Just a Ramblin man.. music score here.. doin the best that I can.. more score.
So, 400-600 words just bear’ly snuff to get me a beer and settle down for a story.
Too many , well all of em, newbies always ask how to do this, or how do you do that, how do you plan and what do you need to take with you? How long does it take ? how much does it cost? Answer; plenty. But if you just wanted it ez, well then stay home.
So for starters, just put a back pack together and go some place not too far and set up camp. Being a seasoned expert, I just camp at some available hotel with a hot shower, dinner and a warm bed. I am a pro.
Then the next day, pack your small pack up and ride home. A scenic route there and back is always best. 2 lane back road full of scenery and slower pace is the ticket.
It's not about how many miles you ride, as much is it about how many smiles you ride. Stop a lot and check out the vistas and chat it up with the locals. You will learn a lot.
After you have your virgin road trip under your belt, put a notch in it. Then plan your next. You will start to figure out what you need and what you don’t all by your lonesome, aka old skool.
If 2 day overnighters work for you, then do it again, say maybe somewhere else. A different road, a different venue? Take a chance and roll the dice. You can't win if you don’t play.
So then after a few of these 2 dayers and you got your game on for how much and what to pack (mostly what not to pack; so much crap you don’t need), stretch your ‘magination and put together a 3 or 4 day holiday to a more distant destination. With each epic episode of back road wandering you will be amassing a well earned headful of knowledge of what you like and what you don’t. Then do more of the fun stuff and less of the not fun stuff.
If you're fortunate to have a buddy that has a similar road itch and perhaps their own set of wheels, you might try the Dynamic Duo routine of flying with a wingman. Sorta kinda like you was suppose to learn in kindygarten. But you probly failed at that too, is why you are here.
How much stuff to pack? No matter what you think, cut it in half. Then cut it in half again. Answer. Not much. Jacket, boots, gloves, brain bucket, a kool set of shades, credit card and a spare key secured in a hidden place you can access when you realize you lost yours skinny dippin' in that farmers water hole while the cows all stared at you in disbelief that you are fouling their water with your aromatic nekidness. Skunk.
No really, you don’t need all that much. The only way you're going to learn this lesson and maybe pare it down is to do it small trips and work your way up to bigger longer road trips. I’ve been doing this last stretch of riding 20 years and logged half a mill smiles. Even with all my experience, I still have stuff I never need or use. Truth is you wont ever. Don’t bog yourself down, everything you carry has a cost associated with it, not just the item itself but all the maintenance of keeping it secured to the bike and well... just keeping it. It's like having a needy girlfriend that doesn’t put out…so, why?
Ok, so much for lesson uno. Get your schitt together and hit it. These roads don’t get rid all by themselves!
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