Road or Touring?

[taptap]

I will be doing a Florida to New York ride. I have an aluminum road bike. Do I need to buy a touring geometry bike for a ride of this length or can I convert my road bike?

[bruno]

i would say it kind of depends on what size tires you can run. but folks have gone all through asia on light road bikes. almost any bike will get you there. it all depends on how much discomfort and inconvenience you're willing to bear.

but i think tire size limitation is the main issue regarding suitability of a particular frame.

[ragincajun]

Clearance for fatter tires is a good point.  You may also want to consider whether or not you will be touring with bags, and if so how much gear will you carry.

The chainstay length on a lot of road bikes does not typically provide enough heel clearance for you to mount rear panniers. The other thing to consider with an average road bike is the stability under the load.  You would not want to be doing wheelies up the hills!

[cfessler]

I'm doing a cross-country ride next summer and originally I thought I was going to use my light-road bike.  But after much research on long-distance bicycling touring, I have found touring bikes to be best for several reasons.  I bought a 2006 Fuji Touring and just the comfort alone of riding it versus my road bike convinces me that long distance riding should be on a Touring bike.  Also, since Touring bikes have a longer wheelbase they have better control and actually perform better with weight on it.  I've tried to commute with my road bike with by bookbags/gym clotes on the back, and it was a lot more difficult to ride. Hope this helps!

[cyclesafe]

Unless you're flush with cash and want another bike,  or if you know you'll be touring alot in the future, I would recommend that you use your existing bike and get a BOB trailer.  That's alot cheaper and will in no way penalize you vs a vs a dedicated touring bike.

Caveats include:
- You'll stay on paved roads.
- You are not a clydesdale.
- Your rear wheel is of reasonable quality
- You don't plan to take an inordinate amount of gear (>60 lbs)

[RussellSeaton]

I used my Nashbar aluminum road bike with all carbon fork on 2900 kilometers of brevets this year.  Including a 1200k ride.  Lugged steel bike did the other 400 kilometers of brevets.  So road bikes cover long distances very well.  Even supposedly harsh and uncomfortable aluminum frames.  On all of these long rides I had a rear rack and 10 pounds or so of food and gear and lights and batteries.  The bike was quite tail heavy.  25 and 23 mm tires.

If you go credit card touring, traveling ultra light, nothing extra, then the road bike with a rear rack and pack will work just fine.  Some like those Carradice bags hanging from the saddle.

If going loaded, then a trailer would be the simplest option for carrying gear.  Still pack ultra light with nothing extra.

Having low enough gears is also important.  I'm assuming your road bike has a triple or you can fit one cheaply and easily.  And a big cassette with 32 teeth.