Messages

31

GPS Discussion / Re: GPS Recommendation

« on: November 05, 2011, 03:43:02 pm »

Hello Dkoloko,

I've been using for last several years the Garmin eTrex Vista Cx and HCx. We've used them for mountain biking, kayaking, backpacking, bike touring, and in the car. Both units have taken us been deep in the back country under heavy foliage and across countries like Poland, Slovakia, Romania, Hungary, Czech, Germany, and the U.S.. I still own both; however, my Cx model decided to go a little crazy during our last Euro tour (Sept 2011), so I will be replacing it with either another HCx or Garmin's new eTrex 30. I would prefer another HCx just because their new eTrex models have a new mounting system and that would require having different setups and I like keeping everything the same on my wife's and my bike as possible.

Hope this helps and what you were looking for. If you have any other questions please feel free to contact me or post your question here.

32

Gear Talk / Re: folding bike for touring

« on: November 05, 2011, 03:22:50 pm »

Why does it have to "(a) folds quickly and easily"?   

My wife and I own bikes with S&S couplers and we can have them broke down and packed in about 40 minutes each. This includes removing fenders, pedals, racks, lighting systems, bottle cages, saddles, handlebars, rear derailleurs, and installing protective padding around the frame tubes.


Packing our bikes slideshow

33

Gear Talk / Re: Fitting a Brooks Saddle

« on: August 12, 2011, 05:34:01 pm »

I've riding a Brooks saddle for some time and I have mine with the nose slightly pointed up.

34

Gear Talk / Re: Novara Randonee Bike - 2011???

« on: August 12, 2011, 05:30:04 pm »

Also looking at a Surly LHT.

Surly Long Haul Truckers have circumnavigated the globe by plenty of folks, so I would count them out. My daughter and best friend each own one and are about to go with us for a month and tour Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, & Germany.   

35

GPS Discussion / Re: Routing Software

« on: June 25, 2011, 04:36:02 am »

Did you take a look at ridewithgps.com?

I've been using ridewithgps.com now for a few months and really like it. Very easy to use, save right to and/or upload from your GPS (garmin). Great site. Google maps just sucks as far as I'm concerned, unless of course they've changed something during the last 6 months.

36

General Discussion / Re: Working on bike tours

« on: June 22, 2011, 02:19:46 pm »

how about volunteering for food and shelter?

37

General Discussion / Re: B&M e-Werks Cache Battery

« on: June 17, 2011, 08:12:39 am »

Over 117 views and no one has one of these? 

38

General Discussion / Re: B&M e-Werks Cache Battery

« on: June 16, 2011, 06:27:00 pm »

We're not having any issues with the e-werk, it rocks! It's the darn cache battery that is giving us troubles. The first two we had worked great for a few hundred miles, then they started getting flaky, then they just stopped charging or holding a charge. I two new batteries Tuesday from Peter and one of them works great and the other is dead, meaning it's not charging or holding a charge. Very strange. The one that is currently working makes me wonder, how long will it work? Anyway I video taped my troubleshooting for B&M to see and after Petra translates my write up, I'll email them the video and writeup. Yes UBC built our wheels when we bought the SON hubs two years ago, but that's all.

39

General Discussion / Re: Bicycle Travel Bloggers

« on: June 16, 2011, 06:03:27 pm »

It's great! Thank you Adventure Cycling for providing the site, so we can share our blogs.

40

General Discussion / Re: B&M e-Werks Cache Battery

« on: June 16, 2011, 03:07:47 am »

Bob this is Ron & Petra and we're not in Eastern Europe until August.  ;-)

Our e-werks and SON28 hubs are working great. Yesterday I hooked up a multimeter (again) and video recorded voltage and amp output without the battery attached. Then I attached the bad battery and again video recorded the outputs and it's not our hub or e-werk. After the bad battery test, I attached the "good" battery and again video recorded the outputs. Our e-werk and SON28 Hubs are working perfectly. Tonight I will put the video together, post it on youtube and then email B&M (in German) with our findings and the link to the video, so they can see it too. We performed the above test on the other two batteries before mailing them back to Peter just to make sure it wasn't out setup; however, I did not video it. I spoke with Peter yesterday evening and he says that he's sold over 100 and only had a couple minor issues! Not sure what to say other than the ones we've received are not performing correctly. Maybe a bad lot or the Germans have moved operations over to China.

41

General Discussion / B&M e-Werks Cache Battery

« on: June 15, 2011, 08:39:45 am »

Looking for feedback on the e-Werks Battery from other users. My buddy and I bought two back in April from Peter White and they worked great for several rides, then they started working intermittenty, then they stopped working all together. Contacted Peter White and asked him about and he said that he had not heard of any issues, but asked that we mail them back and he'd replace them. Cool deal! Well we got two new batterires yesterday evening and.... one works and the other does not! So that is 3 out of 4 bad ones and who knows... maybe the 4th one will stop working too. We're really stumped because generally speaking the Germans make great products, but these batteries are crap!

Anyone else having issues?

42

Gear Talk / Re: sleeping bag

« on: June 05, 2011, 04:25:22 am »

The million dollar question!  My wife and I currently use 40° down bags, but have been wanting to purchase something around the 15° range and have gone back and forth with this very same question. Each has it's pros and cons, so....

We like our current down bags, they're extremely light and are very compact, but we've also been very lucky as to not get them wet during any of our trips.  If your down bag gets wet, you're pretty much without a sleeping bag until it dries. Synthetics are becoming nearly the same weight and size as down bags and you don't really have to worry about them getting wet like you do with the down bags. Synthetics are a lot cheaper than down bags so if a little extra weight and bulk aren't an issue that is another plus. However, if you want to save 1/2 to 3/4 pound, are not to concerned about getting it wet, and have an extra Benjamin or two you can spare then go with the down bag. Not sure if this helped, but good luck on finding the right bag and on your trip.

43

General Discussion / Re: Making the Commitment

« on: June 04, 2011, 12:41:49 pm »

Two years out, I picked a date and started telling everybody that I was leaving on that date.

I've done the same thing at work. I even sent my co-workers and boss an Outlook calendar request letting them know when my last day at work would be. Naturally they deleted it and laughed at me. They won't be laughing when my wife and I roll out from our house and tour the world.

44

General Discussion / Re: Garmin City Navigator North America NT - on my mac?

« on: May 29, 2011, 04:41:33 am »

check out ridewithgps.com

You can save your route, download your route to your gps, and it shows your changes elevation under the detailed view. It's free to sign up and use the very basic routing tools.

45

General Discussion / Re: BIG touring bike Photo Gallery

« on: May 20, 2011, 06:47:03 pm »

Hello All, if you are interested in sharing your loaded bike photos with the world, then please check out our BLOG (best viewed with FireFox, Safari, Opera, or Internet Explorer 9) for details.

Go to pedalpowertouring.com and mouse over, "Gallery of Bikes" and select either: "Bikes With Panniers", "Bikes With Trailers", or " Mountain Bikes With Bags" for more details.