781
General Discussion / Re: Help getting started
« on: August 07, 2010, 10:36:34 pm »
Start by reading many of the excellent articles in the how-to section of this web site.
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782
General Discussion / Re: Cutting Weight
« on: August 04, 2010, 08:37:13 am »
Take fewer clothes. One set of cycling clothes is enough. Rinse them out each evening, soak up all the moisture with your microfiber towel, and hang them up to dry. Hopefully they'll be dry by morning, but you can put them on even if not. One set of off-bike clothing is enough too. Take just enough clothes such that on the coldest day you'll have, you'll be wearing everything you brought simultaneously.
There are many radical approaches. But at some point, it gets ridiculous. As others have said, reduce weight until you get to something manageable and then quit.
There are many radical approaches. But at some point, it gets ridiculous. As others have said, reduce weight until you get to something manageable and then quit.
783
Gear Talk / Re: For Guys (maybe Girls) with size 14 + feet hitting the panniers. A kinda techy ?
« on: August 03, 2010, 01:32:27 pm »
If your rear load is behind the rear hub, you really should make sure you also use front panniers with at least half the weight up front. If you do that, I think you'll be okay (depending on how far behind the rear hub the weight is and how it is distributed).
784
General Discussion / Re: TransAmerica: Which direction?
« on: July 13, 2010, 12:27:46 am »
If you had had a 50 MPH headwind, you'd have been going backwards.
785
General Discussion / Re: Novice coming to America !
« on: June 19, 2010, 05:56:03 am »
Solo is safe. In my opinion, solo is preferable unless you have a 100% compatible partner. Don't get a partner just to have one. You're never alone anyway. The country is full of great people, and you'll meet more of them if you're solo.
786
General Discussion / Re: What is the best bike to tour with?
« on: June 08, 2010, 07:28:52 pm »
It can be done. It's not ideal. You can drive a nail with a wrench if that's all you've got, but a hammer works better if you have one.
787
Gear Talk / Re: Trek 520
« on: June 07, 2010, 08:04:50 pm »
Thousands of miles, zero problems. It's not the only bike that will work, but it is certainly one of them.
788
Temporary ACA Route Road Closures / Re: TransAm Section 9 2009
« on: June 03, 2010, 09:35:51 pm »
I rode through there today. 126 is closed. Detour adds 8 miles. Or you can avoid the extra miles simply by not going north to 126 until after Jasper (westbound) or not returning to 126 after Jasper (eastbound). This, however, skips Golden City and the great pie at Cooky's. I have no idea if you can get through the closure, and you have to ride many miles to find out.
789
Gear Talk / Re: fiber fix spokes and stein mini lock
« on: June 02, 2010, 05:42:05 pm »
I have both and have used both. Try them in your garage before you need them on the road. The Stein tool works best if your lockring is not too tight to start with. For the FiberFix, I find it best to first loosen the spokes on either side, then tighten the FiberFix, then retighten the other spokes.
790
Routes / Re: Strangest attractions along the TransAmerica Trail?
« on: June 02, 2010, 05:35:07 pm »
Foamhenge
791
General Discussion / Re: What are some of the steepest grades on the Trans Am?
« on: April 27, 2010, 07:53:33 pm »
In my opinion, no value can be derived from the single data point of "steepest". What you really care about is "difficulty", and difficulty is some strange combination of grade and length, plus some factor for how steady the hill is (i.e., a hill that is unrelenting is more difficult than one where the road levels out from time to time to give you a break). If the hill is only 50 yards long, the grade is almost meaningless (unless it's so steep you cannot even pedal at all, in which case you can just walk it, unless you cannot walk, in which case you really do care about grade). Of course, a couple hundred 50-yard hills in a row can wear on you.
As far as I know, no one has successfully come up with a agreed-upon numerical way to express difficulty.
As far as I know, no one has successfully come up with a agreed-upon numerical way to express difficulty.
792
Routes / Re: What are the current map versions?
« on: April 25, 2010, 08:09:48 am »
Maps are updated one section at a time, not whole routes. There are 12 maps in the TA set. 9 of the 12 were updated in late 2009, and these 9 almost certainly won't be updated again this year. The remaining 3 (the western-most ones) were updated in 2008. I suppose there's at least some possibility of an update to those.
793
Routes / Re: What are the current map versions?
« on: April 23, 2010, 08:03:37 pm »
I received my TA maps this week, and I was pleasantly surprised to find that four of the 12 maps were newer than what the catalog said were the current versions. So although the current version information has been added to the catalog (apparently as we requested), it's not kept up to date.
794
Gear Talk / Re: Front Pannier ground clearance
« on: April 22, 2010, 09:43:57 am »
I just looked at a photo of my bike. It looks like I have about 6". The main problem with too low is that it may hit the ground on a tight corner, but that would have to be very tight indeed. You could take it for a spin and try. Another problem might be that the pannier would hit a curb or parking stop that you rode too close to.
795
Gear Talk / Re: stove or no?
« on: April 19, 2010, 11:43:37 am »
You said "we", so we can infer that your group is larger than one. I would say that the larger the group, the more sense it makes to have a stove, due to economy of scale factors, division of weight factors, and division of effort factors. But for a group of one, eating in cafes may provide much-needed human interaction.