Long Distance Riding Isn’t For Everyone

We all know the different types of motorcycle riders there are out there. There are the people who bought their bikes to be garage queens and then the people who try to ride their bikes into the ground. As an experienced rider myself, I like to think of myself as better than the usual. It’s been my personal goal to travel across all of America for quite some time now and I’ve been preparing for such a trip for quite a while. While Making it to Alaska is my life long dream, it’s still half a decade of preparation away. Before then, I continue to do many smaller test trips. Taking short trips less than 1000 miles away gives me lots of preparation experiencing. With Sturgis coming up, I’ll share what I’ve been able to learn in my many short trips.

There are many different unknowns that cross country riders/tourers face. Whether it’s different variables like the weather, bike safety, luggage and other things that you need to take into consideration. Planning and preparation is crucial to ensuring your own safety and the pleasure of your trip. As riders, it’s hard to imagine anything better than the long rides where you clear your mind and just enjoy the scenery. I’ll try to touch on the most important and common things that are overlooked.

The most important thing when planning and getting ready for your trip, is the condition of your bike. It needs to be in perfect running shape. Remember that you’re going to put 2000 miles or more on it. You need the brakes, tires, engine, plugs, and everything to last a minimum of 2000 miles.

While, its very important to pack light, it’s also very important to make sure that you don’t forget crucial items like medicine, clothing, tools and spare ids with cash. Even when doing short weekend trips away, I’ve realized that many things can quickly go wrong. Here are some of the mishaps that have happened to me in the past, bike breakdowns, gone severely overbudget, got caught in a thunderstorm and that’s just the beginning of it all.

Know your own riding limits. Nobody wants to admit that they’re a novice rider. I’ll be one of the first to say that I still have a lot to learn. I’ve been in plenty of dangerous situations where I know I wouldn’t be riding or I got extremely lucky. Getting proper rest and nutrition when riding is the most important part of traveling. When you’re covering almost 500 miles a day, your body starts to get sore, your forearms get weak and exhaustion will kick in. Don’t forget you need to wake up bright and early to get the most out of the day.

Feel free to share if you have any other suggestions and advice. It’s always good to get multiple opinions and views regarding this. Ride safe everyone!