Messages

1

General Discussion / Re: Fears for the Future of Adventure Cycling

« on: September 26, 2025, 12:50:39 pm »

Adventure Cycling has not kept up with the times.  While touring has doubled in the last 40 years, there's been a transition from road to off road instead, and ACA has not kept up with that trend, thus they are viewed as too old in their thinking by sticking with mostly pavement touring, and not pushing the marketing on off-road.

Combine that with problem with over spending.  One of the areas of over spending example is the complex at Missoula, since Covid a lot of the workers are now remote working, yet they still maintain that building which costs a lot in upkeep.  They should consider selling that building and moving into a much smaller building or eliminate any building whatsoever and only do remote work; which I believe they have that building for sale. 

But they have to find more ways to generate revenue.  Some of the ways is to expand their off-road guided tours.  Create pay to watch webinars for subjects like how to maintain and repair a bike while touring and what tools to carry, how to prepare for touring both off and on road and what gear to take, how to use navigationial tools, how to plan for a trip, etc. and market them to various biking industries.

They could do other things like leverage its 50,000+ member base to build a major gifts and legacy giving program; pursue foundation and government grants for bike-tourism infrastructure, youth programs, and equity initiatives; host annual fundraising events (virtual and in-person rides) to engage donors and showcase impact; Collaborate with bike brands, outdoor apparel companies, and tourism boards on co-branded tours and featured routes; license ACA’s curated route data to commercial mapping apps and cycling event promoters via a subscription API; secure sponsorships for signature events, maps, and digital tools to offset operating costs.

I don't know how much of this stuff I mentioned they are currently doing, so I may have been wasting my time going into all of that.

2

Gear Talk / Re: Upgrade for my touring packing set up

« on: July 07, 2025, 12:24:41 am »

I love this!  Getting info from folks who have used stuff.  Just what I need.  Thanks!

While I have used panner bags and still do, I can't use every single bag there is, so I found a pair of Axiom Monsoon Oceanweave 45 liter bags I got for half price some years back, and they've been great and completely water proof.  The only reason I bought those instead of Ortlieb or some other brand was the sale price. 

Over the years I ran into people using all sorts of brands, and they told me the same thing I realized with my own, as long as they are waterproof and are large enough to hold what you want a pannier to hold you're good.

Mine have held up extremely well, they still look like new.  I got caught in a 2 hour downpour and there wasn't any moisture inside, which was to be expected due to their roll down design, but I decided to add a rainfly to my bags, but I did that more to protect the outside of the bag from abrasion and not for water getting in. 

I also installed a white trash compactor bag into my panniers as a liner.  Trash compactor bags are a lot tougher than any trash bag you can find, and by using white you can see into your pannier better.  But that was more to contain spills and to keep the bag itself from stinking.  These tips were given to me by other bikers as well as backpackers that line their backpacks with those same bags. 

3

General Discussion / Re: Florida criminalizes sleeping on public land.

« on: May 23, 2025, 11:29:48 pm »

Some months ago another man was killed riding his bicycle. In this case, the fault was 100% with the driver. I did not know this man, but according to the newspaper article, he was well known in the community. He was riding his bicycle over the bridge from Stuart going to sewalls point. As far as the reports went, he was legal in every way. A woman came up from behind him in a vehicle. She was I think at least twice over the legal limit for intoxication by alcohol in the state of Florida. She smashed right into him and drag his body for quite some distance, or was it the bicycle that got caught under the car. In that case, the driver of the vehicle was 100% at fault.

This is why I don't see the point of those expensive radar rear lights, they don't tell you that a car is on a course to hit you, all they tell is there's a car coming, ok, so will a mirror.

4

Gear Talk / Re: Tools / parts to carry on tour

« on: May 20, 2025, 11:23:30 pm »

Apparently FiberFix Emergency Spoke is no longer being made.  I did find two of them at SJS Cycles in the UK and ordered those, but that was the only place I could find them at.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SHlLigtEa8&t=7s

5

General Discussion / Re: Florida criminalizes sleeping on public land.

« on: May 20, 2025, 10:57:05 pm »

I will never ride down into Florida, they have the highest bicycle fatality rate in the nation due to all the old people driving half blind if not totally blind!

6

General Discussion / Re: The Long Distance Bicycle Tourist a High-Profile Traveler.

« on: May 20, 2025, 10:54:47 pm »

I'm 73 years old, I remember as a kid my parents would take us on a road trip in the summer in the car, as we would be driving people would honk and wave if you were from their state, they would honk and wave if you were driving the same car as they were, how I miss the days of such niceties; in todays world if they wave at you it's either with the middle finger or they have gun in their hand!

7

Gear Talk / Re: Upgrade for my touring packing set up

« on: May 12, 2025, 09:19:48 pm »

I don't even use panniers on the front.  I have a Blackburn Bootlegger Porteur rack on the front, my sleeping bag and camping chair in two dry bags, one dry bag on each fork blade, each bag uses 2 Voile straps holding each one against the Porteur rack.

I had a Tubus pannier rack on the front but I didn't serve my purpose so I replaced it with the Blackburn Bootlegger, a rack that is no longer made, but it is a darn good rack.

8

Gear Talk / Re: Best bicycle tracker or air tag

« on: May 11, 2025, 11:47:44 pm »

But there is one that does work inside metal, in fact it goes inside the handlebar, curved or straight, it's called Sherlock GPS Bicycle Tracker that cost roughly $210 in the US.  It works with your smartphone and requires an app that is free for the first 2 years than after that you'll have to pay a fee, but it only runs for 7 days off of one charge.

There is another one that is hidden under the water bottle cage, it's called the Boomerang Cyclotrac V2, this thing will run for up to 2 months on a charge, and it also has an alarm...problem with the alarm is now the theft knows where its at!  But it does come with 2 tamper proof bolts.  It's another one of those you need a smartphone and pay a monthly fee for the app.

Similar to the Boomerang is the Knog Scout Bike Alarm and Finder, it looks the same, mounts the same except it's just an alarm, no tracker, but it will notify your smartphone, Apple only, if the alarm goes off.  This is the least expensive system at around $65.  Evidently the new version of the Knog does have a tracker, so you have to make sure you are getting the newest version.  The tracking system uses Apple's Find My app.  It comes with a neoprene cover, but they say it's not necessary to put on, and because it's yellow it will stand out much quicker than the black case it has, I guess if you're going to be getting that area of the bike muddy it might be a good idea, but the unit is water resistant without it.

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Gear Talk / Re: Upgrade for my touring packing set up

« on: May 11, 2025, 09:58:35 pm »

I forgot to mention that the panniers I have are Axiom Monsoon Oceanweave 45s; they have gone through torrential down pours and not even moisture got in.

Having said that, no bag is 100 waterproof 100 percent of the time, though it could be but you shouldn't leave it to chance.  I line all my bags with white trash compactor bags, these are far tougher than trash bags, then I simply roll the bag close and close the pannier.  The white bag also allows you to see into your bag better as well.  The other thing about the using the compactor bags is that should something spill inside the pannier it won't mess up the pannier.

Of course you should to go a step further, I put everything I don't want to get wet into ziplock bags, and I put stuff that could leak out into ziplock bags, for example clothes go into ziplock bags, cooking oil goes into a ziplock bag, etc.

With the Axiom you can buy an optional rain fly, it's not necessary to keep rain out as I found out, but I bought them because the panniers are a dark gray, the fly is a bright yellow, plus the fly will protect the pannier from abrasion damage.

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Gear Talk / Re: Upgrade for my touring packing set up

« on: May 09, 2025, 08:03:37 pm »

Don't forget to go to You Tube University, there are a lot of videos on the subject of lighter stuff.

Burley Panniers, are inexpensive and are lightweight.  Of course, being lightweight may not as last long, but they are a good brand, but according to reviews they are durable, so it they could be really good for the price.

11

Gear Talk / Re: Camp Chair

« on: May 09, 2025, 06:50:21 pm »

81 years old and you're still touring on a bike, that in itself deserves a huge CONGRADUATIONS!!!

The least expensive one I could find was at REI, it was the REI Co-op for $80, it gets high reviews.

However, I did find a very cheap ones on Amazon, like the one made by Moon Lence for just $33, but this chair weighs at least a pound more than the REI one.  So you do have to pay more for lighter gear, but if you can live with about a 1 and 1/3 pound more weight on you bike then that is a good price.

Amazon has other similar chairs, but they don't disclose the weight of most of them other than to say it's lightweight, ok, what does lightweight mean? 2 pounds, 5 pounds?  We don't know.  If a different chair interest you on Amazon more than the one that I mentioned, you might have to ask the community how much it weighs.

12

General Discussion / Re: Costs per day?

« on: May 08, 2025, 05:37:19 pm »

... Cheap motels are out there and not often, from what I have seen, to be found advertising on Google. I think some are dodging the tax man. ...

Funny you should mention that.  I've noticed quite often at the less expensive motels that the credit card machine is "broken" and they only are accepting cash that day.

All the cheap motels I have ever seen made me wish I was carrying a gun!  But if you don't mind paying for a cheap date that's half to fully baked out of her mind you might like places like that...of course they only accept cash, they don't carry card readers, well, at least not yet!

13

Gear Talk / Re: Tools / parts to carry on tour

« on: October 11, 2024, 06:37:32 pm »

Great start on your touring essentials! Consider adding a spare derailleur hanger as they're prone to bending in a crash. An extra cassette might be overkill unless you're planning on riding a lot of tough terrain. Don't forget a chain whip for cassette changes. Happy touring!

There is no need for a chain whip, if a person is that paranoid then they need to carry an extra cassette, and all that does is add weight for you to haul around mile after mile.  If you put on a new chain and cassette before you leave that cassette should last at the very least 8,000 miles, and chain at least 3,000 miles and probably closer to 5,000 if you get a good chain. So unless the poster is doing a 12,000 mile expedition trip there's no need for a lot of stuff.

A bare bones minimum you need:

2-3 Tire levers, good ones like a pair of Lezyne XL Power levers, and a Kool Stop Tire Bead Jack if you have very tough to install tires.
Small bottle of chain lube.
Mini bike pump, like the Lezyne Road Drive, but get the large one, it's about 11 inches long but skinny, but that length makes it easier to pump tires with.
If you're tubeless you need a few pluggers and a couple of valve cores, but even with tubeless you'll need tubes and patches.
A couple of Rema Patch kits.
Park tire boots.
1-2 spare tubes.
Spare chain link
Spare spokes (2 rear drive side, 1 rear non-drive side, 1 one front); however there is a product called FIBERFIX Emergency Spoke Replacement Kit, this kit allows you to easily replace spokes without having to take off the cassette so you don't need a chain whip, and these Fiberfix spokes are lighter in weight than steel spokes, and come packed in a very small round canister.
Replacement brake pads.
A mini tool like the Topeak Alien II Multi-Tool that comes with 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 8 mm allen keys, A chain breaker, Spoke keys, 8, 9, 10, 15 mm wrenches, some might have pedal wrenches, but if you break a pedal...well, you can't carry an entire bike shop on your bike!
4 to 6 Zip ties.
About 2 feet of duct tape.


I don't see a need for a spare chain, you can remove a broken link or two, and put the chain back together, the only problem you'll have doing that is you won't be able to to shift into the smallest or tallest gear, but you can still ride it.

If you have brand new cables put on, and your bike doesn't eat them, there is no reason to carry any spare cabling thus no need for tools for that.  You also don't need a spare derailleur hanger unless you'll be riding off road; and the poster was talking about using panniers, if the bike crashes those panniers will protect the derailleur.

Some say to carry a spare tire, but todays tires, especially the Schwalbe line of tires used in touring, are all but indestructible, unless you're going off road a spare tire is an overkill in my opinion; but if you must carry one find the lightest weight folding tire you can get in the correct size, then put the remaining heavier touring tire on the rear and the lighter weight tire on the front.

There are a lot of tools a person can carry, but it comes down to how far and how remote you will be, doing a exhibition trip in the Outback of Australia is vastly different than taking a touring trip in America!  There are people doing ultralight trips on trails in America and they carry very little in tools and parts.

Below is a link to a guy who goes ultralight touring off road, look at his bags and tell me if he's carrying a lot of stuff.  https://tomsbiketrip.com/ultralight-bikepacking-a-fully-loaded-cycle-tourists-perspective/

14

Gear Talk / Re: Chair

« on: August 15, 2024, 12:40:06 pm »

yes, if I'm not trying to be a weight weeny I take this https://www.thermarest.com/products/seats/trekker-chair/trekker-chair.html

Aren't you concerned about leaks?  I can't imagine getting someplace, you set up camp, now it's time to relax, and you let the chair inflate only to find out it leaks someplace.  You're placing that air "bag" directly on the ground, where all kinds of stuff has a chance to put a hole into it, it would concern me enough not to want one.  But it does look comfortable as long as air can stay in it. A piece of mylar or something similar you could place on the ground first would offer it more protection.  Still, a person should try one before buying.

15

Gear Talk / Re: Chair

« on: August 05, 2024, 10:52:28 pm »

Wow, I just noticed I forgot to mention the seat that I got, it's an Eureka Tagalong Lite.  It's not the lightest one on the market but I can lean back in it, and it feels more comfortable and secure than the others I tried.  It's about a pound heavier than the lightest one I tried from REI Flexlite, it wobbled quite a bit and wasn't near as comfortable as the one I finally got.

I recommend that a person try a few before buying, Had I just grabbed any ol lightweight chair off the internet I would not have known others were better in what I needed in a chair for my body, and just been stuck with it and not happy with it.