Messages

1

Gear Talk / Re: New Rider who needs advice on tires

« on: February 18, 2015, 05:07:09 pm »

For touring I would strongly recommend the Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires.  Pretty much flat proof, great durability.   Used them on a DF, and my recumbents. 

2

Gear Talk / Re: Solar Panel - Yea or Nay?

« on: May 10, 2014, 01:47:25 pm »

Folks are asking legitimate questions.  Why bother to respond, if you do not have a solar system. 

3

Gear Talk / Re: Solar Panel - Yea or Nay?

« on: April 25, 2014, 06:06:52 pm »

So SamSpokes, what solar panel have you used? 

4

General Discussion / Re: Newb, feeling over whelmed by planning process. where/how to start???

« on: February 01, 2014, 07:23:34 pm »

BUT!  It does not hurt to plan.  For my ride this summer, I’ve been using Ride with GPS to plan out the route, which will give me cue sheets.  I’ve planned most of the ride to average approx. 60 miles a day, though I know that things will change as I travel and flexibility is going to be the key.  Also have done research on places to camp, city parks, etc.  Especially since I will be on a trike, I’ve used Google Maps to get an idea of how the roads actually look and made modifications especially on the really tight, curvy mountain roads in the east.  I contacted all the state DOT’s and have gotten some really good maps, suggestions, etc from them.  Time consuming, but part of the fun of planning a trip.  Train, train, train, especially if you are using a DF touring bike and get your sit bones ready for long hours in the saddle.  There are a lot of really good tips to be found on crazyguyonabike website,  choose the type of bike you ride and go to that section.  I found some of the packing lists to be helpful.  Ride, be safe and have fun.

5

General Discussion / Re: bike tour spring summer 2014 questions

« on: February 01, 2014, 07:10:39 pm »

Experience will be the best teacher.  On my 1700 mile ride this past summer, I dropped 22 lbs.(a good thing).  But as one other rider mentioned, the mountains of CO, got me also and I didn’t listen to my body and ended up with heat exhaustion and an IV.  Started drinking just water and not mixing in my HEED.  Electrolytes are very important, and not from salt.  My day typically started with a bowl of oatmeal, maybe a cup of coffee and then on the road.  Usually stopped (depending on the location) for a breakfast of pancakes and bacon.  Snack bars, fruit, dried fruit, trail mix, etc. tided me over if nothing was available for lunch.  Since on that ride there was a SAG, I was able to take along a lot more stuff, most of which was Hammer Nutrition products, which worked really well.  Suppers typically were chicken, fish with pasta.  Stopped at Subways when available. 

6

Classifieds / Trike and Bike Parts/Tires for Sale

« on: February 01, 2014, 11:35:23 am »

Spring cleaning and figured I would put this out first and continue wading through the other parts and getting pictures of the RotorQ and other cranksets, brakes, etc. Shipping costs are separate and will depend on your location, how fast you want them, etc.

- ICE Headrest with light mount. $90.00

- Schwalbe Tryker Tires 406/20x1.50 (3) Used @ 300 miles.(with tubes which are still holding good pressure since May) $95.00

- Schwalble Marathon Plus 406/20x1.75 (3) Used @ 1800 miles (One is really good(rear tire), one better(left front), and the third(right front) showing wear because of a toe in issue and good for the trainer). $45.00

- Schwalbe Marathon Plus 406/20x1.75 (3) Brand New. $125.00

- Schwalbe Marathon PLus 700x28c (2) Brand New. $100.00

- ICE Adventure HD 20" HardTail with rack, used. $250.00

Photos on request. 

7

Gear Talk / Re: Tire availability

« on: January 18, 2014, 12:29:46 am »

A better bet would be the Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires.  Q Tubes.  With some of Schwalbe’s Doc Blue put in the tubes will have you almost flawless.

BikeTiresDirect sells the Schwalbe Marathon Plus for $52 each.  MSRP of $59.  Don't know what Q tubes are, but bet they are expensive.  Some folks, including me, are cheap when it comes to buying bike parts.  Spending nearly $60 for a bicycle tire isn't something I will ever do.  Those $20 WalMart 700C tires look pretty good.

Agree, WalMart would be cheaper, but.....  then is it going to be the most bang for your buck, if they do not perform or you end up buying several during the year.  I would rather get a piece of mind (from experience) having the Marathon Plus tires under me and not have to worry than to deal with something that will not hold up to touring especially in third world countries.  The Q's are a puncture resistant tube.  I have not used them, but they have been touted as the best thing under the sun, by Steve in TrikeAsylum.com

8

Gear Talk / Re: Which triple crankset will fit my bike?

« on: January 18, 2014, 12:25:14 am »

Shimano makes a 9 speed 12 x 36 cassette.  I am going to try that on my trike in a couple of months.  Changing out the 50-39-24 to a 52-39-24 to compensate for getting rid of the 11t.

If you need a 24x34 or 36 low gear, do you really need a 117 gear- inch high gear (52x12)?  Are you sure a 112 gear-inch high (50x12) wouldn't be enough?  After all, even 112" gives 34 mph at a 100 rpm cadence.

My average cadence is 80 rpm on the trike.  When I get into the flats or downhill and have the opportunity to get into the bigger ring, then I figure its at least a college try to look at the 52t.   I probably spend 98% of my time in the middle ring anyway. 

9

Gear Talk / Re: Which triple crankset will fit my bike?

« on: January 17, 2014, 03:31:45 pm »

Shimano makes a 9 speed 12 x 36 cassette.  I am going to try that on my trike in a couple of months.  Changing out the 50-39-24 to a 52-39-24 to compensate for getting rid of the 11t. 

10

Gear Talk / Re: Solar Panel - Yea or Nay?

« on: January 17, 2014, 10:04:46 am »

The solar panel is a bit iffy. I recently attempted to start a tour on the west coast in WA and OR using a very large solar panel that was to charge up a battery pack to power a C-PAP device. The panel was flexible enough to drape over my BOB trailer but because of cloudy, rainy and heavy woods, I was not able to get more than two or three hours run time on my C-PAP. The panel measured 21"x 30". Maybe it would have worked better east of the coastal mountains.

Definitely, not a fair comparison for a solar panel to charge that type of battery.  That being said, I quit using the C-Pap and went with a TAP3 mouth piece and have not looked back since.  Works great (ask my wife) and since it is similar to a mouth guard, no need to worry about batteries, hoses, noise, etc from a CPAP machine.  Also, the Goal Zero products worked great for me in keeping the battery packs charged, which in turn then charged the iPhone, Garmin at night while sleeping.

11

Gear Talk / Re: Tire availability

« on: January 17, 2014, 09:58:51 am »

A better bet would be the Schwalbe Marathon Plus tires.  Q Tubes.  With some of Schwalbe’s Doc Blue put in the tubes will have you almost flawless. 

12

Gear Talk / Re: Which triple crankset will fit my bike?

« on: January 17, 2014, 09:56:24 am »

I scanned through the responses and agree, keep it simple and just change out the chainrings.  If your triple is a 130BCD, you can change the rings out to a 50-39-24 combination which will still give you a good top end, and the middle (which I use 98% of the time) is a good compromise.  The 24t mated up to an 11-34 cassette will definitely help on the low end and climbing. 

13

Routes / Re: Routing Recommendations - NC (west to east) from VA, NC (north to south) to SC

« on: January 03, 2014, 09:45:45 am »

I appreciate the feedback!  My concern initially was time, running across the northern part of the state and then down the Outer Banks, which would appear to add 2 - 3 days of riding.  The other question was the availability of services on the northern section.  On one of the forums, a couple detailed riding this route and commented on the distances that they had to ride each day as well as the hills to get to a town or lodging.  Does the NC4 run pretty much the 158 across or does it meander on smaller roads?  Will have to double check and see if I have that map, order it or do any of you have the routing down that you could send me?  Traveling on a trike obviously poses a set of unique challenges in and of itself.  I will be ordering the ACA maps to help with the coastal run to SC.  What is the Mountain to Sea like?  Looks similar to the tentative route I was looking at though I obviously do not have the maps.

Found the NC4 and the distances that are posed would definitely stretch my limits at 75 miles a day.   Running east-west just south of the Virginia border all the way from the mountains to the coast, this 400-mile route gives you access to six state parks and several other recreation areas. You'll be able to explore areas such as Stone Mountain, Pilot Mountain and Hanging Rock State Parks, Hyco Reservoir, Kerr Lake and Lake Gaston Recreation Areas, Merchants Millpond State Park, and the Dismal Swamp and Currituck Sound areas. Campgrounds are spaced up to 75 miles apart and motels are scarce, so be prepared for some long days.   

14

Classifieds / WTB - Atlantic Coast maps 4 & 5

« on: December 27, 2013, 09:53:22 am »

Interested in buying the Atlantic Coast route maps 4 & 5, preferably the 2012 editions.  Thanks.

15

Routes / Routing Recommendations - NC (west to east) from VA, NC (north to south) to SC

« on: December 26, 2013, 09:30:13 am »

Planning stages for my ride across the US, from Cheyenne, WY, through NE, MO, IL, IN, KY, VA and then into NC and SC.  Most of the route is pretty straight forward, until I hit uncharted territory and working on a route that will take me across NC starting out in VA near the Breaks Interstate Park (ACA) and heading to my first destination at the Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, NC (Havelock), then onto the Marine Corps Base, Camp Lejeune, NC and then working my way south to the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island (Beaufort, SC area).   Any recommendations on routing through NC?

Currently setting up the routes using RideWithGPS.com, and checking routes with Google Maps, supplemented by AAA state maps. 

  Tentatively, I worked out from west to east:  Hwy 58 to 221 at Independence, Hwy 21 down to Elkin, Hwy 67 to Boonville, Hwy 601 to Mocksville, Hwy 64 to Apex, Hwy 55 south to Hwy 42 and then onto Hwy 70 into Havelock.  Issues seem to be in Goldsboro and New Bern as far as the mapping shows and the roadways.  Some of the route, I piece-mealed from the previous Cycle North Carolina events going from the mountains to the sea. 

I’ve read through several journals that Hwy 17 heading south to SC is probably not the best route and following ACA’s down into SC near Yemassee might be better and then taking 17, down to 21 into Beaufort.  I will be riding a ICE Adventure tadpole trike.  Not sure yet if I will be taking a trailer or panniers. 

Journal is: crazyguyonabike.com/doc/13329