Messages

1

General Discussion / Re: Newbie, just signed up for the TransAm tour!

« on: October 18, 2013, 01:56:47 pm »

Folks on these boards advised me to go East to West, instead of the reverse.

.....

Think backpacking stuff.  Think of each item, tent, Thermorest, sleeping bag, etc.  Get the absolute lightest you can afford.  I just bought a Big Agnes one man tent which weighs 1.75 lbs vs. my older two man tent at 5 lbs.  You have to think about taking the absolute minimum amount of stuff that is necessary, and get rid of the nice to have things. 

Thanks for the feedback. I signed up for the ACA TransAm group ride, which is East to West (which accommodates me, because I'm in Philadelphia.)

As for what gear to bring, good thoughts on minimizing. I've been trying to mentally identify what I need as absolutely necessary, versus nice to have, versus 'too heavy.'  I bought a nice "2 person" backpacking tent that is 5 lbs. I could get a 1.75 pound tent, but it would have cost me 3x as much. Gotta balance price with what that cost gets me.

One thing I'm going back and forth on is my camera. I have a nice DSLR that's not light (as DSLRs tend to be). But it feels like a missed opportunity to go on this trip and not take my best camera. I keep telling myself that I'm in super good shape, so I can handle the extra weight. But that weight does start to add up; a few ounces here, a pound there, and suddenly I'm carrying and extra 10 lbs!

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General Discussion / Re: Newbie, just signed up for the TransAm tour!

« on: October 18, 2013, 01:49:05 pm »

Actually you can use your carbon roadie with a BOB trailer.  People do it all the time.  I did the Southern Tier in 2005 with a Trek 5200.

Thanks for the tips. I gave some serious consideration to doing just that. I love my Fuji roadie, and can ride it day in and day out. However, I don't think carbon is suited for a 3 month trip like this. I have this paranoia of taking a minor spill and cracking the frame. Or some other trivial incident that otherwise damages the carbon and subsequently ends my trip early. The other factor is that its set up for racing, and even if I swap out for a compact crank, it's still not optimum for fully loaded climbing.  I'll do better to just buy a properly suited bike. I'm looking at the Surly Disk Trucker. Surly Trucker has good reviews, is in my price range, and I like the idea of the disk breaks for more reliability on the downhills. (Though I'm not trying to derail this into a strictly bike choice discussion.)

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General Discussion / Re: Newbie, just signed up for the TransAm tour!

« on: October 18, 2013, 11:00:42 am »

John, thanks for the feedback, albeit not very constructive.
I'm already committed to the tour, so it's happening. It's also 7 months away, and I plan to do some 'weekend touring' in the interim to field test my gear, get in some rides, etc.

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General Discussion / Newbie, just signed up for the TransAm tour!

« on: October 18, 2013, 09:21:31 am »

Howdy gang,

I just signed up for the TransAm tour and am really excited for the ride.
http://www.adventurecycling.org/guided-tours/self-contained-tours/2014-transam/
This is going to be my first bike tour, so I’m certainly jumping right into the deep end.

Originally I was inspired by a friend who rode cross-country several years ago and blogged the experience. Ever since, I’ve wanted to do it as well. Circumstances have come together to make 2014 the year it will finally happen.
There’s still a lot I have to do; buy a touring bike (can’t ride 4k on my carbon roadie!), get some gear, break in the bike, figure out tips & tricks I wouldn’t even think to ask… and lots more.
Right now, I feel both competent and a little overwhelmed. There’s no question I can handle this physically (I’m in very good shape), but logistically, I don’t know what I don’t know.

I don’t have specific questions (yet) so if anyone wants to chime in with thoughts, experiences, advice or just a ‘how do you do?’, please feel free!

Cheers,
Aaron

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General Discussion / Re: shipping bikes

« on: October 16, 2013, 11:31:17 am »

How much does it generally cost to ship a bike (roughly)? I'm looking at coast to coast shipping. 
Do I need to provide my own box/carrier?