Cannondale quick cx is it good for touring?
 

hi guys
im going on a touring adventure in east Africa for 30-40 days, and i bought a cannondale quick cx

Cannondale Quick CX 1 Ultra 2011 Hybrid Bike | Evans Cycles

i know theres is a lot of other good touring bike, but here in my country it's really hard to find a touring bike, so do you think this cannondale can do the job ?

thanks

Yes. Hybrids are suppose to provide a more 'relaxed' ride than touring bikes. Meaning, I guess, you sit more upright. They also often are geared lower. That's good.

Lock out the fork when on smooth roads. Will increase pedaling efficiency. Add some bar end extensions for more hand positions. As 700 c is not commonly available in Africa(or so I'm told), take extra tubes and know how to boot a tire.

Enjoy the ride.

I'd recommend bringing at least an extra tire folding ones or steel Bead.

Ergon GR5 is a good comfortable grip / barend combination.

Upgrades before Africa:

1) Put on heavy-duty touring tires. Since 700c is uncommon, get GOOD ones like Schwalbe Marathons. As Cyclebum said, learn to boot a tire, learn to sew a tire, bring lots of spare tubes and maybe grab some tire liners.

2) Have a local bike shop check the trueness of the wheels.

3) Make sure the seat is comfortable. If it isn't, ask your local shop if you can test some others until you find one that is comfy.

4) I'm actually going to go on the dissent here and say you DON'T need to upgrade your handlebars, add grips, or bar-ends. Since your bike's geometry is fairly upright, you won't have much weight on your wrists and the current handlebars will be fine. I think there's a knee-jerk "hand positions!" reaction on this forum to flat bars, but that's very low priority in my mind. WAY less important than the wheels and tires.

5) Racks and Panniers- figure it out now so you can make changes.

The reaction is probably caused by most people having experienced or heard others talk about numbness in the fingers after riding for extended periods on flat bars with no bar ends. I've been there and done that, and don't wish to experience it again. Definitely find a way to have multiple hand positions.

I'm not a fan of Cannondale's proprietary / non-standard forks and stems (or any of Cannondale's "System Integration" rubbish). Hopefully you won't have any problems while on tour, but if the bike is not new then I would have the fork looked at by a Cannondale dealer before leaving.

thank you guys for your help

1) sure i will have to put some new tires and bring one with me in case of, but im not sure if i can find any one of this brands you are talking about

2) my friend owns a bike shop so he is going to check the bike for me and change the seat to "selle italia "

3) im really considering upgrading my handlebars or adding grips, but if i can't find one i will have to stick with what i have.

4) i bought a used " thule pack ' 'n pedal tour rack" as for the bags i bought some asian brand bags, for 30 dollar brand new, they look good though.

5) the bike is used but in a good condition (200 dollar), i live in Tunisia, we have 3 good bike shops here they have awesome mountain bikes and road bikes but no touring bikes, so it's impossible to have the bike checked by a cannondale dealer.