I'm currently 58 and if all goes to plan I hope to retire in four years. One of my retirement bucket list items is do a long riding tour. Using the poker term, "go big or stay home" I've decided to plan big. My dream tour is to ride around the Great Lakes. On a whim I tentatively mapped out a route that I think is doable in about 60 days, give or take a few. If there is one thing I'm willing to admit it's I don't know what I don't know. So I plan to invest some time in this forum over the next few years taking advantage of others' experiences and start doing weekend and 2-3 day tours to see if I really want to tackle something as large as the Great Lakes. As of now, my bike of choice would be my Giant cross-trainer with triple gears up front and 27 total gears but I don't yet know if it can accommodate panniers. My only other bike is a 1975 Schwinn Varsity I've plowed money into to rebuild. Although it has a sturdy steel frame it is 40 years old and only has 10 gears. I've looked into trying to add more gearing but I'm told the design just won't accommodate a third gear up front or additional gears in the rear. Anyway, I'm real excited about exploring this forum and all it has to offer. Thanks for letting me join!