Messages

1

New England / Re: Border Crossings - Ontario/NY

« on: June 16, 2013, 03:57:34 pm »

From time to time, we encounter all sorts of road conditions not ideally suitable to bikes. Border crossings are no different. In each situation, we adapt as necessary. Ride more slowly or even walk if warranted. It's a short-term inconvenience.

2

Gear Talk / Re: stability

« on: June 16, 2013, 03:53:37 pm »

Post back if you still have stability problems on a calm wind day. If so, then something else is going on and we should discuss further.

3

General Discussion / Re: riding and camping in thunderstorms

« on: June 16, 2013, 03:31:05 pm »

Lots of good advice and I agree with it all.

Rain doesn't worry me. Lightning, hail and tornadoes worry me, but not too much. During the day, I just ride through most rain. If it gets violent, I look for a house, building or bridge that I can take shelter from on a porch or under an overhang. Sometimes, however, they're aren't any around. I actually like sleeping in the rain, but I don't much like it if it's raining while I am setting up or breaking down camp. If tornadoes or high winds are forecast overnight, I look for someplace inside to sleep. Ask at churches and fire stations or look for a Warm Showers host.

4

Routes / Re: Riding west to east along the northern tier

« on: June 16, 2013, 12:48:36 pm »

My suggestions:

• Consider flying into Bellingham WA to start your trip. It is served by one of the most bike-friendly airline around (Frontier) and it is an easy ride from there to the start of the NT.
• If even remotely possible, schedule your trip so that Going To The Sun Road will be open when you get there. Going To The Sun Road is the absolute jewel of the Northern Tier. It would be criminal to have to go around it. Starting in mid-May will give you very little chance, but starting in mid-June will give you a very good chance of this road being open.
• Starting in May will almost certainly you subject you to wet weather through Washington. Starting later would avoid at least some of this.
• I second the praise for South Skagit Road between Sedro-Woolley and Concrete--absolutely lovely.
• You don't have too many options for distance in Washington until you get over Sherman Pass. You're pretty much committed to one pass a day over Rainy/Washington, Loup Loup, Wauconda and Sherman.
• Take a tour of Libby Dam just past Libby MT if you can. The visitor center is on the west side.
• Campgrounds along the Northern Tier tend to be a bit more expensive than camping on the TransAm, especially as you get farther east. Not that big of an issue if you are sharing costs, but can be significant if you travel solo.
• Spend a night at Cottonwood Campground in Theodore Roosevelt National Park if you can. It's cool.
• Don't miss the stop at the Adventure Cyclists Bunkhouse in Dalbo, MN.
• If you take the North Lakes route, plan at least several hours to explore Mackinac Island.
• Stysh's Brown Barn Campground in Boonville NY is a real bargain camping for only $6.
• Spend an hour and $20 to take the Maid of the Mist at Niagara Falls. Lock your bike up within sight of the ticket booths.
• It can be a challenge to arrange transportation home from Bar Harbor. I had the Bar Harbor Bike Shop ship my bike home and took the shuttle to the Bangor airport.

5

General Discussion / Re: Need Help With Shifting on Climbs

« on: June 07, 2013, 07:21:30 pm »

I might disagree slightly with John's climbing strategy, but it is only in the name of diversity.

Hats off to you paddleboy! I think that's the most diplomatic disagreement I've ever seen. I'm all in favor of diversity.

6

General Discussion / Re: Cleaning your bike on a long tour

« on: June 07, 2013, 11:33:00 am »

Extra tubes are your lightest and most-likely-needed repair item.

Yes, but don't get carried away. On my bike, tubes weight about one third of a pound each. That's not exactly light. Patch kits, on the other hand, really are light, so I take two. The main reason I take extra tubes is so that I can swap tubes on the road and patch in camp. Occasionally, of course, a failure is unpatchable, which is when the extra tubes are critical.

The best way to minimize flats is not to ride too close to the edge of the road (where all the debris is), to ride around road debris instead of over it, and to carefully inspect your tires for thorns any time you take it off pavement. In the evening, more carefully inspect your tires and remove any embedded foreign matter before it has a chance to work its way through.

7

Routes / Re: Suggestions needed for favorite 7-day trip in US

« on: June 07, 2013, 10:08:54 am »

You might also consider the Selkirk Loop in Northern Idaho & Washington States and British Columbia.

+1

One problem, however, is that if you only have seven days to spend, you might not want to spend two days getting there and two days getting home. On the other hand, if you have plenty of time but only want to ride for seven days, and if you have a passport, the Selkirk Loop would be great.

8

General Discussion / Re: Need Help With Shifting on Climbs

« on: June 07, 2013, 08:48:39 am »

Well, experience is the best teacher here. Just keep riding and you'll figure it out.

It's best to shift down before you need it. As you approach the hill, study it. Predict what gear you will need at each point of the hill and shift into it before you get there. Learn to pedal standing up and use it for 100 yards or so from time to time on the steepest sections. When you get ready to stand, briefly increase your cadence, then shift up two gears and then stand. After 50 or so stokes, shift back down and sit back down.

To preserve your knees, use as low of a gear as you need (until you run out of them). Don't try to stay in a larger gear.

9

General Discussion / Re: North Nevada & Utah in summer

« on: June 04, 2013, 02:29:11 pm »

The ACA route through ND is all paved, but it warns you that if you try to make up your own route on the fly, you might have to deal with dirt because many paved roads go on for many miles before they suddenly turn to dirt.

I spent nights in ND in Theodore Roosevelt National Park (not free, but well worth the $10 camping fee), Hebron (free camping in the city park), Bismarck (Warm Showers host), Napolean ($10 to camp in the city park), Gackle (free camping), Enderlin (free camping in the town park) and Fargo (where I was spontaneously offered a home to stay in while riding down a residential street). In some cases, I camped in the town park even though the ACA map did not list the town park as a possible camping spot. I think the chances that somebody will run you off from some of these small town parks are very low.

10

General Discussion / Re: North Nevada & Utah in summer

« on: June 04, 2013, 11:38:48 am »

There are places on I-94 where the shoulder is 10 feet wide, but the rumble strips are 8 feet wide. It's kind of annoying trying to hit that one-foot clear part on the right side of the shoulder every 50 feet. There are fewer than 50 miles of the Northern Tier on I-94, and not all of them have such annoying rumble strips.

There are also places on Old Highway 10 that are an exercise in pothole dodging, but it is very pretty and peaceful back there. Because it is shorter, some people prefer to follow I-94 all the way across ND, but I really liked the back roads.

11

Gear Talk / Re: Ultra Light TransAm Ride

« on: June 04, 2013, 11:20:01 am »

I will change the cassette to 9 speed 11-34.

Make sure your rear derailleur will handle it. I don't know how to do that, but somebody here does.

12

Gear Talk / Re: Ultra Light TransAm Ride

« on: June 03, 2013, 06:57:26 am »

"9 speed" is still incomplete information. What is the number of teeth on the largest and smallest cogs?

There are a number of good handlebar bags. I use and like the Ortlieb Ultimate 5 Classic medium.

If your experience tells you that you don't need a sleeping pad, then save the weight. Most people, however, need one or at least think they need one.

13

Gear Talk / Re: Ultra Light TransAm Ride

« on: June 02, 2013, 09:17:22 pm »

I plan to leave San Francisco in mid-June and arrive Sag Harbor, NY... well sometime in early August.

That is a cross-country ride, but it's not the TransAm.

1) Should I upgrade the drive train and/or change the gearing ratio.  I read everywhere that you need 26 or 28 on the low end. If you're young, strong, have good knees, well-trained and don't mind walking some of the hills, then keep what you've got. You only gave half the equation (chainring specs), however, so we really don't know what your gears are. What cassette do you have?
2) Should I ditch the auxiliary brake levers.  They are handy in traffic, but seem to really restrict front bag options. There are extenders for handlebar bag mounts if you want to keep them. I, however, find the levers unnecessary.
3) Should I change my saddle?  Saddles are very personal. If you have a lot of comfortable miles on it, keep the one you have.
4) Should I go for a full rear rack instead of the Arkel Randonneur?  Huge difference in weight carrying potential. If you're going ultralight, you don't need weight-carrying potential.
5) Are 25mm tires OK or should I move up to 28s? I would move up, if they will fit. Wider is more comfortable for the long term, and is easier on the wheels. But if you are going ultralight, the 25s will work.
6) What is the best front bag IF any at all. There's no such thing as "best". Do you mean front panniers or handlebar bag? If you're going ultralight, you don't need front panniers.
7) Sleeping pad.  Do I really need one?  Done a lot of camping and have been OK in 9/10 situations. If you can sleep comfortably and warm directly on the ground, then no, you don't need one. But remember that pads are as important for insulation as for warmth. Have you camped in the mountains before? When are you starting?
Computer... Does it make any sense to bring a laptop?  Or should I just stick with my iPhone and coffee shops? Entirely a personal choice. A laptop is not entirely consistent with "ultralight."
9) Is a Garmin GPS device even remotely necessary? ($$) I don't think so, especially if you have good maps. Life goes by slowly enough on a bicycle that you usually have plenty of time to figure out where you're going.
10) Adventure Cycling Maps of the TransAm route.  Are the necessary? If you're on the route, they'll pay for themselves by finding you free places to sleep, and they will keep you off of dangerous roads (for the most part). If you're not on the route, they're useless.

14

General Discussion / Re: Shipping bike box to final destination

« on: June 01, 2013, 08:56:09 pm »

I don't know anything about shipping in Europe, but when I've checked into shipping a bike box in the U.S., I found that it's as expensive to ship an empty box as to ship a full one.

15

General Discussion / Re: Cleaning your bike on a long tour

« on: May 31, 2013, 10:28:41 am »

The bike I have has come with two spare spokes attached, so I guess that I can use those.

Maybe, maybe not. Bikes almost always use at least two different length spokes, and sometimes three. The spokes that typically break are the drive side rear, and those cannot be changed unless you also bring something to remove the cassette with (e.g., the Stein Mini Cassette Lockring tool). If you get a FiberFix (about $10), you can temporarily replace a spoke anywhere with no tools. Those two spare spokes attached may come in handy, however, even if you don't have the tools to use them, if you happen to come to a bike shop that is out of spokes in your size.