Originally Posted by Shiznaz
Any of you guys have any experience touring? I've been idly looking at touring bikes but I keep ending up looking at cyclocross bikes instead, which seem more versatile and race-friendly, but with essentially touring (slightly tighter) geometry and the whole glut of brazeons, rack and fender mounts. Soma doublecross comes to mind. Is this a good idea for a bike to cross canada, keeping in mind I will want to fart around on it in Toronto before and after?
I've done a little bit of touring - mostly some rides from London to Newmarket and in-between - and the cross-bike is not a bad choice, though the tighter geometry makes for not so smooth a ride as compared to a touring bke. I say go for it though, as cross-bikes do really well in urban areas, and are slightly less useful than touring bikes on long trips - thus, they average out better in the long-run. Plus, cross frames are super-strong and relatively light (at least moreso than touring bikes), so get one mutha-****a!
