Cycling UK Forum

If going on ferry better book , turning up would be disappointing during the holiday season. Very popular with golfers going to Islay,

Waterproof gloves ? Do they exist, I think not. Most so called waterproof gloves are only showerproof. As above Buffalo mitts work ,warm hands when wet. They need to be a good fit not big and loose.
Same for their Buffalo shirt an almost tight fit is best.
They did made to measure,best top I have it's faded with use but still works in cold and wet conditions.

Been on a few GRs, red VTT sections of routes on the Pyrenees and Basque VTT traverses and Velo routes.Most places are off the usual tourist trails. Lots of Route Forestaire, farm tracks, etc. We are West of Tarbes heading towards Marciac , and the weather is improving. Official Route is north to south but we are doing the reverse.

You can buy a remote for the edge series,has buttons to save touching the screen if in heavy rain to view a different page.
https://www.garmin.com/en-GB/p/146078/pn/010-12094-10

The Aria drum brake has fins ,work quite well as a heat sink.
Don't think anyone has had issues with them getting too hot or the braking surface separating from the shoes.

If with virgin you can have roaming with 25 gig and calls for £8 on uSwitch if going for an O2 monthly SIM .

Another tip for disc brakes replace plastic hoses with ones with metal braid. Melted a hose on a Pyrenean descent, a motorbiker gave us the tip. And another disaster was melting seals on hope calipers,but that was when pistons were metal. Changed them to Magura Gustav as they were tandem rated. We learned that changing pads before they got too close to the metal back plate was a good idea.

The newer ortlieb panniers are not so good for pulling the lids down. Changed the design with the clips fixed higher up and old ones have the straps running from the base . Give you more options to hold stuff through the straps. Prefer the front lided versions if carrying more gear back and front. Large rear panniers are just too big.
Roll top ones usually require 3 turns for keeping water out.

Going for something different this year, a mostly gravel route across France. Going south to north as it's easier to fly out and catch a ferry in the north. Done the Club des cent cols Divide routes for France and Spain road versions.
Bourdeaux via velo 1 to Bayonne and south east to the start.
In Oloron waiting for the bad weather to clear ,stage 1 complete. The Basque area was hard a mix of parts of Velo3 ,grand traverse of the Pyrenees Vtt and the hardest was a section of the grand traverse of the Basque country Btt. Stage 2 to Lourdes is proper gravel off road
https://www.frenchdivide.com/en/about-us/gps-files/

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source= ... i=89978449

mig wrote: ↑4 Sep 2024, 9:51am 130psi on a Marathon plus? I don't fancy being the stoker !

That's why suspension seatposts are a must for stokers.

Tandem tyres compared to solo tyres are going to need much higher pressure. Just compare a car to a van and van tyres are made to carry loads so need much higher pressure than cars . Tandem it's 2 people and if touring almost twice the luggage. Toured on Marathon XR and tyres were pumped up until they were rock hard, way above the recommended max pressure. Only issue was back tyre if using drag/disk to stop excessive speeds descending. The tyre has a hard life if touring in the mountains.

We can sit in a cafe city centre or central station without a lock on the bikes. Try that down south or Edinburgh. Recon the only bikes that are worth stealing are electric bikes today.

Gravel bikes can be a Kansas race type or bike packing. If you want something that's suitable for you why not buy a frame and build it. Mini racks are making a comeback if you don't like a top heavy bike with everything strapped on.Today we have a better choice of gear , ( only problem is once you buy into a system you are locked in). Campag,Shimano Scram have everything to suit light and fast or slower and carrying extra gear for the long haul .
Today most buy a built up bike as it's cheaper than sourcing all the parts.

The el cid route has a card, gives you a discount on some accommodation. Must be a Spanish tourist scheme to promote visiting the interior as opposed to the usual coastal hotspots. Done most of the Spanish Lapland or empty mountains route, the refugios range from windowless hovels to nice stopovers. You also have the recreational areas they have shelters and concrete barbecue tables .The whole idea of this route is to support local trade. . Some bars and shops have limited opening times or only open on certain days , we stopped for food if a place was open .

Not working ,phone is Pixel 6 and it's stuck on the upload page in a death cycle. Phone contract renewal soon , if I can't find a fix it's a new phone or not bother with the app and just use the web version.