Bikepacking Stories: Kees Lucassen about bikepacking in the 80's and now!
- 26 feb
- 4 minuten om te lezen
Bijgewerkt op: 5 mrt
For this edition of Bikepacking Rider Stories, we spoke with Kees Lucassen. Long before GPS and route apps, Kees began exploring the world by bike in the 1980's. He talks with us on what has changed over the years and what continues to make travelling by bike so special.
Born into cycling
Kees’ connection to bikes began before he could even ride. He was born above his grandmother’s bicycle shop in Eindhoven, where his father worked as a mechanic.
Inspired by Joop Zoetemelk’s 1980 Tour de France victory, Kees bought a racing bike and in 1981 his first real adventure took shape. What began as a group trip for sun and discos in Lloret de Mar ended with him riding solo from Saint-Tropez back to the Netherlands, carrying only a small backpack with a sleeping bag.
Sleeping in haylofts, bus shelters, sheep barns and even a squat in Lyon, he discovered the magic of bike travel. The journey was an eye-opener and sparked an ambitious idea for the following year: cycling from Eindhoven towards Asia.
Touring behind the Iron Curtain
In 1982 Kees cycled with brother and a friend from The Netherlands to Istanbul through Eastern Europe in 3 weeks using only 3 maps. Roads were often rough, but traffic was minimal. Kees rode a semi-racing Miyata, fitted with a rear rack and handlebar bag, carrying little more than a tent, sleeping bag, two sets of clothes and basic tools.
Mechanical problems were rare, but challenges came in other forms: illness from questionable drinking water and an unexpected appendectomy on the way back in Dubrovnik. Communication with home consisted of just two phone calls during the entire trip.
A lifetime of cycling journeys
Defining the number of trips is not easy for Kees. Including short tours, the count could reach 100 journeys. He has cycled on every continent except Australia and Antarctica.
Despite riding through places like Cambodia’s Killing Fields and California’s Death Valley, he emphasizes that meaningful rides do not require distant destinations. Cycling in nearby Flanders or the Netherlands can be just as enjoyable.
Still, some journeys stand out. Especially his ride along the Karakoram Highway from Pakistan to Kashgar in western China in 2001. During that trip, while drinking tea in the mountain town of Gilgit with locals who resembled Osama bin Laden, Kees watched the events of 9/11 unfold live on television.
Moments like these illustrate how travel and world history can unexpectedly interact.
What has changed? And what hasn’t?
Asked what he misses most from his early bikepacking days, Kees doesn’t hesitate: the unknown!
Today’s connectivity makes everything easier: navigation, finding a bed, material for repairs etc. But it leaves little room for surprise. Back then, finding food, shelter or directions meant asking around… and that’s where the real stories began.
At the same time, not everything has been lost. On a recent ride from Leiden to Cartagena in Spain, Kees still experienced hospitality, unexpected beauty and friendly conversations.
He sometimes smiles when he passes young bikepackers with frames covered in bags, joking that this “boomer” still trusts a simple rear rack with a pair of bags. In the end, though, the setup doesn’t matter: the real trick is to pack light and keep riding.
Encounters on the road
Hospitality, Kees believes, hasn’t changed much.
While many cycling routes have grown more polished and commercial, the best encounters still happen far from the crowds. By creating his own routes, he continues to meet people who are simply curious about this lone Dutch rider passing through their village.
During a recent Spanish tour, he occasionally pitched his tent just outside villages. Introducing himself to locals frequently resulted in offers of coffee or wine: generosity that still defines slow travel.
Rediscovering home
In recent years, Kees also explored closer to home. Three years ago, he saw his first hunebed (prehistoric stone tombs) during rides through Drenthe and Groningen in the northeastern Netherlands.
For years, Groningen meant gas fields, earthquakes and power plants to Kees. Cycling through it changed that image completely. Quiet villages, wide-open landscapes, genuinely friendly people and the beautiful nature took him by surprise.
A reminder that even the places you think you know can still surprise you.
Looking ahead
As Kees reflects, he feels fortunate to have experienced both eras of bicycle travel: the unknown adventure of the past and the connected world of today.
Kees’ next ride will resume where his previous one paused: cycling home from Cartagena in Spain. Another future journey may take him towards Malaysia, where his son will be on a work placement, blending travel with family connection.
His advice to young riders is simple: just go, ride, experiment and see what happens. Travel with family if you like… but maybe cycle home alone after. Bikes and gear may change, but the reason never does: you ride to discover where the road leads.
And this is exactly what we at Bikepacking Holland stand for. Seek adventure, ride mindfully and sustainably, and dare to leave the beaten track! It will give you far more than you expect.
Upcoming talks
Kees also gives talks about his cycling journeys, including:
The Wild Atlantic Way in Ireland (from Cork to Limerick): on April 17 at De Sijthoff in Leiden.
From the Netherlands to Cartagena in southern Spain, via the Camino del Cid: on April 22 at De Vakantiefietser in Amsterdam.
