Messages

31

Gear Talk / Re: Touring capable road bike

« on: June 23, 2020, 03:12:29 pm »

First a couple questions.  What kind of touring are you and your wife planning to do?  There's a big difference between B&B tours (load is rain gear and a couple sets of clothes), supported tours (rain gear and sunscreen), and fully loaded touring (cooking and camping gear).  Next, what kind of terrain are you going to ride?  Towpath, rail-trail, or Florida may give you much wider gearing latitude than Appalachian hill climbs.

It's getting pretty hard to find a road bike that's not a loaded touring bike, with 20 gear inch lows.  Brifters on a triple are either Sora or NOS (i.e., hard to find).  Also, if you load any bike up, it won't feel like a tri bike. 

32

Routes / Re: Heading out of South Florida (Broward County) north.

« on: June 21, 2020, 04:19:01 pm »

P.S. Remember that if you ask 10 people for their opinion, you will probably get 10 different answers.

No, I think that's 11 different answers. 

Re: the different sites.  Remember (as in, never forget) crazyguy is a private site.  If you disagree with the proprietor, don't do it on  that site.  Best advice I neglected was to use CGOAB for the trip journals, and don't participate in the forum there.  It's easier to post a cycling journal on CGOAB than anyplace else I know.

You might also want to check out the Touring section of bikeforums.net.  Many of the same people here participate at bf as well, but there's less emphasis on Adventure Cycling routes over there.

33

General Discussion / Re: Lube when long distance touring

« on: June 13, 2020, 04:49:13 pm »

That DuMonde sounds really great.  After reading about it on their site I was about to go get my billfold so I could order some.  Then I noticed the three bottles of chain lube I already have in the back room, and remembered the bottles I'm actively using in the garage...  At this rate I'll need more chain lube sometime after 2025.  Maybe '28.

Hey, the stuff is usually cheaper when I've been browsing a new bike shop than a pair of gloves!

34

General Discussion / Re: Lube when long distance touring

« on: June 12, 2020, 08:38:15 am »

If you're going to be riding longer than a week, or if you get rained on, you'll need to be prepared to re-lube.

Paper napkins (grab a few extra from the diner at lunch) do well for wiping the chain down.  I've learned that T-9 creates a nasty build-up if you don't wipe the chain thoroughly after application, but it will persist through a light shower.  If you're touring in arid areas, you might use a lighter lube. 

35

Routes / Re: Southern Tier in Sep -- Plan B

« on: June 06, 2020, 11:23:25 pm »

FWIW, I believe Alaska still has a 14 day quarantine requirement for people coming into the state.

If OP can stand to wait a couple more weeks, the desert heat starts easing in September.  Mid to late September might be a reasonable start from the west of the ST.  (Plus, you'd have a few months to wind up hurricane season in the Gulf.)

36

General Discussion / Re: "Least amount of car traffic"

« on: June 01, 2020, 08:34:17 am »

It's funny, though.  In my neck of the woods there are traffic-phobes who are raising money to create future rail-trails, while the USBRS folks in my state won't consider the future designation of anything but highways with shoulders as a state bike route.  The reality on the ground is we have an existing thatch of quiet, paved country lanes that no one is promoting.  Shrug.

At least the USBRS planners near you have the sense to insist on shoulders!  The southern end of one USBRS near me ends with a five-mile jog to ride a U.S. highway with a lot of traffic but without shoulders for some 3-4 miles to the state line.  Uphill.  I tried it once, and I've sworn not to risk my life on it again.  I'll stay on the not-quite-zero traffic road climbing the same escarpment that has shade.

37

Food Talk / Re: Eating well on tour.

« on: May 25, 2020, 11:54:53 am »

I agree with you on the cost -- you can often eat at a diner (and interact with the locals) for about the price of a freeze dried meal.  And the diner tastes a whole lot better!

But on the salt thing, I once described a baked potato on tour as a salt delivery vehicle.  I found I needed to concentrate on getting enough salt (along with fluids and carbs) to deal with long, hot days in the saddle.  One of my enjoyable memories from my first tour is sitting down with my daughter in a restaurant, taking a bite, and both of us reached for the salt shaker.  It's kind of like how tight do you torque a bolt: shake, taste, shake some more, and when it tastes too salty, don't put that last shake of salt on next time.

38

General Discussion / Re: Stopping vs Rolling Thru Stop Signs ??

« on: May 24, 2020, 04:58:18 pm »

hikerjer, where do you live?  I think I need to write your state Chamber of Commerce to let them know I'll find another state to vacation if any of that goes through -- with a note of how much I've spend in a couple of states...

39

Gear Talk / Re: Aurora or Aurora Elite? and frame size question for short rider

« on: May 24, 2020, 04:54:45 pm »

What claims are you speaking of?

I thought that was fairly obvious from my previous quote of your post:

If you are wanting to tour I would go with the Elite, however having said that either of the Aurora's are really only light touring bikes, they are not really adequate for long distance touring, though they are very nice looking bikes.  The Elite has the 105 components and they are very durable components, but they are road components as is the Sora, and not intended for carry heavy loads up mountain roads like the Deore.

I could think of several bases for saying the Auroras were "not intended for carry[ing] heavy loads up mountain roads, and so I thought it was better to ask why you made those claims.  I'm glad to hear you were just concerned with the gearing.  I generally agree with that concern; if you'd added that to your first post I'd not have commented on it.

In the present thread, I'm not sure gearing is a major concern for (a) commuting, (b) gradually longer recreational rides, and (c) shorter credit card or camping tours.  Absent steep climbs while heavily loaded, I suspect many riders can manage touring on road bikes.  And if it's still possible to put a smaller chain ring on 2018 105 crank, even that difficulty goes away.  Perhaps I'm guilty of short people-ism, but I wouldn't be surprised if ianraff starts touring with a total load (bike, rider, and gear) that's half of what I started my first cross-country tour weighed.

Froze, congratulations on buying you Marrakesh; I hope it serves your well.  You are putting lots of miles on it to get ready for your tour, right?

40

Connecting ACA Routes / Re: Tri-cities Washington state

« on: May 23, 2020, 02:37:55 pm »

...and if you don't want to follow the Missouri all the way east, you can take the L&C to Missoula, MT, and either take the Trans America east (south) from there, or make a two-day jog north to the Northern Tier.

41

Gear Talk / Re: Aurora or Aurora Elite? and frame size question for short rider

« on: May 23, 2020, 02:35:41 pm »

What will you be using this bike for?  Touring I assume because this is a touring forum?

If you are wanting to tour I would go with the Elite, however having said that either of the Aurora's are really only light touring bikes, they are not really adequate for long distance touring, though they are very nice looking bikes.  The Elite has the 105 components and they are very durable components, but they are road components as is the Sora, and not intended for carry heavy loads up mountain roads like the Deore.

This is all OBE (Overcome By Events) since OP bought the bike already.  But I'm curious, what basis do you have for these claims?

42

Gear Talk / Re: Aurora or Aurora Elite? and frame size question for short rider

« on: May 21, 2020, 08:26:43 am »

Congratulations on the new bike, I hope you enjoy riding it many, many miles.

Now that you've got yours, where did you get it?  And do they have some in really big sizes left?? 

43

General Discussion / Re: "Least amount of car traffic"

« on: May 20, 2020, 04:28:07 pm »

My response is tempered by a surprising number of people (surprising to me, at least) who have an incredible fear of riding on road! with traffic!  While I'm fine riding on city streets to get out into the country at home, or riding through towns and (small) cities on tour, I've encountered other cyclists who seem traumatized by the experience.  Some will say, "That truck blew right by my elbow!" when that truck gave them six feet while passing; or "The woman in that white SUV was honking all the time she was passing me!" when there was a polite, but unexpected, toot from 30 feet back.

The result is that such cyclists limit themselves to 100 miles here, or 100 miles there, where trails such as the ones jamawami listed exist.  Then they want to do a cross-USA trip, and can't believe there's not a network of separate bike facilities all the way across Kentucky, Missouri, and Montana, to name a few TransAm states.

ACA seems to be feeding this impression with their stated goals for fund-raising.  Perhaps they can get a route designated through Pike Co., KY (to pick on one example), but I can't imagine a grade-separated bike route through that county (or several others I could name) in my lifetime, or my childrens' lifetimes.  IIRC, Adventure Cyclist had an article touting 40,000 miles of bike paths across the U.S -- 40 years ago!  And some people, usually from wealthy states or areas, believe it's in place now.

I feel sorry for such people.  Their absolute refusal to adapt to conditions other than what they have at home leads them to miss experiencing, well, conditions other than what they have at home; which is the point of bike touring, at least to me.

44

Gear Talk / Re: Aurora or Aurora Elite? and frame size question for short rider

« on: May 20, 2020, 09:48:58 am »

I was going to say the standard for the lower gearing.  But as DaveB points out, if you're not averse to swapping the granny for a decent size ring, that'll be a moot point.

Re: sizing, you may be able to get test rides (depending on where your bike shop is and local restrictions, of course).  Some of my local shops are allowing one test ride at a time, by appointment.  (They can wipe everything down in between test rides that way.)  You might be able to test ride the 47 and the next size up (49? 51?) on adjacent appointments, or one a day.

45

General Discussion / Re: Stopping vs Rolling Thru Stop Signs ??

« on: May 18, 2020, 01:12:27 pm »

Troll-ometer: 8 out of 10.