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1

Routes / Re: The Great Divide MBR with kids on Hase Pino Tandems

« on: August 15, 2020, 10:21:50 am »

Thanks for the information and suggestions John!
We have cycled in remote locations too, for example in the West of China at up to 4800m altitude, so we are not unfamiliar with remoteness and rough terrain. I believe good preparation is the key to success. Bear preparations would definitely be on the checklist for any camping trip to the USA.
If there are parts that are too tough or rough, we can always take alternative routes that are easier: our goal is not to stick to the official route as much as possible, but to have an awesome cycling holiday. I'm surprised you suggest the Flathead alternative: I had found in some logs that some parts of that are challenging single track paths. Is that not the case in your experience? In any case, we would always be flexible on the route when conditions require.

We'd definitely stick to the part North of Denver, because of the limitations to travel outside of the school holidays with the kids, which are 6 weeks in July and August.

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Routes / The Great Divide MBR with kids on Hase Pino Tandems

« on: August 15, 2020, 06:49:18 am »

Hi all,

I would like to hear your thoughts on the possibility on doing part of the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route (GDMBR) on our tandems with kids, especially the suitability of our bikes to drive on the rough terrain of the route. The plan would be to do it in one of the next few years.

My wife and I have done cycling holidays for about 20 years now, the last 4 trips with our kids, who are now 4 and 6 years old. Before we had kids we cycled in Europe, Asia and Australia. With kids, we cycled from our home in the Netherlands to Paris (750 km), from Nantes to Biarritz (900 km), to Prague (1300 km) and we just return from our latest trip from home to Berlin via the German coast (1400km). We ride Hase Pino tandems where the kids sit in a recumbent seat in the front. They can paddle along if they want to. We do between 50-110km per day. Ideally we liked to do 60-80km on the average terrain to Berlin, which was about 30-40% off-road.

I attached a picture of the Hase Pino bikes we use.

The last trip to Berlin had a lot of off-road tracks: coarse and fine gravel, cobblestones, concrete slabs even a few kilometers of loose sand. We really enjoyed the off-road parts which reinvigorated my interest in one day doing the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route with our kids on our Pino bikes.

There are obviously a lot of practical challenges, the biggest challenge might be food and the rough surface - depending on how rough it actually is. The front wheel of the Pino bike is 20", the rear wheel is 26". The front wheel is suspended, but the stroke is limited and it is quite stiff. Driving big cobblestones or very rough gravel / rock roads is quite strenuous.

So my question #1 is: how bumpy is it the GDMBR? Are the gravel roads mostly fine gravel? Or is it more rock roads where you're thrown around all the time? Are there parts of the GDMBR where it is better and parts where it is worse? The current plan is to start in Banff and do about 900-1200km, at 40-60km per day.

Question #2 is on food: what do people eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner on the more remote stretches?  Can you buy porridge and milk powder in the shops underway? Flour to make pancakes? What's for dinner?

If you have any other suggestions about riding the GDMBR with kids, please let me know.

Thanks!
Bas