Right on,
Thanks for putting up with me as I continue to flog this long dead horse.
mgagnonlv, I am curious if you have encountered the rack fit problem yourself, or if can elaborate somehow. It seems to me that that is a potentially big issue for a touring bike. Disc brake availability problems can be overcome if you have both canti and disc mounts (a la Karate Monkey), provided you settled on a wise brake spec BEFORE setting off on a tour.
And a question to FLYBYU, what does maintenance of Avid Mechanical Discs demand? Can you replace Avid Mech Disc cables with ordinary brake cable or do they require proprietary cables? Are special brake levers needed? I agree that hydraulics are time bombs on touring bikes.
BK