packing Tips:

• Keep things small and light wherever possible.
• Do take a tent, even if you don’t plan on camping. It’s the easiest form of emergency shelter to carry.
• Don’t overpack on wardrobe, especially if you are ATGATT – you’ll be wearing the same thing most days.
• If you are lucky enough to have both mesh gear for heat and waterproof gear for rain/cold, try to take only one set of armour that you can switch out between them.
• A week of undies and socks or light weave ones that will dry overnight
• Use panty liners to save washing riding jeans as often.
• Keep the wardrobe in colours that can all go into one load of laundry!
• Roll of loonies for laundromats.
• Emergency snacks – nut mix, protein bars, water. Sometimes small towns aren’t open after 6 or delays lengthen your day.

Step out of your comfort zone if you can – talk to strangers, take a road less travelled. Feed your adventure. Pat yourself on the back and celebrate your courage!