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Anyone see or tried this? I have read a few articles of people buying cheap bikes and biking cross country with 60 lbs of supplies and sleeping in a tent. Would be really cheap to live like this and a lot better and safer than walking cross county . I have a Garmin GPS and it showed me a route to go if I wanted to walk from Texas to New York, world take a few months if you never stopped walking and kept on going.
I would like to try this someday. But rather ride my bike 60 miles to Austin and back then to Dallas to see if I can do it before going cross country. I've seen people use cheap wal-mart $70 bikes or mountain-bikes for road riding so I think it can be done on one of those. Would not go fast since the bikes are not designed for such a long jorney on pavement but what can you do when it would take months of saving up to buy a good road bike .
No insurance to pay, or gas bills, only repairs would be for a new tire or bike chain. Would also lose a lot of weight and have strong legs to go with it. Since you would be strapping a few packs full of caned goods, a campfire starter kit or something to cook the cans on, a spoon, a few hundred maps, rain clothes and other clothes, and a backpack with stuff in it. Could also get a cheap $30 tent at wal-mart as well to go with the bike .
Just take the bike off road and ride away from it for a few miles and set up camp since no one can see you out there anyway. Just make sure to remember in what direction the road was since if you guess wrong you might be lost for a very, very long time, in an area that might not even get a phone signal.
A lot of planning would be needed but seems like a fun thing to do
Good luck. Time are changing. Back in the 40's I had two uncles that used their thumbs to hitch rides and one made custom signs to pay for food at greasy spoon diners. I would not feel safe on a bike now. That is just me. Lost a few friends on pedal bikes and motor bikes. Somehow the cars always win during a conflict.
Yah a lot of bad drivers on the road kill or injure bikers, but I always see post where a group of bikers a one single one do a cross country run. Not really safe but a cheap way to travel, even If I do not live on a bike I would love to do a trail across the US on a bike, just me and 1800+ miles of pavement :P
At one time, I was really into both road and mountain biking. I rode a lot on the roads and highways. But with our era of drivers who cannot understand that they should be driving when behind the wheel, I will no longer ride a bike anywhere motor vehicles are allowed--it only takes one moron driver texting or screwing around with a stereo, tv, or reading a newspaper. I don't even jog on the roads any more. Truthfully, if I wanted to make a trek across the US, I'd hike it either on backroads or away from roads on foot trails whenever possible. Now that would be an adventure...
I wonder if a GPS would be good for biking? I have a Garmin one but its battery last just 3-4 hours so would probably need to buy a portable generator to charge it. If you put Garmin in bike mode it takes you the very long route to a city. It avoids all high-ways and puts you on back roads and sends you through a few small towns on the way to your destination.
I wonder if a GPS would be good for biking? I have a Garmin one but its battery last just 3-4 hours so would probably need to buy a portable generator to charge it. If you put Garmin in bike mode it takes you the very long route to a city. It avoids all high-ways and puts you on back roads and sends you through a few small towns on the way to your destination.
Do NOT buy a wal-mart bike for this. I have done some short trips like this (carrying a tent/sleeping bag/food/etc) and cheap bikes break easily. When you will ride as much as you are suggesting, you need to know your bike isn't going to fail 20 miles from the nearest town. Find a used, quality bike instead. Also, make sure you have a full kit for repairs (bring 3-4 extra tubes, one extra tire, 2-3 extra spokes, an extra chain, extra brake pads, a pump, patch kit, and the tools and know-how to fix everything). I know from experience - the first time you blow out a tire in a downpour and realize you have never practiced changing it before, you will wish you had prepared a bit.
Know how to completely take a bike apart and put it back together. Everything breaks on a bike at some point.
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. I have a Garmin GPS and it showed me a route to go if I wanted to walk from Texas to New York, world take a few months if you never stopped walking and kept on going. 
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