here is my bike, with axiom dutch shopper pannier bags and a axiom transit rear rack.

All you have to do is cut the extra off. A brand new hack saw is only so much. I bet a bike shop would do it for less them a 20 spot. If you ever reck and catch that in the chest or crotch you will really with it had been cut off trust me.

Seriously? Didn't know that! I'll probably take it to a shop though, since I don't have a way to chase the threads afterwards.

Here's my Jamis Aurora, loaded with, it turns out, 55 pounds. Arkel panniers, front waterproof Dolphin-32s, back T-42s, they're great. Rode it San Francisco to San Diego in June, later this summer I'll do a 500 mile east coast tour with them:

Due to life I only get a few days each year to go, and this year we go where drink may be hard to find, so I got 1.5 gal water and about 10 Gatorades.

Here's my '09 Surly, not loaded but with everything attached.

Finally did a loaded ride on my bike.
Main components:
Surly LHT (built with parts from my old bike, FSA cranks, SRAM drivetrain, shimano derailluers)
Mavic A719 wheels.
Marathon supreme wheels
Mec 46L panniers, Ortlieb back roller classics, Arkel small handlebar bag

isn't it a threadless stem?

Do your panniers just have straps across the rack instead of hooks? I have linked my rear panniers with straps and added some velcro to stop the bags sliding back or forward. They worked quite well but it did look as if they had been trying to move forward in use. Yours look like they are made that way. Do they have something that stops back and forth movement? Any chance of a clearer photo of how they fix to the rack.

That's a seriously cool paint job B-) I love the detail on the back panniers too. Great job. : ) Bet it gets a lot of conversation.

I just got my LHT in and noticed it doesn't have the fff sticker on it either. I was wondering if I just got a wierd one or it was all '09's but looks like they might have just left them off all of them.

Mine doesn't have it either, which doesn't bother me a bit. I hate that sticker.
-Gene-

Here is my Batavus Champion loaded with an extra 40lbs before leaving on a five day last August. I ran a 42/18 setup for that trip. Too much fun!

WITbike, how do you like those bars (model?) for touring?

i've recently begun about switching from drops to something
that will keep me a little more upright. i never ride down in
the drops and i thought something like yours might be a good option.

you can always get a longer stem, so you would use the drops? From what I understand if you don't use the drops much, then the bars are to low.

for me it is not a question of bars are too low. i simply have never ridden in the drops.
seeing how i don't use them, why should i have them? even with a longer stem, i still probably
wouldn't ride in the drops.

I found that my bars are very comfortable while touring. With that being said, they are not the best for climbing with a fully loaded rig. The change in grip location from regular drop bars to the cruisers forces your whole body upright.

yea, they have a tendency to travel a bit, though thats mustly while they're empty. maybe these photos will help. (straps)

Ya' I had the very same opinion as you, before I raised them. In fact I may have told my buddy the same thing before I raised them just to shut him up.

still not gonna ride in 'em.

Meet my bike Cliche - LHT with tubus racks and ortlieb panniers. These recent photos were taken in N Vietnam and Guanxi China.

I rarely use the drops but it is nice to have the option. I do find them useful with a headwind. Getting low really does help. To me, options are luxury.

My Surly LHT at Great Sacandaga Lake (NY). I toured through the Catskills and Adirondacks this past June.

Here's mine, a Cannondale Caffeine F1 (2008 model) prior to tour-oriented customisation:



I'll post a couple of photographs of my bicycle, with a rack and panniers; Specialized Fatboy (slick; front) and a Specialized Nimbus (rear) tyres; an (extreme) rise handlebar with Ergon grips and bar-ends (carbon, GX1); a RAM iPhone and GPS handlebar mounts; fenders; an AirZound pneumatic horn and so-forth either in the midst of my bicycling journey to Rome - or shortly before setting off.

Heres my fully loaded 2009 Novara Safari.