Mistakes I Made While on a Bicycle Tour

If you are new to bicycle touring, you are bound to make mistakes. In fact, I think that making mistakes is the best way to learn and experience growth. If you are not making mistakes, then you’re probably staying within your comfort zone, and complacency is never a good thing.

I typically ride solo and self-supported while touring. I am relatively new to bicycle touring and I have made plenty of mistakes. Some small ones, some big ones that resulted in injury and an attempted bike theft. For me, my mistakes led to increased confidence as a cycle tourist, as I am able to better predict and navigate through various situations.

I have published two videos documenting my mistakes and here’s the list shared in the first video – Five Mistakes I Made on my Bicycle Tours:

1. Not test riding my fully loaded bike
2. Plannnig riding days that were too long
3. Not considering elevation profiles
4. Overestimating my physical ability
5. I did not eat enough – did not fuel my body enough

In my most recent video, Five MORE Mistakes I Made on my Bicycle Tours, I document mistakes I made on my solo, self-supported tours in 2021. Here’s a list of 5 (with a bonus):

1. I did not account for reroutes (and ended up with extra mileage and unplanned riding time)
2. I didn’t check the riding surface (and ended up on bikepacking/mountain bike trails)
3. I trusted locals’ advice on route planning from (and ended up on a high speed traffic road)
4. I started my day too late (and ended up riding in the dark)
5. I did not lock up my bike (and someone attempted to steal it)
6. BONUS: I did not trust my intuition

I’d love to know from you – what mistakes did you make while on tour and what did you learn from them?