Resources

Here you’ll find a running list of other cycle tourists’ websites, online resources for learning about cycle touring, places to source parts and accessories, especially used gear, and some of the helpful bike shops I’ve utilized along the way.

Other Awesome Cycle Touring Blogs:

Three Rule Ride	No meat, no gas, no trash.  Shaky numero uno's environmentally friendly cycle adventures.
Mingyu Lee's Two-Wheeled Round-the-World Journey	The name says it all.  My ukelele prodigy Korean buddy's epic journey.
The Cycling Nomads	The archetypal free spirits and good friends Katya and Mirek have been on the road for more than 12 years.
The Loong Way Home	Melissa and her bilingual Spanish/English (and high-speed) cycle adventures around the world.
A Wandering Nomad	Super hardcore 20 year-old woman cycling mostly solo around the world.  She's the only one here who's not a personal friend but her journey is so inspirational I had to share it.
Cycling the 6	Dr. Steve's philanthropic, multi-year global cycle journey.
Josh Cunninghamcycling.co.uk	Josh from UK's cross-Asia trip, West to East!
All the Way from Stockhom	Rob's long ride from Stockholm!
Jonny En Voyage	UK Jonny's bike trip - I met all these guys at once in Dushanbe

Helpful Websites for Cycle Tourists:

Crazy Guy on a Bike	Bike touring journals, route advice, visa information, gear reviews from around the world.  This site is a cycle tourist's best friend.
Doogal's Route Elevation Calculator	I use this site all the time to get the elevation map for a particular route, anywhere in the world.  It works just like google maps, except that it also gives you an elevation chart for your route.  This site works faster and has fewer advertisements than other similar sites.
Sheldon Brown	Brown is a complete cycle guru.  His site is a compendium of everything mechanically related to cycling, from how bike parts work, to the physics of cycling, to repair guides.  If you memorized his whole website, you could probably go out and build a bike from scratch.
Mr. Money Mustache	With a tagline like "Financial freedom through badassity" you know this is going to be a good read. This website isn't specifically bike-related, but it provides a lot of great ideas about how to handle your money and change your lifestyle to make things like long-term bike touring a real possibility for just about anyone. Mr. Mustache himself worked a real job for 10 years, and because of his intelligent and responsible money management practices was able to "retire (read: achieved financial freedom)" at around age 30, and now he works on what he wants to work on when he wants to do it, all while living a comfortable lifestyle with his wife and kids.

Shopping Recommendations:


Online:

Geartrade	Buy all kinds of secondhand and returned cycling and outdoor gear at huge discounts.
Universal Cycles	UC has a huge selection of new cycle gear, helpful staff who will actually answer your questions via email, and they price match anybody.
Bums On the Saddle	If you're in India, this site is great for ordering high-quality cycle parts and equipment.

Offline:

Recycled Cycles, Seattle	Seattle's coolest bike shop, selling new and used everything.  Dig through the parts bin and find that $5 antique chainring you've been looking for, or spend several thousand dollars on a new ride!
Hanoi Bicycle Collective	THBC is a former world cycle tourist's brainchild, and a great place to get your bike fixed in SE Asia, not to mention stop in for a chat, a beer, and some good food.  A must-visit if you're in Hanoi, even if there's nothing wrong with your bike.
Imperial Cycles, Guwahati	This is where I had my wheel rebuilt around a new rim.  The shop, on Jail Road in Guwahati, Assam, doesn't look like much, but they can get what you need, and have skilled mechanics who can do just about anything.
Bok Bok Bike, Bangkok	Probably the best shop that focuses on cycle touring in Thailand.  The owner, Ma, can order just about anything he doesn’t have in stock for reasonable prices, and will put together a whole bike for you from scratch if you want.  He also does Rohloff.