lobotomy

Hi everyone!

I love reading the threads, I appreciate all that post.

Here is my situation: I am 40 years young and have been in the same job for the last 17 years, never taking off more than one week in a row. This year I am taking off 4 weeks in a row, in August, to ride my bike from Boise to Coeur d'Alene, Idaho (alone and unsupported). I have never toured before and have a few questions, perhaps you could help me with.

Last summer picked up a Scott 'San Francisco' cro moly bike with flat handlebars, no shocks and 700 c wheels in great shape for $45 at the local salvation army (Youth Ranch). Does anyone know anything about when this bike was made and for what use?

The tires were rotten, so my friendly LBS suggested 700 x 23 Hardcase Bontrager Race Lite tires, which I put on and have been very happy with. My question is the 23's are very skinny. What is the rational for the bigger tires? I will be using front and rear panniers.

Has anyone gone from Boise to Coeur d'Lane unsupported?

I plan on buying food along the way, but a hot cup of coffee could really help me out in the mornings. Is there a small stove or coffee machine that would fit this little niche?

How do people charge their cell phone (wife and three kids worried the whole time) or Ipod (music is my LIFE!)?

Was anyone else a little hesitant to go from the comfy cotton to the tight flashy lycra that all the 'serious' bikers wear? I guess its a mental thing, and yes I am 'old school' but it seems like a funny transition. Perhaps you have a quirky story about the first time you dawned tight fitting lycra.

Last year was the first time in about 25 years that I got into biking and I caught the bug! Thanks for all your help.

Dan in Boise

bmike

You will want thicker tires to absorb road shock and help carry you and your loaded panniers.

Check out the JetBoil stove. Would be great for just soup or hot beverage.
I've used a trad backpacking stove for regular meal cooking.

Phone? You could plug it in at campgrounds, a library if you are going to check email, or pick up a solar charger and mount it on the rear rack.

Wear clothes you are comforatable in.

A non flashy wool cycling jersey with some pockets and perhaps some commuter shorts (baggy, with cycling padding) might work for you. Personally I wear a simple wool jersey and cycling shorts for comfort. (I've tried "baggies" and just never liked em.)

If you are self conscious about dropping into stores, etc. just keep a pair of hiking shorts easilty accessible in your panniers. Throw em on over the shorts when you shop / library / etc.

cyccommute 

I don't know anything about this bike but as for tires, larger volume tires give you a bit of shock absorption. They also allow you to run a lower pressure so without risking pinch flats as much. A wider foot print is a little more stable but not by a whole lot.

Bmike suggested the Jetboil which is okay if you want to boil water. It's limited for other uses. I carry a Primus Yellowstone Techno. It's a propane stove like the Jetboil but you have to use cookware on it. I also have a little teapot I carry for making coffee. The Techno doesn't just boil water. You can actually cook on it! My daughter and I had a great curry in Cascade Locks, OR prepared completely on the Techno. The stove is realtively cheap, around $40, has it's own igniter, is stable and clean. I've tried white gas stoves and they are messy!

As for the cell phone and I-pod: why? Part of the reason you tour is to enjoy the sites...and sounds! Plus the more gear you carry, the more you have to take care of. I don't carry a cell phone - either cycling or when I'm doing anything else. I just don't need to be in touch that much! If you carry a cell, you have an out - a life preserver. You don't have to think for yourself or fix your own problems. Are you going to call home and have your wife come get you when you are 500 miles away? Do you need it to call the Bicycle Association of America? (They don't exist )

As for music, memorize stuff. Sing as you ride. Sing as you make dinner. People will think you are crazy and either stay away or, if you are any good, ask you to sing for them (Either way people think you are crazy anyway!)


I am the worst person to be wearing lycra. One look at me in lycra and people have been known to willingly claw out their eyes rather than endure the sight of me in lycra for another second! But I still wear it. It is comfortable. It is breathable, light weight and keeps me from wearing big festering holes in my nether regions. Believe me, that is not a place you want bigh festering holes! I don't wear it for fashion, I wear it for function. Sure, if feels like you are naked the first time you put it on. But that passes. Soon you just get down to feeling stupid in it. But after 6 or 7 hours of sweat and rubbing, you still feel stupid but at least your delicate bits don't feel like you've been sitting on sandpaper for that 6 hours

NoReg

I wore cotton sweat pants. It was 94 deg for several days for the first part of my trip. My legs were mauled in a plane crash, and it isn't just vanity that makes me cover them up, I don't even want to see them, and if I left them uncovered all I would get would be questions about the bandages I will always have to wear.

What I did about my as$ was I got large patches of fabric store bunting sewn into the crotch region just like the expensive clothing. This stuff conducts sweat and is easy to wash. Total cost for this outfit was under about 14 buck US. No undies with this rig.

I know all the stuff about fabrics and so forth, I used to design goretex and bunting clothing for a mountain wear company, and we had some goretex cycle clothing that was pretty good, for it's day. Mostly, cycling, at least on the raods, is not life and death. You aren't going to find yourself getting hosed down on vertical ice with your ropes freezing. You can wear the lycra crap if you like, or not. As one famous climber said about the lycra revolution in climbing: "John Wayne never wore lycra". I'm not sure what that means, but if it resonates, take heart.

kayakboy

I would say, they make crank cell phone chargers that have a little genorater (sp) in them. For the I pod, the same store, has a solar charger that folds up nicely. I havent used either of these, but they cought my attention. I plan on going on tour soon as well and dont plan on whearing anything that would distract me from my slick bike. On ebay search clothing for "baggy" and there are several shorts with chamois built in. I havent used these, but hope they work. Also, www.rivbike.com has some alternatives in the clothing section. For coffee, you can make a small stove out of a pepsi can (search google), just get a titanium cup and a french press. you may even be able to use the french press as the "pot". Good luck! I hope to see you out there.

becnal

A fully charged cell phone will last for weeks if you keep it off and only turn it on for 2 minutes a day. Enough time to check text messages and to send a quick note informing others you are alive.

dreamy

You don't have to wear lycra - personally I hate the stuff and I am quite serious about my biking....not wearing lycra also decreases the amount of abuse you get from motorists.

I use my MP3 player constantly (ie all day) when on tour. I ended up buying a small flash player that takes AAA batteries, and then take a few CDs of MP3s so that I can go a library every now and then and change.

EmmCeeBee

The route along US95 from Cambridge to Lewiston is part of the Adventure Cycling network of trails (TransAsmerica and Lewis&Clark trails). So, yes, many have gone before you on unsupported tours. My wife and I just did it ourselves a few months ago, and in 2001 we went up Hwy55 through McCall. If you're still choosing your route, I'd recommend Hwy55, much prettier and a hell of a lot less traffic. I'd venture to say that US95 between Council and New Meadows is the most terrifying stretch on the Transamerica: no shoulders, heavy traffic, log trucks, uphill (at least Nbound), blind curves and narrow bridges. The rest of US95 is OK (except for 1- or 2-mile stretches just like any highway).

Some people say White Bird summit (just south of Grangeville) is the toughest climb (Nbound) on the coast-to-coast route. To take your mind off your suffering take the old road, which winds up the face of the hills in a series of 15 switchbacks. If you aren't breathless from the climb, finding yourself a part of that view will do it.

My first weeks-long tours were also at about age 40, approached with some apprehension. If you like the outdoors -- camping, hiking, appreciate wildlife and geology -- you're all set. Just one more thing you need: some mechanical ability. The best way to get this is to overhaul your bike by yourself. You've got several months to do this. When you're out in the boonies, you need to know how to adjust a derailleur, replace a broken spoke or cable, diagnose 'clunks' as severe or not.

I echo the above suggestions about clothes/cell phones/ipods:
For shorts, lycra is 100% functional, other choices don't get close. No seams, no bunching means no rashes. I don't like "flashy" either, in fact I wouldn't fit in a 'normal' bike crowd. But black lycra shorts are a necessity for multi-day rides. Self-conciousness for 2 minutes doesn't hurt as much as raw skin for 2 days.
No cell phone/ipod to maximize your experience. I know others will disagree.... But the best part of the trip is enjoying the sounds, seeking out others at campgrounds and lunch stops to talk to. In case of a real emergency, a driver will help.

Considering you're living out of, and carrying, a couple of bags, everything is a tradeoff. I don't get started in the morning without coffee, too. But one of the tradeoffs I made was to schedule a stop at the first town or cafe for java, instead of carrying a stove. Or boil water over a campfire. Or strike up a conversation with the RV next to us, and ask for hot water (careful, 'cuz friendly RVers try to feed you, too!). But everybody has to make that decision ("carry a stove or not?") by themselves. In the US, you really don't need it for cooking, you'll pass through at least 2 towns a day on tour.

You really planning on 4 weeks to go 350 miles? It's no more than an easy week for that distance. If you feel like exploring, consider going up Hwy21 to the Sawtooths, then US93 through Salmon, over Lolo pass and back into northern Idaho. Spectacular riding (some climbs, too )

-- Mark

cyclintom

I suppose I have to wonder about people who don't know the first thing about bicycle touring who take on pretty substantial tour routes. I don't mean to be insulting but would you plan on driving across the USA if you didn't have a driver's licence yet?

Cycling is relatively easy but it's likely that the particular route you've decided on will leave you stranded in the middle of nowhere trying to figure out how to repair your tire after the 35th flat of the day.

Is there any particular reason you decided to do your own unsupported tour rather than going with a tour group for your first tour?

lobotomy

Bmike cyccommute, peterpan1, kayakboy, bcnal, dreamy, thanks for the advice, I will take it all to heart.

EmmCeeBee - thanks for the route info. I plan on going through Mccall on Hwy 55 then to Grangeville, Orofino, then to Hwy 3 to Coeur d'Alene, from there I am going to visit the Srvasti Abbey in Eastern Wash near Newport and then back down. I figure that is going to be around 900 miles. I hope 4 weeks will be enough time to do all that I want.

Cyclintom - your right, I don't know the first thing about touring, but I can change a tire. Having three kids with bikes and living in the land of puncture weeds 'goat heads' I can change a tire in my sleep. However, I do need to get more mechanically friendly with my bike in case something more substantial than a flat tire arises. You also bring up a good point about doing this alone. I am trying to talk my good friend into going with me, perhaps he will. I have always been a loner, maybe it comes from being an only child. I plan on taking several overnighters this summer to get acclaimated to touring. I am a 'jump in the water head first' kinda guy and believe me I have broken my nose a time or two. Some of us just seem to always have to learn the hard way. Thanks for the input.

supcom

First off, as suggested, you need to ditch those 23mm tires when you want to go touring. They are way too narrow for carrying a load.

Second, how do you plan to tour? Do you plan to carry camping gear and cook food along the way? Or, perhaps you plan to stay in motels and eat in restaurants? Or a bit of both? The answer determines what and how much stuff you need to carry with you.

Any gas station will have coffee, so I wouldn't pack a stove and pot just for coffee.

If you plan to camp, then it would be worthwhile to do some reading on backpacking. Bicycle touring and backpacking share a lot in the way of equipment. Do a lot of reading into bicycle touring as well. There's a lot to learn! Read some journals at www.crazyguyonabike.com for some good tips.

However you decide to go, I strongly suggest taking a few weekend trips to get a feel for riding a loaded bike and to learn what stuff you really need and what you can do without. I happen to be an ultralighter when it comes to backpacking and cycle touring. But that's not for everyone.

stokell

Everyone seems to have their own preference for stoves. Certainly one of the most compact is the Trangia. It is inexpensive and burns alcohol, so the fuel is easy to get just about anywhere. If you are bringing a stove to make coffee consider heating some tinned foods or boiling water and making something. It is not difficult and you can save alot of $ on restaurants. I never did like eating alone in a cafe anyway.

All the items you see below fit together and store inside the pot. The fry pan is the lid (it's non-stick).

cyccommute 

You don't need to know anything about touring. If you can ride a bike, you can tour. Touring is just carrying more stuff than usual and going someplace you want to go. Sure you are going to make mistakes and have mishaps. But you will also learn something along the way. If you never make mistakes you never learn anything at all.

I think your trip is just about right for a first one. It's actually shorter than you think (Couer d'Alene isn't really that far from Boise). You may find that giving yourself 3 weeks to do it will leave you with plenty of time on your hands. You aren't travelling the wilds of Outer Mongolia so food, water, shelter and help aren't that far away at any time. Could you get eaten by a bear? Maybe. Captured by aliens? Probably not. Robbed? Unlikely. Run off the road? Maybe but that could happen around home, too. Killed? Maybe but you could be killed at any minute or worse yet, you could find yourself at home when you are old and in poor health, regretting that you never took that bike trip. Find something you never expected existed? Definitely!

Ride. Hate it. Love it. Figure out how to do it better the next time.

challengea2z

just do it i'm going to do 5000 miles solo and unsurpported for my first tour it's not like climbing mount Everest. I've hardly touched my bike in the last couple of years but that'll not stop me if i can't get bike fit in six months then three months on the road'll do it, if you want to six weeks before the off ride everyday for a month doesn't really matter how far but it'll give you an idea of riding everyday. Love my music to wouldn't leave home with out it, great for those long boring bits, my phone as well as my laptop and my 3g/gprs card for my laptop will come along, as for charging when you stopped at a shop or where ever for a bite to eat ask if you can plug your phone or what ever needs charging in, 99.9% of people understand if your away from home that you'd need a hell of along extension lead if you wanted to charge your bits using you home plug socket and they know you'd like to speak to your wife and your kid most people aren't that heartless at worse they might ask you to give them something.

NoReg

One other thing on the coffee. I love coffee, but I didn't miss it on the road. I bought maybe 2 cups in 2 weeks. I'm 46, and have some health bad habits, I'm not Mr Wheatgerm, and yet I found I didn't miss a lot of crap I normally ate, and for that mater ate some crap I never normally do. I tried to pick up some choclate milk in the morning, whcih I never normaly touch, it provides fluid an energy burst, and probably some cafein. I'm not recomending it, I'm just saying that when you get out there your body will probably crave stuff it normaly doesn't and not crave some stuff it normally does. I like water well enough at home, but I craved it on the road, and to some extent I have a new passion for it now that I am back. Coffee dehydrates you so I didn't want it on the road. Whatever energy it provides is not going to last 10 hours of peddling (for me anyway). I was stunned how stuff like coffee and starch feel so good when sititng in front of the TV, but that when on the road my body far from wanting drugs and calories seemed to scream for stuff like tuna, fruit, water, yogurt, and so forth.

This is one of the best side effects of the whole trip, at a gut level I have a new appreciation of stuff that is good for me. And this comes not from what I "know", but from what my body told me I needed.

But what I am really getting at is that particularly if your route will take you past a grocery every day, I wouldn't waste your time and money on a stove. I have several, and didn't take any. If you can get fresh food every day, save your dough and weight and space allowance for that. Now that would be the ultimate bike trip, one that passed several health food stores a day! Maybe on the Cali coast?

nun

I think Scott bought Schwinn a few years ago, but they're bigger in Europe than The USA. I don't know anything about the 'San Francisco', but if it has rims that take 23mm tyres its probably not suited for loaded touring. Are you going to camp or stay in motels along the way. If its the former and you'll be carrying camping gear I think you'll probably need another bike.

Also make sure you are ok with riding several days in succession over the worst terrain you expect to cover. I'd recommend doing some training so that you are able to easily ride twice your expected daily average mileage and do this a couple of days in a row. So if you intend to do 40 miles a day during the the trip, try to work up to doing an 80 mile ride.

Rogerinchrist

Here's another 2 cents worth.

Stove, go cheap if you don't have one already. If you find that it's not your thing to cook a lot, not a lot of $ gone. Good suggestions above, another might be a x- mart 1 pound propane bottle (usually a little over $2) and a burner that screws to the top can be had for around $15, make sure to get the plastic base to keep it stable. Some purist will say to get an $80+ white gas model and that's fine, but do that later when your investing in the equipment for keeps. Go to your local thrift/ second hand store for a cheap sauce pan.
For coffee, get a little plastic funnel type thingy that holds a #2 cone filter, many times they are right there at the grocery store with the coffee, most commonly dark brown with a coffee mug type handle. This will make a quick cup or two anytime you can boil some water.

To help with the "worried wife", TAKE HER & THE KIDS ALONG!! No they don't have to ride, but they sure would make a great support team, and the wife might enjoy a little shopping in other towns along your route. 4 weeks of hotels might be out of your budget, but some camping & hotels (with pool) would probably be good for everyone!

Just another way to skin that cat.

philso

to charge your cell phone and ipod

https://www.modernoutpost.com/gear/de...dal_power.html

Camel

The cone filter holder is a great suggestion. I take a stovetop espresso maker (mmm).

An alcohol stove would seem best suited for you (lite, clean, small). Triangia is the best known, then there are scads of "make your own" pages available. There is also a teeny tiny titanium one (I've one-it's nifty).

cyccommute 

I use the Melita on the road and at home. You can get a similar one with a wire mesh screen but I don't like the way the coffee brews as much. The filter holder sits on top of the cup and you pour the water through. The holder is light but kind of bulky. They are cheap and available at lots of coffee stores everywhere. You do need to have the coffee ground finer than regular drip but not as fine as expresso.

lighthorse@eart

lobotomy,
Whether you decide that you will wear bike shorts or not you will be much happier if you do not try to wear cotton. Sometime I wear a good pair of lycra tennis shorts when riding and they are fine: no riding sores. Besides fit and comfort you need to think about how you are going to keep them clean each day. Most folks end up hand washing their riding stuff each day. If you choose cotton, they likely will never dry, and you will have to wear "wet cotton". Not good!

abergdc

I have a Scott San Francisco that I bought new about 12 years ago for something like $270. I'm not a very experienced biker, just started communting 9 miles each way last summer. My Scott came with something like 38 mm tires and I recently put on some 32 mm. Compared to my main bike (a Specialized Roubaix Elite) it feels clunky and heavy, of course. And I now no longer like the very upright riding position, even for my back. But it was always reliable for me, I like the shifters and brakes OK, and it seems quite solid. I don't know anything about touring and don't know if it's just the ticket. If it were me, though, I'd look for something a bit more road-bike-like, though of course with fittings for the panniers and more sturdy than my Roubaix, with wider tires I suppose.

Olden Crow

I also use a Trianga alcohol stove. Most any large supermarket or chain drugstore will sell 'denatured' alcohol, that's where to get it. Sometimes they lock it up and you have to ask, but usually its on the shelf. Nice lightweight plastic bottles!

NoReg

"I plan on buying food along the way, but a hot cup of coffee could really help me out in the mornings. Is there a small stove or coffee machine that would fit this little niche?"

One thing about camping is you can hit the hay around 9, and by the time you wake up you have slept through a long night. Meanwhile, back at the power plant your body does not want an 18 oz steak, pie and a cup of coffee, even if it's the only time when you actually deserve it. I have done my share of bad eating, but out on the road, because I am a little rounder than some cyclist (OK vis a vis the rest of the world), I actually need to keep my engine processing water, fruit, grains, all the crap I don't care too much about normally. I'm no saint, I found chocolate milk suited my morning body. Anyway, all I am saying is wait and see, you may find this is a different lifestyle.

"How do people charge their cell phone (wife and three kids worried the whole time) or Ipod (music is my LIFE!)?"

I don't use 'em. Too much temptation to call home when you are flat as a pancake and spitting blood. Been there and done that, and I'm glad I couldn't phone. Otherwise your OK so why blab like a mallrat all day.

"Was anyone else a little hesitant to go from the comfy cotton to the tight flashy lycra that all the 'serious' bikers wear? I guess its a mental thing, and yes I am 'old school' but it seems like a funny transition. Perhaps you have a quirky story about the first time you dawned tight fitting lycra."

I'm not so hesitant, but I ride in normal clothes. I use a bunting insert in my riding pants, and no undies, otherwise you die, but lycra is for fairies. I like to make my own stuff and leave the consumer's Stockholm Syndrome up to others.