Does Adventure cycling exist nowadays

[Gwylan]

Which as described by Jerome k. Jerome, is a bummel.

Well the Germans gave him the word, actually

 

[Gwylan]

Around here cycling to the Coop can be more adventure and danger than most of us need .
Cycling at night takes on a whole other set of risks.
If the Domino man in the red people carrier don't get you the potholes will.
I know where he lives, but don't know what to do.

 

[Andy in Germany]

Most peoples definition of Adventure is far removed from reality.

adventure /ăd-vĕn′chər/

noun​

1. An undertaking or enterprise of a hazardous nature.
2. An undertaking of a questionable nature, especially one involving intervention in another state's affairs.
3. An unusual or exciting experience.
   "an adventure in dining."

I think the definition is very broad. Looking at the above I've experienced a lot of adventure; migrating to another country was an adventure, as was marrying someone in Japan. I'll leave it to the reader to decide which of the three definitions they fall under.

On the other hand, riding into France is an adventure, so is riding through the Black Forest, and to go back to an earlier post, so is going to a playground in a different town.

Personally, that's quite enough; I don't really want to go on a tour like @HobbesOnTour does; it would drive me slightly potty, although I do like reading his stories...

 

[Alex321]

Most peoples definition of Adventure is far removed from reality.

Only for your very narrow definition of "adventure".

You seem to want it to mean something much stronger than the dictionary would have it.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

I started cycling late in life, in my late 40's.
For a few months, my only aim was to be able to cycle to work and back, a mere 6 miles each way at the time.
I started commuting in September, on a £30 BSO acquired at a car boot sale years previously, for very occasional use.
December came, I had upgraded to a very nice hybrid from my LBS.
January came, I fell off on ice.
On researching how to continue riding on icy paths (I was too scared of the roads then), I found cycle chat, lots of local chatters ... the adventures had begun!
Once I rode to Edinburgh myself, a mere 50 miles, on my hybrid barely able to change a tyre, with written instructions on a sheet of paper.
What an adventure!
At about 5 miles from home a screw detached from my rack making it unstable, I fixed it with electrical tape after reading on here that you should always carry some tape on a ride.
It stayed fixed like that for several years!
I had a phone, but no one to call, well, no one that would be able to rescue me, least because I wouldn't have been able to tell them where I was!
I had Google maps, but didn't know how to use it!
I got lost in deserted, scary country roads, saw a Tesco van coming round the corner, almost cried for the relief of seeing a sight of civilization
I got confirmation of being on the right roads by asking random postmen!
This, and many more of my beginners adventures are documented in the travelogue section.
50 miles is nothing to most on here, they could be the adventure of a lifetime for a beginner.
Of course after this I bought a Garmin for more adventures, but that didn't mean it all went plain sailing.

I don't really want to go on a tour like @HobbesOnTour does; it would drive me slightly potty, although I do like reading his stories.

Totally agree: there is only so much adventure one can take at once

 

[Ming the Merciless]

@Sallar55 There are plenty of accounts of LEL and PBP if you want to read them. But that’s not going to solve the fact you’re not having any adventures.

Maybe you need to leave your phone and map behind to go rediscover what adventures really are.

 

[HobbesOnTour]

Touring and Adventure cycling posts have been thin on the ground lately.

Hmmmm. I wonder if there's a connection between some poster's posting style and the lack of activity?
There is certainly less activity and a less pleasant tone of late.

Here is another one, who needs Komoot.

How do I get to see that map board from home?

The adventures may be in your head , but when do they become real. A photo is worth a thousand words and takes seconds to post. When we were young everything new was an adventure. No use talking about the distant past its today and tomorrow that matters.

I'm going to break that one down......

The adventures may be in your head , but when do they become real

What is real?
It's a serious question.
Two people can ride the same road and have completely different experiences. Which one is real?

A photo is worth a thousand words and takes seconds to post

But you say it's not a "real" adventure with a phone?
It's all very confusing.

When we were young everything new was an adventure.

Not to the people who were older.
Is it really the world that has changed so much...... or "us"?

No use talking about the distant past its today and tomorrow that matters.

Yet, you're the one comparing now to then?

Most peoples definition of Adventure is far removed from reality.

There's that word, again.
What is "reality"?

Adventure just like Awesome is a word that is often used to describe the mundane . Its modern life everything is hyped up.

Maybe, just maybe, the people who take the mundane and manage to incorporate a bit of adventure are the true adventurers?
I mean anyone can have an adventure in the back of beyonds but, for me, the real adventurers build a happy, positive life. around them.
Or maybe, some have to grab the adventure whenever life permits and that involves a bit of planning to make sure all the plates stay spinning and don't crash to the floor.

And back to this.....

When we were young everything new was an adventure.

If, on the off chance that @matticus is right and that perhaps you're feeling down, this site can be a great place for a bit of support and understanding. But maybe try to stop pissing all over everyone else who doesn't think like you.

 

[Legs]

You don't have to be pioneering to have Fun. I've done very few Type III Fun things in my life - I've certainly never set out doing something intending it to be Type III Fun.

https://www.rei.com/blog/climb/fun-scale

 

[Randomnerd]

Opening one's eyes and heart leads to a much richer life at the doorstep.

The ordinary is much maligned.

On my patch, where I have lived for three decades, I walk the same wooded paths day in, day out. I ride the same ten-mile circuit week after week. I pedal the same fourteen miles for groceries week after week.

Never bored. Never see nothing new. Never feel I ought to be somewhere else.

Acceptance: that's the first adventure to battle through. Letting things just be as they are, without judgment.

Commitment: the second big adventure. Making a plan for yourself, and making sure it is followed through.

Voltaire (I've quoted him here many times) let Candide find out that, despite his search around the globe for answers, the best advice was to cultivate one's own garden. The riches are at your fingertips.

 

[All uphill]

Opening one's eyes and heart leads to a much richer life at the doorstep.

The ordinary is much maligned.

On my patch, where I have lived for three decades, I walk the same wooded paths day in, day out. I ride the same ten-mile circuit week after week. I pedal the same fourteen miles for groceries week after week.

Never bored. Never see nothing new. Never feel I ought to be somewhere else.

Acceptance: that's the first adventure to battle through. Letting things just be as they are, without judgment.

Commitment: the second big adventure. Making a plan for yourself, and making sure it is followed through.

Voltaire (I've quoted him here many times) let Candide find out that, despite his search around the globe for answers, the best advice was to cultivate one's own garden. The riches are at your fingertips.

Well said!

I've enjoyed reading the replies to the OP.

Now I'm off on a mini adventure, walking into town, hoping to avoid the showers, looking at the many fungi that have sprung up, testing a new cafe and meeting a friend.

At the same time I can remember points in my life when I could find no joy or sense of adventure; that was called depression and needed treatment.

 

[iluvmybike]

I have an adventure every time I open my eyes in the morning and find I'm still here!!

 

[simongt]

From experience of recent days out, an adventure will be finding rural roads where there are reasonably low volumes of traffic as they used to have.

 

[Jameshow]

There was a old guy (perhaps a cyclechater!) Who was getting some cash from the ATM, then riding up to Skipton as I went into the office he was off on an adventure whilst I was enduring a training morning!!

 

[rivers]

I'm going to disagree here- it's just how we do things has changed. Instead of paper maps, we have GPS head units. Just because you've pre-planned a route, doesn't mean everything is going to be smooth sailing. Every trip I've been on, I have had to re-route at least once. But instead of a paper map, I have Google maps and download the general area I'm in to my phone so I can sort myself out without signal. Or just make my way to the nearest road, pick a direction until I see a signpost that can point me in the general direction I'm headed in.
My most adventurous trip to date found me no further than 30 miles from home, on mostly familiar routes. But it was myself and my toddler. He had never been camping, nor travelled exclusively in his trailer (along with many of his belongings) for 4 days on the trot. For him, it was an adventure because we were somewhere new each day, new playgrounds, beach, campsite. For me, it was an adventure because who knew what the weekend had in store for us. But we had fun! We got caught in the rain, went blackberry picking, had picnics in a field.
I guess your definition of an adventure is impressively narrow...

 

[Mike_P]

I have OS Maps on the phone just in case more modern stuff let's me down. Plus if lost they do indicate hills you might want to avoid, or not as the case may be.