{"id":14589,"date":"2022-11-12T15:01:56","date_gmt":"2022-11-12T14:01:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wobblyride.com\/?p=14589"},"modified":"2022-11-12T15:13:15","modified_gmt":"2022-11-12T14:13:15","slug":"working-remotely-while-bicycle-touring","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wobblyride.com\/pl\/2022\/11\/12\/working-remotely-while-bicycle-touring\/","title":{"rendered":"Working Remotely while Bicycle Touring – Challenges of Digital Nomad Lifestyle"},"content":{"rendered":"

Remote working is becoming more and more popular. Although it has many benefits, combining work and travel can be more challenging than the Internet makes it look. Especially if you travel by bike.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have dreamt of the freedom of living on my bike and taking my work with me, but in reality, this turned out more difficult than I thought.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The struggle to find a balance between work and fun, less spontaneity, constant guilt that I should be working when I was biking, and FOMO when I was working… That was my reality for a big chunk of that trip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I spoke to some people who work and bike to get ideas on making working on a bicycle tour more sustainable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My experience of working while bicycle touring<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Last February, I decided to quit my 9-5 office job (again) and travel by bike (again). This time, I wasn’t just travelling<\/em>. I tried to combine it with freelance travel writing and blogging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I had some big tours on my mind, like cycling the Pamir Highway in Tajikistan, that didn\u2019t work out due to closed borders and the political situation. In the end, I cycled through Sicily, spent almost a month in Albania, and cycled through northern Greece and Bulgaria.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I knew I would be exhausted if I tried to regularly post on my blog and submit pitches from the road, so I planned some breaks. It still felt like I was always running behind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was my own boss, with no imposed schedule and no targets enforced by someone else, which was both my blessing and my course. As I could work anytime <\/em>and anywhere, I felt deep inside that I should always <\/em>be working. But when I was working, I was thinking about the cool stuff out there I could be doing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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I tried to combine cycling through the Balkans with work. The result? I felt like I was constantly running behind.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What went wrong?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I wrote this article to understand what I did wrong and how I can better prepare to work while travelling by bike again (if I ever decide to repeat it).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In hindsight, my expectations and my attitude were the main issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I talked to two women who work while travelling by bike. They encountered similar challenges, although their work was quite different.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you consider working while travelling by bike, I hope our advice and thoughts will help you prepare for these challenges.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My conversation partners<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Eva Smeele<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Eva is a bicycle tourer and hiker from the Netherlands. In 2021, she went by cargo bike from the Netherlands to Croatia while working full-time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last summer, she embarked on a four-month bicycle tour through Europe and the Alps while working part-time as a customer service specialist. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Check out Eva\u2019s blog EVADinarica Project<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Iris M\u00fcller<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Iris is a university lecturer, social worker and activist. With her boyfriend Jan, she started a project called Cycling for Society. <\/em>The aim is to raise awareness of the stigma around mental health issues. While bicycle touring, Iris holds meetings and workshops and teaches remotely at a university.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On top of meetings, workshops and counselling sessions, she works about 20 hours a week from her laptop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Check out Iris\u2019s website Cycling for Society<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She wrote an excellent article about mental health on a bicycle tour<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Iris giving a presentation about stigma around mental health in Turkey. Photo: private archive. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Challenge 1: How to safely carry your laptop on a bicycle?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are many things you have to keep in mind when you carry your laptop on the bike if you want it to serve you for years. Here is how I do it:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I use a padded laptop sleeve<\/a>.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

A padded laptop sleeve is an affordable way to protect your computer from shocks on bumpy roads. I store my laptop in the sleeve and put it in my rear panniers or backpack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On bumpy trails, I carry my computer on me.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

I always take a backpack with me on all bike tours to have somewhere to put my stuff when I go sightseeing or hiking. The rucksack usually travels attached to my luggage rack, but on rocky and bumpy trails, I put it on my back to reduce the shocks for my computer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cycling with your backpack on your back all the time is not the best idea. I used to do that for about two years, but now, when I am in my thirties, my body is much less forgiving and doesn\u2019t like extra weight.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently, I cycle with Quechua NH500 30 L backpack<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n