General Discussion / Re: Traditional Trans America group tour
« on: November 15, 2023, 04:42:22 pm »I think PDX pretty much nailed it. However, I have hope that these "young'uns" might want to start doing "traditional" loaded touring as they get "older". I wonder why is cyclotouring somewhat common in Europe but not elsewhere? Probably because of decades of the car mystic, Route 66 (which is ridden by mostly international riders based on who uses us for WarmShowers), shorter vacation periods, and of course, we are lazier and fatter than most Europeans so biking is too hard for most regular folk.
Perhaps the youth will embrace trad touring in their older age. I agree about Europeans getting more vacation time leading to more touring time. As for the "lazy and fat American" trope that gets trotted out: Perhaps we are lazier because we've designed our lives around car use in a way that Europe or much of Asia hasn't, and since we don't get the copious time off that other countries do, we have less energy for physical activities. As for "fatter", well, as a Clydesdale Cyclist myself, body type does not always equate with touring ability.