Messages

1

General Discussion / Re: Bike Tour Birth Control

« on: January 24, 2011, 02:00:49 am »

Just make him carry all the stuff so he's too tired at the end of a day to have sex

On a serious note, my girlfriend used Nuva Ring on a trip we did, and it messed with her pretty badly. We ran with condoms.

2

Gear Talk / Re: Anyone been touring on the Salsa Vaya yet?

« on: January 16, 2011, 04:30:56 am »

I work for a Salsa dealer here in Sydney, and while I have had no experience touring on one, I have a bunch of regular customers who have, and I have a lot of experience setting them up.

 The easiest way to get around the slightly higher gearing is to switch to one of the new SRAM 2x10 cranksets, such as an X7 or X9 crank with a 26/39 set up. This, combined with Shimano's 12-36 '29er?' cassette gives LOADS of low gears. Yes you lose your top end, but you don't need to change shifters or front derailleurs.

 All the Vaya's we recieved here is Australia came standard with a fork equipped with low-rider mounts. There are some racks that will, and some that won't work so easily with a disc set-up.... I am eagerly anticipating Salsa's own front rack that is designed specifically for disc lowrider touring.....

 Adam
 

3

Gear Talk / Re: Another Fargo Build - Trekking Bar style

« on: January 16, 2011, 04:20:28 am »

Congratulations man, that is a nice bicycle....

 I've had my Fargo for almsot 2 years, and it has been rock solid. Easily my favourite bike. Don't worry too much about part in compatibility. Pads last for ages with disc brakes (i have changed once in the whole time I have had the bike) and there have been a few times when I have needed to stretch a 26 inch tube into my tyre as a spare (it's MUCH easier than you think). Tape a spare rotor to the inside wall of your pannier bag and you're good....

 Have fun

4

General Discussion / Silk Road.

« on: January 14, 2011, 07:34:34 am »

 Wow. Came across this on the bikepacking forums...... Enjoy.

 http://www.cyclingsilk.com/index.html

 Adam

5

General Discussion / Re: BEST ADVICE EVER

« on: January 11, 2011, 06:56:08 am »

 Well, a friend of mine that used to live in the Australian state of Queensland once told me to never stay overnight in the town of Mossman. I stopped there for a leak, and realised why.... Most aggression filled atmosphere of anywhere I have ever been.

 Tips like that keep your bike from getting stolen, or worse.

 P.S. If you come to Australia, don't stop in Mossman Qld

6

General Discussion / Re: What about your Bike??????

« on: January 03, 2011, 06:22:11 am »

 I store all the stuff (Bob trailer bag or panniers) under the vestible of my tent, then usually lock the trailer to the bike (or the bike to itself) in some way that would make it uber hard to walk of with, at least without making a huge amount of noise. Like trailer upright against the bike or the front wheel of the bike turned right around and locked against the frame...... Makes me sleep well

7

General Discussion / Re: camera choice

« on: January 03, 2011, 06:05:02 am »

 No Shakespeare, it's my surname..... Google me and you may find this - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=II9dYmgW1Xs

 Retired from trials now though, just doing huge off road touring miles

8

General Discussion / Re: camera choice

« on: January 02, 2011, 12:56:56 am »

I have a Canon Ixus 130 IS that I carry with me everywhere.... Picture quality is awesome, very easy to use and a great size. I take a LOT of pics whilst rolling and they always come out just as I remember seeing the valley/mountains/girl I was looking at.... The nice thing with Canon too, as I understand it, is that you are not restricted to using their proprietry batteries etc, and it should be easy to find accessories in most places....

 http://www.canon.com.au/en-au/For-You/Digital-Cameras/IXUS-Digital-Cameras/130IS-Camera

 Very highly recommend this camera

Adam

9

General Discussion / Re: photography and cycling

« on: December 11, 2010, 05:47:42 am »

I carry a Canon Ixus in my handlebar bag. For a handheld it takes awesome pics, and having it accessible means I take a lot of photos while I am riding..... My girlfriend has a 7D which she brings along, but it mostly comes out at lunch/when we get where we're going for the day

10

Gear Talk / Long Two-Person Trip Tent

« on: December 03, 2010, 10:08:50 pm »

 Hey Guys,

 Just seeking some opinions on tent options.....

 Planning a year+ long trip with my girlfriend, and my VERY cosy, but very light 2 person tent we have used for smaller trips just isn't going to cut it.

 I figure I won't mind something a little heavier as we'll be sharing the load this time around (instead of me carrying the bulk of stuff) so I dont need to go CRAZY light.... I also have the ability to get MSR tents at trade price through work. So.....

 http://cascadedesigns.com/en/msr/tents/basecamp-tents/mo-room-3p/product

 or

 http://cascadedesigns.com/en/msr/tents/fast-and-light-tents/carbon-reflex-3/product

 Or any other ideas you have......

 Never been on a longer-than-a-month trip before and would be interested to hear opinions on the 'liveability' of lighter tents long term....

 Thanks,

 Adam

11

General Discussion / Re: Comments on Schwinn World Tour DLX

« on: November 12, 2010, 04:41:22 am »

Well, while I am not familiar with that particular model, it must be said that Schwinn are not the bike company they used to be..... Cycling sports group purchased them and have been moulding them into their 'comfort' brand, wih loads of beach cruisers and such....

 They don't have a single mountain bike anymore that I would trust for heavy use, and they used to have loads of dependable, even world level race worthy bikes....

 I would steer clear of Schwinn myself, based purely on current reputation.... i love Salsa's. Get yourself a Vaya



 

12

General Discussion / Re: Touring Nutrition

« on: October 27, 2010, 07:50:08 am »

I have had the same issues before, but have got my daily meals pretty sorted and find it less of an issue....

 Breakfast I have some kind of muesli with a bunch of dried fruit and brown sugar. I find that the fruit and brown sugar don end up straight in your system, and you get a few more mles out of your breakfast. I do a lot of endurance racing too and this breakfast is awesome for hundred mile mountain bike epics.

 I would always find that after two or three days on the bike I'd get a huge craving for salami. So now I make sure I am always carrying around some nice aged peice of that delicious fatty sausage. Keeps for ages too. That, some nice bread and some cheese is a lunch that'll keep you going for hours.

 Generally a massive pasta eater for dinner.

 That and sacking on dried fruit, nuts and something sweet like cookies, jellies during the ride tends to kep me going, and I don't find I lose weight, even when I am pushing pretty hard.

13

General Discussion / Re: BIG touring bike Photo Gallery

« on: October 12, 2010, 09:58:54 pm »

Let me know if you need help with anything for your trip here Tony... I am based in Sydney and work at one of the city's best bike shops.

14

International / Re: Request Info on Touring in Japan

« on: October 07, 2010, 02:33:55 am »

Was just tidying up my bookmarked pages and came across this too mate, not sure if it helps.....

 http://javageno.blogspot.com/2008/11/tips-on-cycling-japan.html

15

General Discussion / Re: BIG touring bike Photo Gallery

« on: October 06, 2010, 08:37:54 am »

 Yes the trailers vs. panniers thing is interesting. Here in Australia, a Bob is generally first choice, especially as there is loads of great dirt road/off road touring, you generally end up carrying a substantial amount of water and they just ride better for that......

 I sent you a pic of my set up from a recent trip - trailer, rear panniers and tent on top (definitely WAY more load than a lot of bikes with front panniers.... Poses an interesting question as to just how loaded 'Fully Loaded' is......

 My bosses Dad rode around Australia at the age of 72. 11 months, front and rear panniers AND a Bob (which carried a LOT of water). I'll try to find a pic......