I did have an issue with a bungee cord that probably would not have happened with straps. But then I wouldn't have this story I thought some of you anti-bungee folks would get a kick out of it.


Wednesday - Leuven to Turnhout (excerpt from our blog)
Doug says, “Yesterday I was reminded that you don't want to tick off the touring gods or even your wife.

We started out early and rolled easily in the cool morning under a heavily overcast sky. About the same time as the terrain started getting a little challenging, the clouds decided to turn from threatening rain to actual moisture. We pulled off the road and dug into our panniers to get the raingear out. I had to unclip the 2 bungee cords holding my rack pack to get it out of the way. I donned my rain gear, reassembled my rack pack and reattached the bungee cords to the rear of the rack where I had unclipped them. I also removed my hearing aids to keep them dry.

Riding in the light rain was almost enjoyable, but on about the third small hill I was starting to struggle a little to keep up with Donna. While she is a good strong rider, I'm usually a little stronger than her on the hills. We have identical drivetrains, and having to use one gear lower I kept dropping back. This was the pattern of the morning and I was really getting worried that something was wrong with me, and I was not going to make it through the day.

Just before noon and at the bottom of hill we decided it was dry enough to get out of the rain gear before we started up a long hill ahead of us. I also replaced my hearing aids after placing my rolled up jacket and pants underneath the bungee cords on the rear rack.

This hill was a real struggle, and I could hear a rubbing sound that I attributed to a fender stay or some debris picked up in the wet conditions. I'd fix it at the top. When we got to the top I was really getting worried, but we just busted over and let her rip on the downhill. The faster we went the worse the rubbing got. I finally pulled over to see what was going on.

This is what I found. When I unclipped the bungee cords earlier, the right cord clip that is usually attached to the rack's seatstay strut dropped off and landed just below my rear brake's straddle cable. When I re-clipped the bungee cord at the rear of the rack the forward clip moved upward hooking the brake's straddle wire, essentially applying the rear brake. Everything felt fine. While it was raining it was not obvious due to the lubricating action of the water. However, when the sun came out and I placed the rolled up raingear under the bungee cord it really increased the pressure.

I was so happy to find that I wasn't falling apart that I could actually laugh at my stupidity. I'm sure some of you will say that you laugh at it quite regularly. Donna denies any involvement, but probably secretly agrees on my mental status."