Originally Posted by
skilsaw
How fast do you travel when loaded?
And then there is hill climbing. I'm just guessing at gradient because so few hills are posted. I can sustain riding in my granny gear for slopes up to 6%. For 8% to 12% hills, I need to stop and rest about every 1000 metres. I have to walk my loaded bike up hills greater than 12% grade.
Unfortunately, the only solution to this is to ride more hills. Yech!
Around 10mph. I found what makes a big difference on a bike fully loaded is making sure your tire pressure is correct and toward the max. Low tire pressure on a loaded bike will just take the wind right out of you, without you even knowing it.
Riding a fully loaded touring bike up 8-12 percent grades for 1000 meters is a very impressive feat on it's own. Take pride in that.