Hey, I have the same bike, same color too! But it's made into a cruiser type bike that rocks!

Sweet scenery! I wish I can do some touring in the motherland!

Just got an '84 720, new paint in progress and building it up with new components! Cant wait!

Maiden Voyage

I have a great Wald basket that i attached to my handlebars for my LHT. It's black, and really adds to the utility of the bike. Here's a link. It's not very flimsy, and if it gets bent it can be formed back to shape very easily. Wald rules.

https://www.waldsports.com/index.cfm/wald133basket.html

Just finished a short Spring Break ride with three friends. It took place in San Luis Obispo and Ventura Counties on the central coast of California. Wildflowers were in bloom and the weather was mild. One summit topped out at 5180 feet with a 25 mile descent on the back side. The ride was wonderful.

A week prior I finished the build of my Panasonic Pro Touring. Had it stripped and powder coated, and then with a mix of new and used parts built a nice ride. I used it for commuting that week and then took it out fully loaded for the first time. It did well. It was comfortable, responsive, though it did have a little shimmy when riding with no hands. I think it's a nice solid bike.

Pics in a slide show are at the following location. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V33SGTHZwqk

George
SLO, CA

Hildy packed and parked at a coffee shop.

a quickr pickr post

1986 Fuji Sagres ... 3-day ride / camp over the weekend. 148 miles, 20+ on dirt roads.
My first "official" tour and I am already mapping out the next route. Learned a lot
over the weekend. Color me addicted.

Wow...Great photos and slide show. California is the best state! I live in Ventura and am looking forward to doing some touring in this area, starting with a sub-24 hour in the next few weeks. Stevie B.

"The Troop Train" - made up of a Catrike Expedition with a Extrawheel trailer with luggage consisting of 4 panniers I made out of Kingsford Charcoal Storage containers (I used a pair like these on my Maryland to Nebraska trip last year and they worked great!) and two Arkel Catrike frame bags - probably more storage space than I should use!

Here is my loaded bike from last summer's ride; this photo is on the way in to Cape Meares along the Oregon Coast.

Stock Crosscheck with custom Front Rack and Topeak rear rack. I also have a Brooks B-17 and some Marathons Supremes to put on. Tell me what you think.

I like your custom front rack. I tried something similar, but I found that it did not have the needed lateral support while climbing steep hills with a heavy load. The weight would induce a wobble and it was somewhat unstable when climbing very slowly. I've since installed a Blackburn mountain front rack (MTF1 MTN) and it is more stable. Hopefully you won't experience the instability when climbing under weight.

I have tested with weight and it seems ok. I'm using it on a 3month european tour this summer. So far its holding up well. I would recommend doing this because front racks with a top are > $80. This costed me $5 in bolts and screws. I had the rack lying around.

Here's my ride packed for a local camping trip at one of our lakes.

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo...eat=directlink

Hi simpleseat
Wow you know how to pack and make the most of a bike. The headlight is so cute there.
A bigger in frame bag would be real nice. Happy trails.

Cracker, that rack idea is groovy! Looks like it volunteered to be an "assistant from the audience" at a magic show gone wrong! Good job

Old Fuji with WAYY too much loaded onto a seatpost rack.

I _love_ the kitty-litter panniers.

How did you attach them?

here's my rig as it was set up in March for a Boston-NY tour I did with a few friends. I drummed a lot of the way for enjoyment:

In it's current carnation:
2004 Fuji Silhouette
Nashbar Trekking Bars
Ergon Grips.
Specialized Avatar Saddle
DIY Trashcan Panniers with backpack and drybag
Magellan Meridian Gold GPS with package tape mount
Bucket and jam block mounted to handebars for drumming while riding/map














And here's what drumming and biking sounds like. This vid is from last friday's boston critical mass. I'm in the blue shirt. my friend galen's also drumming next to me in red:

Burkes Pass, Mackenzie Country, NZ

Ha ha! I am so tempted to accept the award for nostalgic purposes, the first "real" bike I ever owned (if you can call it that), was a lime green '76 Sears Free Spirit "10 speed." I was "The Cannibal" any time I was on that bike... that is until the (un)safety brake levers failed one day after bombing down a steep hill and I ended up in the back seat of a car after not being able to stop (the steel rims were also wet from rain) and crashing through the back window. Fortunately, with an exception of a few small cuts and a bit of smashed pride, I was relatively unhurt... and that was before helmets (but lets not go there). Anyway, I'd love to see a picture of it

I figured you were joking

I always wanted to hike the Milford Trek when I was in my 20s and early 30s and since have REALLY wanted to bike the islands but haven't gotten there yet. I've read a bit about the Milford and NZ including a number of biking blogs and also have a number of Kiwi friends who are hikers and cyclists and remembered the name Michael John Burke and that there is Mckenzie Pass in NZ but did have to use Goo in order to confirm it

Cheers!

Mississippi River at Guttenburg, Iowa. First solo tour, have since switched to steel as a direct result from this trip.