How has your touring evolved from when you started to today? Whether you have done one tour or one hundred tours. I have a few very definite changes:

1. Start: paper maps in 1986; now: GPS all the way.

2. Initially: whatever gear I had sitting around because I didn't know anything about touring; today, a lot more touring specific gear and equipment.

3. Then: accommodations booked when I got to town; now: pre booked online from home well before the trip

4. Then: longish days on the bike; now: shorter days oh the bike so i can explore the towns I'm staying in on foot

5. Then: enjoying a good restaurant when I got to town; now: enjoying a good restaurant when I get to town. :)

That's a familiar trajectory for me. More planning, more knowledge, shorter days, etc. I would add some personal changes.

1. Switched to a recumbent bike in 1998.

2. Quit camping in 2014.

3. Quit trying to be cheap in 2021.

Probably an E-bike someday, but not soon...

That's a familiar trajectory for me. More planning, more knowledge, shorter days, etc. I would add some personal changes.

1. Switched to a recumbent bike in 1998.

2. Quit camping in 2014.

3. Quit trying to be cheap in 2021.

Probably an E-bike someday, but not soon...

I was actually going to mention your number 3 as well. I have been upping my accommodations lately and trying better restaurants. Both make me happy.

Totally agree with # 1 (though still good at the beginning of planning for a tour but on the road GPS; nothing better than instead of "I think this is the right way" to knowing where you are and which way to go) 

#2 is one of the biggest that we have changed booking accomodations ahead of time rather than using a Lonely Planet guide when entering a town and going to check out mulitple accomodatioons. Years ago, we found that a recommendation in the LP was a dealth knell to an establishment.

The next biggest is how we handled money....remember American Express Cheques? When Rachel toured in 1992-93 to NZ she "prepaid" her AMEX credit card and used it like what is now a "debit card". 

the next change is  mail....poste resantes every couple of months while now it's instant communication with anyone around the world.

And #4 is spot on...instead of doing a long day and medium day and short day with a rest day....or a long day after day....we do shorter days and call them "half rest days" taking full rest days in towns/areas of interest.

The saddest change we've seen is seeing another touring cyclist coming your way and they don't stop. It used to be unheard of, you would stop to chat, sharing information about the road ahead in the direction going....no longer needed with the internet. And in hostels, people would sit around a table and share experiences and now every one sits with a device in hand, no one talking or sharing.

The biggest change from my earlier tours to the present day is switching from a true touring bike (aluminum Cannondale T-400, with 28 to 32 mm tires) to a much more rugged mountain bike (steel Salsa Fargo with very tough Teravail Sparwood 29 x 2.2 inch tires.)

This has allowed for another change from my original style: I do much more dirt and gravel roads on tours now.  It's also made me much less anxious about getting flat tires or having mechanical problems, since the Fargo with those tires has proven to be much more reliable than the Cannondale.

I also no longer tour with front panniers. Turns out I didn't need that stuff. I used to take clothes that I never wore, for example.

I do very little planning for bike tours now. I value spontaneity more than I did on my earlier tours, when I faithfully followed Adventure Cycling routes. Now I do my own routes, and "wing it" a lot more.

I've gotten busier with my business the last several years, and I have to do more work on bike tours than I did in the early days. That's kind of a bummer.

What has not changed: I average about the same miles per day as I did before. I actually averaged slightly more miles per day on my tour in 2024 than I did on my first tour in 2006, despite the slower bike and a lot more dirt and gravel. That's partly because I don't take extended stops during the riding day as much as I used to. I almost never stop at restaurants for lunch anymore. I also used to take midday naps on picnic tables years ago, and that's pretty rare for me these days.

Also unchanged from my early tours: I always carry a tent, but basically only use it as a backup, when I can't find a place to sleep inside. I've never been able to enjoy camping.

My evolution involves a little more GPS usage, though I still rely primarily on paper maps.  I also started carrying a laptop instead of using computers at public libraries for journal updates.  I also gave up my transistor radio in favor of a Bluetooth speaker.  I stay in motels a little more often now, but the day I completely give up camping will be the day I give up bike touring. 

Other than that, I think I've devolved more than evolved.  I don't like to ride as far or for as many hours per day as I used to (though I can still surprise myself when I really HAVE to ride further.)  I started my touring career wearing the same gear as I wore during my roadie career, but I quit wearing the skin-hugging lycra quite a few years ago.  I also changed from SPDs to flat pedals a couple years after that because it became a pain in the ass to change shoes whenever I wanted to go for a hike.  Now I seem to blend in better with commuters and other casual riders.

I was waiting for someone to mention public libraries for journal updates and the rationed access time therein. I don't have a laptop so have to rely on a tablet for journal updates usually edited after we get home.

Re lycra, I wear loose fitting jerseys because  like those pockets at the back to hold my phone.

Man, has touring changed! I did my first tour over 20 years ago. I had no navigation capability other than some gas station maps. Also, my posts to the Internet were done using a Pocketmail device. It was a crude word processor with a modem. If I needed to call someone, I used a payphone.

The next tour was in 2003. I think I still used Pocketmail. I had a Blackberry but no GPS. I carried several pounds of maps mostly from state bicycling organizations and transportation departments to navigate across Ohio and Pennsylvania. I mailed them home after using them. 

After a break of ten years, I could finally use a smartphone but battery life was a constant problem. I would select tables in eateries based on proximity to an electrical outlet to charge my crummy phone. I recall feeling guilty; I was an electricity thief! I had a small battery that was good for one charge. Now my iPhone 15 carries a charge that lasts all day. I still carry a battery but it has much better charging capacity for phone, lights, etc., nearly eliminating the charging hassle. 

Also, cell service and coverage is far better now than even five years ago, but Verizon still stinks in the boonies out west.

I learned my lesson after the 2003 tour and started using Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires. I think I had 1 or 2 flats in thousands of miles since

Each year my daily mileage declines. Old age is my riding partner.

I still bring camping gear but after many awful nights (including nearly freezing in Yellowstone in 2022), I've switched to much better camping gear. Weight be damned. 

When I stay at motels and hotels, I tend to spring for nicer accommodations these days.

Not specific to touring but the biggest improvement in gear has been lighting. First, halogen then LED. 

Brent my first cycle tours in the late 1970s and early 80s were in the epic category. Long, frugal, physically challenging and with minimal planning because I really didn’t what I was doing or where I was going. And I had only one bike which I made work for any type of touring and commuting.

Nowadays I’m more careful, less frugal and do plan more.

Nowadays I also have quite a collection of bikes. Depending on the type of tour, I match the bike to best suit the travel context. For example, I use small wheeled folding bikes more often, as they enable multi-modal travel easier than my larger wheeled bikes.