Touring bikes - which one to buy?
 

Hi
I'm new to this but wanted advice about touring bikes. I had a Cannondale Touring Bike which was written off in and accident earlier this year. It was comfortable for me once I replaced the drop handle bars with flat bars and changed the seat, but it was a heavy bike and I'm hoping to get away with something lighter but still comfortable. My bike shop recently showed me a Giant Cross City 1, saying it had the capacity to take touring gear but not front panniers (which I�ve never used). It only had 2 front cogs but they say it still has low gears similar to the touring bike gears (I do so love my low gears). They also showed me the Giant Seek 1, saying it was a little sturdier and resilient. It has a triple cog at the front and wider tyres, but it�s still not specifically a �touring bike�. Can anyone advise on a bike that will provide comfort and resilience for touring that isn�t as heavy as the Cannondale (not that I know the exact weight of the Cannondale. I think it was a Touring 2). I prefer flat handle bars. The Seek 1 doesn�t seem like a bad option.
Nicole

Hi Fishgirl (Nicole) and welcome to the forum!

The Cannondale touring bikes are actually some of the lightest touring bikes on the market because most other bikes are made of steel instead of aluminum. Most dedicated touring bikes are made from steel, and have triple chain rings. Don't let the bike shop guys sell you anything until you have done your research! The Cross City is very far from a touring bike. The bike shop was just trying to sell you whatever they had in stock because almost no bike shops carry really touring bikes.

If you felt like the cannondale was too heavy, remember that the weight of a 25-30 pound bike is not going to matter much at all once you put 30-50 pounds of camping/touring gear, plus a couple of hundred pounds of rider on it. That extra weight will likely translate into a bike that handles and rides much better than a slightly lighter bike. My first tour was on a bike like the one you mentioned. It was a Giant FCR3 that turned into a wobbly, scary mess when I loaded it up for my trip. I would have been more than happy to trade a few ounces/pounds for a stronger more robust bike for touring.

Maybe you should start by telling us more about what you plan to do with this bike. Are you taking it across the country or just wanting to do weekend trips? Will this bike also be an everyday commuter or is it strictly for touring? How much stuff are you planning to carry? Are you going to be camping or staying in motels?

Try using th search feature on this forum to look up topics such as this that have already been covered. There is a lot of information already contained in this website. Also, check out the thread in the touring section titled "Newbies guide to touring bikes." That is an excellent resource.

Again, welcome to the forum!

Edit: I just did a google search for the two bikes you mentioned. Both of them are very expensive, over 1500!!!!! :O Neither of them are very suitable for touring. The bike guys were either talking out of their asses, because most people have no idea what a touring bike is, or just trying to sell you something expensive. Excellent touring bikes can be had for about half the price of either of those bikes and do a much better job! ;)

Hi Zeppinger
Thanks for your speedy reply and such good information! I didn't realise my user name (fishgirl) would be public, I thought it was just for logging on...oops!
I have done a couple of full pannier tours in my time, but in the future will most likely be doing either supported tours or just weekend pannier tours, so I won’t be loading the bike up too much. I will also use it for riding on weekends, after work, and to and from work, none of which would be huge distances though. I only have one other bike and that’s a mountain bike, so this one will be for everything else. I’ve never been into racing.
I will definitely try the search feature so I can see what’s already been covered.
By the way, the Cannondale would cost me $2300, so against the Giants $1500 it's not a cheap option. I'm happy to pay the money to get what I need, but I will check out the "newbies guide" for cheaper options.
Thanks again!!
Nicole

Rivendell.

http://www.rivbike.com/

I recently bought a Windsor Tourist (steel) from Bikes Direct and like it. I replaced the tour bike I built from a Nashbar aluminum frame.

Depending on your height, there are some really great deals on new 2009 Jamis Aurora models right now.

What size are you looking for? I know someone who has a 55 Jamis Aurora ;)

I would never advise anyone to get a cheap bike unless they absolutely don't have the cash and need a bike asap. Cheap bikes = more money later = shoulda just bought a better one to start.

In general, the better parts, wheels and frame you can afford today, the less likely you will replace any of those. Handmade wheels are golden in my experience. Handmade by a dedicated pro. Rich Lesnik, Joe Young, Peter White to name a few.

What kind of touring do you want to do? For credit card touring you can get away with a road or cyclocross bike and a rear rack but for fully loaded touring you want a "mule" with all the right braze on-s.

http://www.rei.com/expertadvice/arti...ng+basics.html

There are three basic styles of touring bike:
Light
Medium
Expedition.
The Cannondale is really a medium-weight tourer. If you want something that is lighter, faster and good for day-rides, supported touring and non-camping holidays then a light tourer will do the job.
Basic specs are:
Lightweight frame similar to midrange race bike but with added tyre clearance for 28mm.
Long drop caliper brakes.
Rack and fender eyelets.
A chainset with road-triple or compact double chainrings.
...................

Here is a list you can use to check out some of the touring bikes on the market:

http://www.wasitabatisaw.com/touring-bicycles-2010

Based solely on the fact that the bike shop guys claimed the Giant Cross City 1 is suitable for touring - you need to find a new bike shop. Seriously. A double chainring 50/34 and 12-27 cassette is as far from appropriate for touring as it's possible to get. Either they haven't the slightest clue about what a touring bike is, or they're trying to rip you off. The Seek 1 uses an internal 8-gear hub. It's a commuting bike, not a touring bike. Neither of them has appropriate-length chainstays... I could go on and on. Seriously, find someone else to sell you a bike.

Both my wife and I have touring bikes; Mine is a Raleigh Sojourn, hers is a Surly Long Haul Trucker. Both are excellent touring bikes for under $1300. I prefer the ride on my Sojourn, but tastes differ.

Seconded. Sounds like the shop wants to sell you what's in stock rather than what you need.

The Niche of 'fitness bike ' offers straight bars and a road style drive train light wheels with a triple crank..
I note Campagnolo has a group of components to serve that segment ,

for smaller stature , look at Terry women's bikes, Georgina has her frames made by Waterford these days
so will be top notch workmanship, and US made.
the longer top tube of many bikes is hard to get a good fit for longer legged shorter torso and arms bodies.

Many Bike frames are light, before you start bolting on the rest of the parts.

Bruce Gordon makes about the best pannier racks, and has now met the QBP

LHT frames with His Own touring frameset, also made on Taiwan, like the LHT .

He has been building frames for touring bikes and race bikes and so forth for decades..

I am a 230 lb 6 foot 3 inch old guy,,,toured for years on an aluminum tourer, just got my first steel frame,, I am in love with my LHT. (New yesterday)
But I can see where lighter folk and younger folk may like Aluminum...I have 3 Aluminum Bikes,,,and one Carbon,,ALL for sale,

Nicole, surprised you say the Cannondale is heavy. Anyway if you want a ligth bike suitable for light touring check out the various Specialized bikes. tri-Cross would be nice with a different front crank, or the Vita. A large part of the decision making is based on how much you're planning on carrying and what you like in handling. If you're not a heavy person needing to carry a lot of gear there's a lot of choices out there. I could imagine if you're light then one of those lighter bikes with 5-10lbs forward under the bars or on a mini-front rack with 20lbs on the rear would work.

The Salsa Vaya is a good all-round commuter and touring bike.

It handles like a road bike but you can put on wider tires and fenders and take it off road if you want to.

Made of steel but a good choice and the disc brakes stop good in bad weather.

I also think the bike shop was giving sketchy advice. Most people who work in the shops around here have never been on a tour. They're mostly racer types. That's okay, but they shouldn't purport to know what they're talking about if they don't. All of the top-rated touring bike will be a little heavier than lightweight road bikes, but that's okay. When you have your bike loaded with gear a few pounds of frame weight isn't much of a negative if it means your bike will be sturdy and nothing will break. It's also likely to handle better with a load if it's got a little extra strength.

You can tour on just about anything, and if you already have a bike and don't want to buy another, there's a way to take the one you have on tour and do fine. If you really want to get into touring, the best bike, in my opinion, will be a bike designed for it.

I have a Surly LHT for touring, and I love it. I've read reviews of Cannondale touring bikes, and wouldn't hesitate to buy one based on the positive reports. There are lots of other choices as well.

Maybe you should look at the so-called "sports" bikes like the Salsa Casseroll or the Gunnar Sport (pricey). These have fittings to attach racks, fenders and slightly longer chain stays so heels won't hit panniers, but they are lighter than most touring bikes.

Either bike can be outfitted with any equipment you want, including flat bars.

just to mention, my wife was/is in the same boat, preferred flat bars as she has always thought that drop bars make you reach forward too much, also she only wants to do supported tours or weekend stuff.

this summer when we did a 6 day supported tour, she was able to talk with many women cyclists who made her realize that drop bars are just as comfortable and more than flat bars because of the varying hand positions, that if your bike fits you, the seat to bar distance will be fine for back and neck issues that many people like my wife think are what drop bars make happen.
My wife too is not heavy, so her Specialized Vita which is very light makes a real difference for being sprightly and easier going up hills.

Because of our 6 day tour (with days of up to 100km) she now realizes that she would like a bike similiar in weight to her Vita (flat bars) but with drop bars so that she would be more comfortable and a bit quicker in general.

I got a Specialized Tricross Sport this summer and find it to be a great inbetween bike of sort of a tourer and sortof a road bike. It is lighter and faster than my touring bike, and much faster than my mtn bike with slicks. Has a triple that has fairly low gears , in Canada they are sold with a 11-32 tooth rear cassette, which with the 30 tooth granny gear is a reasonabley low touring first gear.

I second this fellows recommendation for a lighter bike, I dont think you need a full on tourer, as we all know that 90% of the time we dont have 2 full rear panniers or more on it do we, but we go on rides, go to work etc etc. Again, I would recommend looking into a drop bar bike....but then again, my wife had teh same idea as you in her head and only realized another option when we did our long days and she spoke with other women on the tour (ie, not her husband telling her....let alone a stranger like I am to you...)

L h t

Hi to all, and thanks so much for taking the time to reply! I don't log on often, hence the delayed response.
I certainly have heaps to investigate now, thanks to your many suggestions. To answer a few of the concerns/queries expressed, I'm locked into dealing with this particular bike shop as it's an insurance job, and I agree the guy I dealt with didn't know about touring needs. He was the Saturday "2nd job" boy. There are good staff members there as well though, so I will do my research and take my results in to someone more experienced with touring.
Also, I persevered with my drop bars on the Cannondale for a long time but always ended up with pain in my arms and between my shoulders, even after having the bike set up to my exact body measurements using the Scandinavian "Bike Fit" assessment. Hence my current dedication to flat bars.
Well, I’m off now to look into all your suggestions. Thanks again!

O v e r a t e d

Salsa Casseroll, Soma Doublecross, and Trek Portland would on my short list of bikes I'd be looking at.

And the Schwinn Super Sport DBX. I have it set up as a commuter but there's no reason it can't handle touring and rails to trails if one wants.