Messages

16

Gear Talk / Re: Gearing for Touring Bike

« on: July 12, 2015, 09:10:11 am »

I have 26" wheels, 26x32 is my lowest gear. Would it be best to go with a 22" in the front?

26" wheels kind of implies you are using a mountain bike for touring.  Fine. 

No the OP could be the owner of Surly LHT or a Co-Motion Pangea, they both come in 26".  As for gearing, we found that a 38 front and 17 rear seem to work just perfect giving you plenty of range for flats and the most demanding climbs.     

17

Gear Talk / Re: Recommendations for Long Sleeved Jerseys & Tights for Sun Protection

« on: July 11, 2015, 07:21:16 am »

You're welcome Lachlan. I picked up a pair of Scottish made Endura Hummer 3/4 shorts while cycling through Avimore back in Oct 2014 and have only been wearing them since. The pair I have are a little thick for extreme hot weather, but I see Endura makes a thin pair so they are on my want list. The inner shorts are ok if you wear padded shorts, I personally find it more comfortable to just wear plain old underwear than cycling shorts.

Cheers!

18

Gear Talk / Re: Touring without fenders - big mistake?

« on: July 10, 2015, 11:37:56 pm »

Would not leave home without them.

19

Gear Talk / Re: Recommendations for Long Sleeved Jerseys & Tights for Sun Protection

« on: July 10, 2015, 11:33:47 pm »

Our suggestion would be to go with a long sleeve made from Merino wool. Wear a Buff made from Merino wool around your neck and on dusty days you also use it to cover your nose and mouth. Get yourself a thin lose fitting pair of 3/4 pants and you're set. :-)

The Merino stuff (i.e. Smartwool, Ibex, Ice Breaker, etc...) is great because you can wear it for several days and it will not stink, unlike that silly made for bicycle clothing that stinks to high heaven after one use. Plus Merino wool absorbs a lot and dries really fast. Been wearing this stuff for commuting and touring for several years and swear by it. :-)

20

Gear Talk / Re: Touring Bike Selection

« on: July 10, 2015, 11:21:53 pm »

If I can be of any assistance please let me know. We own 4 Co-Motion bikes, 2 Pangea Rohloff and 2 Nor'Wester Tours (now called Cascadia) all 4 have bikes have S&S couplers.

We just recently completed traveling for 769 days 28 countries, 14 US states on our Pangeas. In the past we have done several fully loaded short tours in Europe riding our Nor'Wester Tours. We can understand your hesitation with buying a bike without being able to "test" ride it. We had the same issue and to add to that there were maybe one or two reviews out there. If we keep our Nor'Westers they will only be for commuting now. Although they are great touring bikes, they can not carry the weight like the Pangea, plus our Pangeas are Rohloff and once you've ridden a Rohloff you will not want to go back. 769 days in all types of conditions and not one single issue or adjustment needed, other than doing the oil change a couple times on the Rohloff.

As for the Surly and Trek, sure they are fine bikes and many have made it around the world too, but they're not made in the USA. This is our personal choice, but we go out of our way to not buy stuff made in China and if you look hard enough you can find a lot of items made elsewhere. Nomads look to be like pretty stout bikes and we came across a few of them during our travels, but they too are made in China/Taiwan, so no thanks. We also came across many Koga brands, they are very popular in Europe and they seem pretty good too and I believe they are made in Holland, but I think they are aluminum frames. 

Buying a Co-Motion is expensive but the quality is top shelf, it's built by craftsman and not machines or some poor sap making a few dollars a day in miserable conditions, and it helps keep a US builder in business.

I personally would not buy a Cascadia or Americano unless you plan to stick to mostly paved roads. The largest tire for either bike with fenders installed is a 35c and that is not big enough for extended gravel or dirt or mud. With the Divide or Pangea you can run much larger tires with fenders and they provide a much smoother ride over the rough stuff. Just remember with the larger tires comes added weight.

If you have any questions shoot me an email at pedalpowertouring(at)gmail(dot)com

Ron

Photo:Vietnam looking back at the mountains we came down the night before in the dark.

21

General Discussion / Re: Cycling Around the World, but.........

« on: March 03, 2015, 01:56:58 am »

Hello Stephen, thank you. Our blog is about 2 months behind but we we are working on getting updated. I'll send you an email with the plugin about the map that we use.

Ron

22

Gear Talk / Re: flat pedal shoe combination for all day comfort¡?¡?¡?¡?¡?¡

« on: March 03, 2015, 12:04:09 am »

We have over 7000 miles cycling with MKS Lambda pedals and Power Grip straps. About 5000 of those miles were done while wearing hiking boots and the last 2000ish have been done wearing plain old tennis shoes.

23

General Discussion / Re: Question About Minimum Stay Requirements

« on: March 02, 2015, 11:58:51 pm »

I've often found that campgrounds have more flexible rules for bicycle tourists.  I stayed in some RV oriented sites that do not allow car campers, but DO welcome bicycle tourists. 

I wish we could say the same thing; however, our experience so far crossing through Arizona and New Mexico has been anything but RV friendly places and the couple private campgrounds that will allow tenters are asking stupid prices ($30 to $60) to pitch a tent. If you're not afraid to camp out in the desert it's free, quiet, and very beautiful.

24

General Discussion / Re: Cycling Around the World, but.........

« on: March 02, 2015, 11:51:32 pm »

Our advice is to be flexible and take it day by day. Your route and your plans will change as you roll down the road, at least this has been our experience, so be prepared for that. Next week marks 2 years on the road and it has been an amazing journey. Currently cycling across the great southwest of America back to our home in Florida. Good luck and have fun. Will we ever do it again... Heck yeah without a doubt.... but first we need to earn more freedom credits. ;-)

25

General Discussion / Re: Southern Tier Tour(self sustained) this fall

« on: January 05, 2015, 10:56:41 am »

I can't remeber the name but there's a website that has a list of trips of women currently cycling solo as well as links to blogs if they have one.   If you'd like some inspiration Google to find the site.

http://www.skalatitude.com/p/about.html
http://www.skalatitude.com/p/wow-women-on-wheels.html


We hosted Barbara when she cycled across Florida. She was about 9 months (June 2012) into her trip and now she is about to complete her journey and be back home in Vienna. Amazing young lady.
http://caretaker.cc/barbels-blog/

Other females that have cycled long distance solo.
http://thatemilychappell.com
http://cyclingdutchgirl.com

26

General Discussion / Re: Southern Tier Tour(self sustained) this fall

« on: January 05, 2015, 10:40:33 am »

Generally, you are safe alone. You must understand this country is riddled with crime and there are no guarantees. The fact is anything can happen at any time. Being alone on a bike with all those drivers passing you puts you in eyesight of a great many more people than would see you in a car. In a car only those going faster than you get a look. On a bike just about everybody passes you. A loaded touring bike attracts attention at stops and on the boulevard. There are psychopaths, drunks, crack heads, inexperienced drivers, and the impaired elderly out there cruising around. Weeks ago a cyclist was stabbed to death at McDonalds in Vero Beach, Florida by a mentally ill homeless man. There was no reason whatsoever for the attack. Cycling cross country means many stops at C-stores, restaurants and other places for food and drink. You are generally safe. Be vigilant. Trust your senses and hunches. If he looks suspicious or sinister, he probably is. Beware of anyone who will not give you a last name or proof of it. Be very vigilant at any truck stop. Serial murderers working as long haul truckers have abducted and killed many women. Most if not almost every one of the women were prostitutes. There is a website about this by the FBI. You should be safe. Do not throw caution to the wind. Be careful and aware.

This is some funny stuff right here!! 

Hey,

I am thinking about doing the southern tier either starting in jan or feb going east to west (all ready bought the maps!!!!) But for any of those who are doing it/ done it, Do you think it is relatively safe to do it alone?  If I do it alone are there any precautions you would take?

-Rachel

Rachel go enjoy your ride. Seriously!! Maybe our paths will cross as we will be returning stateside after 23ish months away traveling the world. We plan on returning in Jan/Feb from Vietnam to California and cycling back home to Florida. Currently on the road for 22 months and have yet to come across a single crackhead (haha), serial murdering long haul truck driver (although we did meet a German truck driver in Finland that offered us a ride to Sweden) or crazy jihadist that wanted to cause us harm. Quite the opposite to be honest!

27

Routes / Re: Looking for Riders: Southern Tier East to West Starting February

« on: January 05, 2015, 09:55:49 am »

I'm kind of keen to go it alone, but my poor mother claims I'm going to give her a heart attack, and I don't mind company.

Tell your wonderful Mom that you're going to be fine. Been on the road for more than 20 months and the world is full of wonderful and amazing folks. My advice is go alone unless you have a proven cycling partner to cycle with that you get along with. We may cross paths as we will be returning stateside in Jan/Feb 2015 from Vietnam and making our way from Cali to FL.

Enjoy your trip!

28

Gear Talk / Re: Rohloff Hubs

« on: December 24, 2014, 10:37:17 am »

More than 11,000 miles/18+ months/27 countries of touring in all types of conditions on our Rohloff hubs and not one issue, not even an adjustment needed.

Yeah I am a Rohloff "lover"! Can't wait to purchase another one and convert my 29er SS back home into a 29er Rohloff Bikepacking beast when/if I should ever return home from seeing the world. :-)

29

Gear Talk / Re: Looking for a good touring shoe.

« on: November 22, 2014, 09:24:41 am »

This year, we cycled from Germany down to the very bottom of Greece, then all the way up to Nordkapp, Norway before cycling back to Germany wearing hiking boots! Sent our boots home and are now wearing worn out tennis shoes as we cycle around SE Asia. 

30

General Discussion / Re: Schwalbe Mondial vs Marathon Plus Tour

« on: November 22, 2014, 09:05:52 am »

We just replaced our Mondials before leaving Europe for Southeast Asia.

18 months and nearly 10,000 miles on all types of terrain and only two flats.