Touring Bicycle

[sxmimb]

I'm planning on doing the Great River Route in the spring of 2015.  Route is described as steep hills in Iowa and rolling hills and flat for that portion along Natchez Trace.  Will NOT be doing any big mountain crossings in the future on any routes.  (Did my version of the Southern Tier [San Diego, CA to Richmond, VA] thirty years ago on a K-Mart 10 speed bicycle.)   Will be doing some credit card touring and fully loaded in the future, Bike Across states, etc.  Presently have a Trek 7200 hybrid and want to go to a touring bike.  Here's the request.  With the limited information that you have, make suggestions for a touring bike in the following cost categories:

$500.00 - $1,000.00

$1,000- $1,500.00

$1500 - $2,000.00

Feel free to include a sentence or two as to why you are making each suggestion in each category.

   

[John Nelson]

Although you can tour on any bicycle, I would always recommend a touring-specific bicycle if your budget and garage space allow. It has at least a dozen features specifically optimized for touring.

Although there are many touring bikes available (and you should consult the ACA buyers guide on this site), I would generally recommend one of the standards, i.e., either the Trek 520 or the Surly Long Haul Trucker. If you can find a bicycle shop with touring bikes in stock (unlikely), however, I would probably test ride and buy one of those, whatever it is. Most bike shops, however, do not carry real touring bikes and will probably try to convince you that some bike on the floor is just as good. Don't fall for that. Get a shop to order you a real touring bike, preferably with no obligation to buy (many shops offer this service). REI is the most likely place to find touring bikes on the floor. They often stock two different Novara touring bikes and the Long Haul Trucker, although perhaps in limited sizes.

There's no sense in figuring out what the perfect bike on paper is and then finding out that you can't practically get it. I'd suggesting doing it the other way around. Figure out what touring bikes you have reasonable access to and then deciding which one of those suits you best.

[ozroller]

I test rode the Surly Disc Trucker (the long haul trucker with disc brakes) at a bike shop.   The bike felt good, but i wanted something different.   I researched and ended up buying the 2015 Jamis Aurora Elite for $1600.    I liked it because it has Shimano 105 with Dura Ace bar end shifters.......superior disc brakes.   I like the gearing ratios too, compared to some other bikes.    high gear 50 x12 and low gear 30x30......i don't believe i will need any lower than that.....one bike had a 28x32...you could pull out tree stumps with that..lol
if you buy ....sizing runs big.....i ride a 56 road bike...bought 55 Jamis......and it is almost too big frame for me.

I liked the Kona Sutra also

[RonK]

I like the gearing ratios too, compared to some other bikes.    high gear 50 x12 and low gear 30x30......i don't believe i will need any lower than that.....one bike had a 28x32...you could pull out tree stumps with that..lol

Hope you're hauling a light load on flat roads. There are plenty of us using MTB group sets with 22x34 gearing. :lol:

[staehpj1]

How heavy or light will you be packing?  That makes a huge difference in what I would suggest.

I figure that it makes sense to pick your gear, then the bags to carry it, and then the bike to suit those choices.

In recent years I have been cutting back on the gear and going to lighter and lighter choices.  Once you get below 20 pounds or so of base gear weight it starts to make sense to ride a racier bike than a typical touring bike.  At least that is my preference.

As far as the categories go...  Just me, but I'd stick don't find it worth spending too much on the bike.  My $599 (delivered) Windsor Touring served me well on the Trans America and other tours back when I was packing heavier.  My two companions on the TA were happy with their's as well.  On the Southern Tier with a very light load of camping and cooking gear I was very happy with and old (1990) Cannondale Crit racer with 14 pounds of clothing and camping/cooking gear in lightweight waterproof stuffsacks.  The whole rig bike and all weighed 38 pounds and worked out very well.  You can find bikes like that used for $300 or so.

[staehpj1]

one bike had a 28x32...you could pull out tree stumps with that..lol

It depends on the rider, the terrain, and the load carried, but it seems like the majority of tourists would find that gearing too high.  24x32 is pretty common among touring cyclists and many go lower.

I did find that for me when packing light (14 pounds of gear) on the Southern Tier I was happy with a little higher gearing than that (26x28).  Still a lot of folks commented that they would not have found that gearing low enough and indeed I would have wanted lower gearing if I was carrying a more typical load.

[DaveB]

.....high gear 50 x12 and low gear 30x30......i don't believe i will need any lower than that.....one bike had a 28x32...you could pull out tree stumps with that..lol

That depends on where you tour and how much you carry and, obviously the age and strength of the rider.    For most of us, a 30x30 low gear will allow a modest load to be ridden up fairly steep but short climbs or more shallow but long climbs.  If you get into steep and long (think West Virginia) you will want something significantly lower.

[ozroller]

Thanks for all the comments on my choice of gearing....i may have to install a cassette with a lower gear.    I live in Kansas.....long, steep hills are non-existent here to practice on...lol    I hope a 30x34 will suffice.....im a strong climber.

[John Nelson]

If you are a strong climber with a lightweight load on non-mountainous roads, then you can get away with significantly higher gearing than a weaker rider with a heavier load going through the Rockies, Appalachians, New England or even along the Pacific Coast. I would caution, however, that a Kansas cyclist may have little idea about what to expect pretty much everywhere else except in the states between North Dakota and Oklahoma. Almost every other state in the country is significantly hillier than those states.

On my TransAm, I met eastbound cyclists in Idaho that asked me when it was going to flatten out. I had to tell them that, with the exception of eastern Colorado and Kansas, it didn't. For anyone buying a bicycle for touring, I would suggest not just thinking of their first trip, but thinking ahead to future trips too.

Since this thread is about bike selection, however, I'll note that gearing is only one of the considerations, albeit one of the more important considerations.

[RussSeaton]

I'll contribute to this thread.  Already mentioned, Trek 520, Surly Long Haul Trucker, REI Novara Randonnee.  These three are the name brand full touring bikes.  All three are more or less identical.  All sell for about $1500.  All will work fine as loaded touring bikes carrying four panniers and a handlebar bag and a tent on the rear rack.  Other possible options for bike mechanics, Nashbar touring bike and BikesDirect touring bikes.  These are around $700.  These are fairly close to the three name brand models.  The parts are lesser in the hierarchy but will function as well in the real world.  BUT, you will need to tune and overhaul the bikes to make them function well.  Think of them as kits with all the parts but assembly required.  All of these bikes will carry panniers and have low gearing.  Low enough to crawl up any hills you come across.  And you can probably put a 22 or 24 tooth inner chainring on the triple cranksets of any of these bikes.  And a 32 or 34 rear cassette in 9 or 10 speed.  Better to have low gears you do not use than the opposite.  A full on touring bike will work fine no matter whether you are carrying a lot of gear or going ultralight.  Or carrying nothing.  They are durable bikes that keep working almost forever.  You can use them to commute to work or the grocery store too.  They are functional.

[zzzz]

If "ozroller" is evaluating himself accurately as a strong climber and he's packing light he should be fine w a 30x30 (27" gear) and certainly w a 30x34 (23.8"). Just make sure you take a drive over to Colorado and test how it all feels with accurate weight in your panniers before you leave on a long trip. Loveland Pass should tell you everything you need to know. Or since Kansas is a big state you can go the other way and spend a couple days going up & down in the Ozarks. Be very honest w yourself after your test, pulling too high a gear can lead to issues w your knees.

I fancy myself a pretty good climber and I pack light and I just take my regular road bike. My low gear is 34x28 and it's served me well and I've gone up plenty of long and steep stuff (SC, all of the GPN & 1/2 of the GPS, WE, & the TA between Missoula & Co. and then again east of the high plains to the Va. coast).

Pete

[John Nelson]

I'm wondering how a cyclist from Kansas knows that he's a strong climber. He surely didn't figure that out in Kansas!

There's two kinds of climbs the touring cyclist needs to worry about: (1) 20% grades for a quarter of a mile (e.g., in the Ozarks, New England or Appalachians) and (2) 6 to 8% grades for 30 straight miles (e.g., the Rockies).

My lowest gear is 20 gear-inches, and I need every inch of that. Over and over and over again. Even with that gear, I sometimes feel that I couldn't get up the hill I'm on at all if it were even a bit steeper.

[PeteJack]

I'm wondering how a cyclist from Kansas knows that he's a strong climber. He surely didn't figure that out in Kansas!

There's two kinds of climbs the touring cyclist needs to worry about: (1) 20% grades for a quarter of a mile (e.g., in the Ozarks, New England or Appalachians) and (2) 6 to 8% grades for 30 straight miles (e.g., the Rockies).

My lowest gear is 20 gear-inches, and I need every inch of that. Over and over and over again. Even with that gear, I sometimes feel that I couldn't get up the hill I'm on at all if it were even a bit steeper.

+1


The Mrs and I did the Natchez Trace from Natchez to Nashville last summer. We met a rider heading south at a B & B in Belmont MS. He warned us there were some big hills as you got near Nashville. We were still waiting for them when we got to the end of the Parkway but then, we live in the Pacific NW so it's all relative. It's a very pleasant ride. There are hilly bits in Iowa. When I did the NT the climb up from the Mississippi past Effigy Mounds NP was a flog, very much harder than anything on the Trace. I don't know if the Great Rivers route goes that way mind. BTW if you do go that way the road where you turn off at the top of the hill has a different number than the one shown on the ACA map. It should be in the addenda. I went a couple of miles the wrong way before a local set me right.

[RussSeaton]

I'm wondering how a cyclist from Kansas knows that he's a strong climber. He surely didn't figure that out in Kansas!

There's two kinds of climbs the touring cyclist needs to worry about: (1) 20% grades for a quarter of a mile (e.g., in the Ozarks, New England or Appalachians) and (2) 6 to 8% grades for 30 straight miles (e.g., the Rockies).

Its obvious you have never ridden in Kansas.  Believe it or not, Kansas is not flat.  The eastern third of the state is mostly rolling hills.  The western half is undulating.  1/4 to 1/2 mile long rises and then about the same declines.  Over and over and over and over.  Eastern half of Colorado is like that too.  Always rolling up and down mile after mile.  1 mile long climb, 1 mile long descent, 3 miles flat, repeat over and over.  Bigger hills in eastern Colorado than in western Kansas.

You will have to tell me where these 30 mile long climbs in the Rockies are.  I've ridden all over Colorado and never found any climbs that long.  All the mountain climbs I found in Colorado were about 7 to 10 miles long.  Then you go over the peak and go down for about the same distance.  Never ever 30 straight miles of climbing.

[zzzz]

Uh,oh... somebody's calling out cyclists for "grade inflation". There's always someone who brings a ruler & scale to the fishing camp!

I've ridden a bunch of these of these big Rockies' passes also and they always seem to be 2800-3500' of elevation change @ 8-11 miles for a average grade of 5-7%. And actually the 20% grade on the short stuff doesn't pass the math test either, at least for anything longer than 50± yards anyplace I've been in the Appalachian's.

But never mind the hyperbole, it's still a good idea to check yourself against what you're likely to run into before you make any assumptions about what you need for a low gear before you leave.

Also, these threads can wander but note that the OP started it by stating his ambitions, which specifically precluded any big mountain crossings.

pm