Cycling UK Forum

Brompton themselves supply 2 different tubes (I think they are Schwalbe), a narrow option up to 28c and a fatter option for up to 35c.

My Athena 11 speed have loads of clicks and i'm sure would run triple, my Super Record have far fewer clicks and wouldn't although they look pretty similar.

i use a Gore jacket, it and the previous one have kept most wet out (you sweat if its warm so the wet inside isn't usually from the outside!). But they are not cheap.

Specialized do some nice goretex jackets @ your budget but not with a hood (its an extra on the Gore).

i've not counted but i've probably done @ 20 metric tons (i did 5 on my recent low countries tour) including a double besides a couple of imperials this year. Some times you feel good and its a surprise how far you've done, other times its a grinding nightmare! I find it mentally more difficult to set off for the day intent on doing the distance than if i accumulate it without thinking about it - the first time i did the metric double i was scared of the distance and took over 9 hours, this year i did it easily in slightly more than 7!

You don't need to train to do the distance exactly, if you can ride 2/3rds of the target without too much distress, the extra bit shouldn't be more than a feeding and pacing issue. For me i like to go reasonably hard for the first hour then take it easy through the rest of the ride, when i've covered half distance i consider its broken and its just a matter of how long it takes me then

The cooler autumnal days are ideal for getting longer rides in, make sure the bike is in good order and you are prepared energy wise - have breakfast before you set off (current fashion seems to be porridge but i like a pastry myself) then top up before you feel hungry and don't forget to keep hydrated!

if you can, lose the suicide levers!

Last month i loosely followed the North Sea route from Europort, Rotterdam to just over the Danish border, in previous years i've based tours on the Romantic Strasse, Main Radweg and many more, sometimes using parts of several long distance routes.

I often see other people on the routes but i get the impression that most users are on day rides or perhaps a weekend as i rarely see others camping or riding loaded - this year maybe 4 riders from the thousands that i saw riding along the route. (This has been similar over the years across dozens of routes)

So two questions really, how many people really follow these routes for a real distance (over 100km)? and do people slavishly follow every signposted kilometre?

just curious really

A bike with wheels 20" and above, if supplied complete must have reflectors and a bell when it leaves the shop. If you customise the bike (change the pedals, add a rack etc or if your bike is supplied without pedals for instance) these requirements suddenly vanish and there is currently no legislation enforcing their fitment. However, you may potentially be breaking the law if you ride without reflectors in poor lighting conditions and you obviously must have lights if the conditions so dictate.

i used to race on a tandem where the tucked position for me (stoker) was a single central vertical handlebar, of course at slow speeds i moved onto the wider handlebars for stability!

leftpoole wrote:Any kind of noise after around 9pm!
John

9 might be a bit early, most sites say 10pm but campsites that don't enforce their own rules could be added to the list!

Brucey wrote:you need to look at a contour map of Frisia; flat as a pancake. You couldn't get a place any easier on the brakes.

There are many possible causes of failing disc brakes. A negative point for such brakes is that (both inherently and through familiarity) they are less easy to diagnose faults with than cable-operated rim brakes are.

If you have any details of the brake system you used, it might help.

cheers

The same TRP HyRd's that i've been using in the Peak District and Yorkshire for best part of a year! Go figure - the loaded touring set up actually weighed in at less than my weekly shop done on the same bike in Sheffield - not reknowned for its flat terrain!

Will have to strip and rebuild to get to the bottom of it i guess.

You get days when it all goes pear shaped for one reason or another, i find the key is to not panic.

If its a tough ride, break it into chunks in your head, stop, take your mind off the riding if you can. if you use some form of computer set it to km's - more of them but they go quicker so it fools your head into thinking you've made better progress!

Mostly think positively about the end result - the beer, the shower, catching the ferry etc.

It certainly helps if you are realistic in your ride expectations in term's of load/distance/terrain/time available/weather.

where are they? I will post some of mine from a fortnight ago when i find them again!

nmnm wrote:

mnichols wrote:The Tortec rack is 440 Grams

Those panniers do look light, but the tortec 440g claim is infamous - it's actually 530g or 570g (I forget which), with the fittings.

one thing is for sure - it certainly is knowhere near 440g!

Just got back from my trip - campsites were on average @ €9 a night although Alkmaar was twice that and more! Most Dutch sites charge for showers extra either €0.50 or €1.

If you want to cross the Elbe, the new Cuxhaven/Brunsbuttel ferry is now running and cost under €9 for the hour plus trip with the bonus of a campsite less than 1km from the north side landing!

willem jongman wrote: German cycle routes are great, but partly because so much of them is forest trails and gravel (and in the Czech Republic the gravel was even coarser).

Have to say that it amuses me no end all this scaremongering about using 'narrow' tyres on these routes. If it really is a problem how come my 28c Conti Gatorskins coped with gravel roads, sand, grass and anything else sent their way on my recent Fresian tour (Rotterdam to Ribe)? No damage to the tyres (cuts etc), hardly any wear and i had a bit of slip once on a steel plate ferry deck! I hired a Dutch roadster for a day with 45c tyres and found no difference in grip over similar terrain (the bike was horrible to ride, no brakes to speak of, 0-10kph three weeks and cornering like the Queen Mary!)
Usually in Germany etc the bike i use has 25c tyres which may lose a little on comfort but have never been found wanting on the trails - i reckon 50% of most of my trips follow cycle routes on all manner of surfaces so i'm not being protective of the tyres.