151
Gear Talk / Re: Folding tires
« on: January 30, 2012, 07:59:18 pm »
Russ -- that's a really great point. Thanks.
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152
Gear Talk / Re: Folding tires
« on: January 29, 2012, 10:12:46 am »
I usually carry a small roll of duct tape. It's versatile, small, and light. Could this be another use? Maybe one could fold it over on itself, sticky sides together, and use that as a boot.
153
Gear Talk / Re: Novara Randonee
« on: January 18, 2012, 12:59:33 pm »
I agree with the other advice given, but ...
Personally, I would never buy a bike unless I first rode it at least several miles. When I bought the bike I'm riding now, I rode 4 bikes. All were well known. All were touring bikes. Three of them were fine. I thought the fourth was twitchy to the point of being unstable. All four bikes had good specs and good reviews, but that fourth bike was not a good bike for me.
Don't tour on a new bike. Get several hundred miles on it first. My bike is a Trek 520. They are tanks. Lots of people like them. But my bike shop told me of one time he had to emergency ship a new wheel to a customer that went on a tour on his brand new Trek. You'll never know unless you put some miles on it first.
Personally, I would never buy a bike unless I first rode it at least several miles. When I bought the bike I'm riding now, I rode 4 bikes. All were well known. All were touring bikes. Three of them were fine. I thought the fourth was twitchy to the point of being unstable. All four bikes had good specs and good reviews, but that fourth bike was not a good bike for me.
Quote
Didn't take me three days to break my first spoke.
Don't tour on a new bike. Get several hundred miles on it first. My bike is a Trek 520. They are tanks. Lots of people like them. But my bike shop told me of one time he had to emergency ship a new wheel to a customer that went on a tour on his brand new Trek. You'll never know unless you put some miles on it first.
154
Gear Talk / Re: Folding tires
« on: January 08, 2012, 06:37:53 pm »
Thanks for the replies. As always, this group has forgotten more about touring than I will ever know. 
I am buying 3 tires, including a spare. My takeaway is that it doesn't make much difference. I found out the bike store has these folding tires in stock. I suspect the owner is willing to cut me a deal because they're slow movers.
I understand the comments about a spare not being necessary on this tour, but:
-- I've never booted a tire. I've read some stories. I've seen some pictures. But sometimes the first time doesn't work so well.
-- There's about a day where the route is in the middle of nowhere. Even under these circumstances, it's easy to get emergency help, but it can be $$$.
-- Since this is my first tour, I would rather be safe than sorry.
-- My weight won't be a problem. I'm not taking cooking supplies and only enough food for an emergency snack. I have a fantasy of stopping at diners and meeting cool people. Besides, if I'm serious about reducing weight, I need to start with my waist.
I am buying 3 tires, including a spare. My takeaway is that it doesn't make much difference. I found out the bike store has these folding tires in stock. I suspect the owner is willing to cut me a deal because they're slow movers.
I understand the comments about a spare not being necessary on this tour, but:
-- I've never booted a tire. I've read some stories. I've seen some pictures. But sometimes the first time doesn't work so well.
-- There's about a day where the route is in the middle of nowhere. Even under these circumstances, it's easy to get emergency help, but it can be $$$.
-- Since this is my first tour, I would rather be safe than sorry.
-- My weight won't be a problem. I'm not taking cooking supplies and only enough food for an emergency snack. I have a fantasy of stopping at diners and meeting cool people. Besides, if I'm serious about reducing weight, I need to start with my waist.
155
Gear Talk / Re: Bike saddle issues
« on: January 08, 2012, 09:51:22 am »
Saddles can be so tricky. For the last two years, I've been using a Brooks. No problems, until a couple of months ago. After weeks of one ride -- discomfort -- off the bike for several days, I checked the saddle's level. It was the smallest bit nose down. I am normally picky about this. I guess it happened slowly over time and I just didn't notice it. I put it slightly nose up -- end of problem. The amount of difference for a very small adjustment is astounding.
156
Gear Talk / Folding tires
« on: January 07, 2012, 05:20:57 pm »
I hope to take my first tour this spring. It's nothing special for most of you folks -- Baltimore to Bangor -- but it's a big deal to me. I'm getting new Continental Gatorskins. The bike shop recommends folding tires. I understand the advantage of folding tires for spares, but he's recommending I get all folding tires. He was going through all the advantages of folding tires. When he was done, I was wondering why they make wire bead tires/ Are there any disadvantages to folding tires? I noticed the widest tires come only in wire bead (on at least one site).
157
Connecting ACA Routes / Atlantic Coast Route to Hermon, ME
« on: December 26, 2011, 04:29:58 pm »
I want to ride from Baltimore, MD to Hermon, ME in the late spring. Fortunately for me, the Atlantic Coast Route works great for that. But I don't know the roads in ME. I could take Rte 1A from Stockton Springs to the Hampden area, then pick up Coldbrook Rd to Hermon. Google bike seems to prefer smaller streets starting at Winterport. Or I could shoot up a series of back roads from Belfast. Is one of these better? Is there anything that's important to avoid?
158
Gear Talk / Re: Why internal hubs?
« on: July 30, 2011, 11:25:21 am »
If you're going to spend all that money, why stay with a chain? I have heard a belt drive doesn't need to be lubricated, doesn't come off the sprocket, and in general is more reliable with less maintenance.
159
Gear Talk / Re: Fitting a Brooks Saddle
« on: July 23, 2011, 03:57:26 pm »
Just to show how individual saddle fit is, my Brooks felt perfectly fine from day 2. I say from day 2 because on day 1 I applied a liberal amount of Proofhide on both the top and bottom (inside) of the saddle. It probably helped that I got it just before winter set in, so it had a couple of months for the proofhide to do whatever it does. You don't know how long you are riding. I typically do a short (1.5 hour) ride 3 to 5 days a week and a long ride (5 to 7 hours) once a week.
I have the same feeling of little friction from the saddle. I also found that I had too much weight on my hands. It has encouraged me to change my stance on the bike somewhat. The only way I can describe it is to say that it's a more active stance. Keeping my sits bones towards the back of the saddle keeps the pressure off my groin and my weight distributed between my feet and my sits bones. IMHO, keeping weight on the sits bones is a key in having a comfortable saddle. That's the part of our anatomy that was designed to take the weight. I also find it's important for me to keep my back straight.
I have another bike with a cheap saddle that also has always felt fine. Compared to the other bike, I find the Brooks is very sensitive to angle. The Brooks does not work very well if it is even a little bit "nose down".
I got a new bike, a new saddle and a professional fit all in the same day. I don't know how much the fit has to do with my comfort. It certainly didn't hurt. Using clipless peddles and shoes also helps, especially with the active stance.
I have the same feeling of little friction from the saddle. I also found that I had too much weight on my hands. It has encouraged me to change my stance on the bike somewhat. The only way I can describe it is to say that it's a more active stance. Keeping my sits bones towards the back of the saddle keeps the pressure off my groin and my weight distributed between my feet and my sits bones. IMHO, keeping weight on the sits bones is a key in having a comfortable saddle. That's the part of our anatomy that was designed to take the weight. I also find it's important for me to keep my back straight.
I have another bike with a cheap saddle that also has always felt fine. Compared to the other bike, I find the Brooks is very sensitive to angle. The Brooks does not work very well if it is even a little bit "nose down".
I got a new bike, a new saddle and a professional fit all in the same day. I don't know how much the fit has to do with my comfort. It certainly didn't hurt. Using clipless peddles and shoes also helps, especially with the active stance.
161
This is about more than just gear, but gear is part of the question so I decided to post here.
Until this year I avoided riding in the rain. I'll be on some short (2 to 4 day) tours in the coming months. Cold weather won't be a factor, but the dates are fixed; I have to be prepared to rid in the rain. We had a good shower this week (plenty of rain, not too cold, no lightening) and I took a short 45-minute ride. My brakes didn't work very well. After a quick forum search, I installed salmon Kool Stops. My REI Novara rain jacket worked quite well. I didn't feel the need for rain pants, but then again it was a short ride. My plastic shoes were fine, but my cotton socks soaked up the water right down to my toes. Taking care of the bike when I got home was easy, since I had a nice dry garage handy.
I'm finding I can't imagine how I would cope on the road and in a tent if it rains. I could bring a towel to wipe the bike down, but in the morning I would just have a wet towel to go with my wet bike. Wiping the bike down sounds futile if it's raining anyway. I can't imagine how I would lube the chain in the rain. How would my beloved Brooks saddle survive an overnight soaking? Are rain shoe covers useful, or do the feet just get too hot for comfort?
What are your suggestions for riding in the rain?
Until this year I avoided riding in the rain. I'll be on some short (2 to 4 day) tours in the coming months. Cold weather won't be a factor, but the dates are fixed; I have to be prepared to rid in the rain. We had a good shower this week (plenty of rain, not too cold, no lightening) and I took a short 45-minute ride. My brakes didn't work very well. After a quick forum search, I installed salmon Kool Stops. My REI Novara rain jacket worked quite well. I didn't feel the need for rain pants, but then again it was a short ride. My plastic shoes were fine, but my cotton socks soaked up the water right down to my toes. Taking care of the bike when I got home was easy, since I had a nice dry garage handy.
I'm finding I can't imagine how I would cope on the road and in a tent if it rains. I could bring a towel to wipe the bike down, but in the morning I would just have a wet towel to go with my wet bike. Wiping the bike down sounds futile if it's raining anyway. I can't imagine how I would lube the chain in the rain. How would my beloved Brooks saddle survive an overnight soaking? Are rain shoe covers useful, or do the feet just get too hot for comfort?
What are your suggestions for riding in the rain?
162
Gear Talk / Re: Gear Chainring
« on: April 29, 2011, 01:36:58 pm »
I had my 28 tooth chainring, swapped for a 24. I love the gearing, but I found that I occasionally drop the chain off the inside of the chainring when downshifting. My second chain-stop fixed the problem. The first one was too cheap -- it would rotate over time and stop working.
163
Gear Talk / Re: Handlebar bag
« on: February 11, 2011, 03:52:42 pm »
Thanks for your comments. I didn't realize that there was room for the GPS with Ortliebs (and Arkles). There's much to think about. I'm inclined to agree with waynemyer.
164
Gear Talk / Handlebar bag
« on: February 07, 2011, 07:05:13 pm »
I'm 62. I've been slowly working up to touring. I'm riding a Trek 520. Last year I was able to ride 65 miles once / week. This year, I plan to do several multi-day rides with some level of support. I will use a tent, but I'll be using restaurants for meals. I have identified most of the items in my touring kit, but I'm struggling with the handle bar bag. I plan to put my wallet, phone, etc in the handle bar bag. I was looking for a waterproof bag that "clips on" for secure mounting and easy removal. So far, the only bags I found are Ortleib and Banjo Brothers.
http://www.amazon.com/Banjo-Brothers-Waterproof-Quick-Release-Handlebar/dp/B003D4EYI4/ref=wl_it_dp_o?ie=UTF8&coliid=I23W4V4XZ474HI&colid=1ML6NQ8HNFZNM
I'm not very happy with either solution. Sometimes I use a map for navigation; sometimes a GPS. (My GPS is a waterproof outdoor unit.) It doesn't seem there will be room to mount both GPS and bag to my handlebars. The Ortleib has both a map pocket and a GPS pocket available, but if purchased with both, it seems quite expensive for what it is. Banjo Brothers doesn't seem to have a way to let me mount the GPS to the bag.
I can't be the first person to want to do this. What am I missing? Any advice?
While I'm at it, are there any books that give great tips about life on the road?
http://www.amazon.com/Banjo-Brothers-Waterproof-Quick-Release-Handlebar/dp/B003D4EYI4/ref=wl_it_dp_o?ie=UTF8&coliid=I23W4V4XZ474HI&colid=1ML6NQ8HNFZNM
I'm not very happy with either solution. Sometimes I use a map for navigation; sometimes a GPS. (My GPS is a waterproof outdoor unit.) It doesn't seem there will be room to mount both GPS and bag to my handlebars. The Ortleib has both a map pocket and a GPS pocket available, but if purchased with both, it seems quite expensive for what it is. Banjo Brothers doesn't seem to have a way to let me mount the GPS to the bag.
I can't be the first person to want to do this. What am I missing? Any advice?
While I'm at it, are there any books that give great tips about life on the road?
165