Search found 397 matches

by Mattie
22 May 2012, 7:03am
Forum: Does anyone know … ?
Topic: Breakfast
Replies: 50
Views: 6712

Re: Breakfast

Meic - I know what you mean about carrying milk. I found though that I can quite easily use a liter of milk. If you buy some from a shop at the end of the day, drink most of it and have some left for tea in the morning.

As for breakfast - in France - anything that comes to hand - stale French bread fried in olive oil is nice, as French bread goes stale very quickly.
In hotter climes - Cold Can of Coke and a Bounty bar from the first petrol station that you come to !

Sorry, coming from the Channel Islands all my cycle touring has been off the Island on the continent, and so have never done any touring in Britain. :(
by Mattie
10 May 2012, 1:06pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Sports drinks
Replies: 20
Views: 3652

Re: Sports drinks

Well I am sure you will see how you get on when you get there. On a previous trip to Spain, in August, I found that my water requirement went up massively when cycling uphill and in the hot sun.

I found that a pinch of salt would help stop the raging thirst that seemed unquenchable, and cure the headache that developed. Spain in August is right up there with the hottest places to be found anywhere. I cycled round the Negev desert in late summer and it was nothing like as bad as that trip across Castile in August, mostly because the Negev desert was a lot flatter than Castile.

So my advice would be to take some salt, that is easily accessible, and if you start loosing your temper and getting impatient with everything, and you develop a raging thirst and headache - then time to take some salt with your water !

This is from my experience of hot weather cycling and it may be different for you depending on many different factors. Have a good trip :D
by Mattie
9 May 2012, 11:38pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Sports drinks
Replies: 20
Views: 3652

Re: Sports drinks

For myself sports drinks are the key to success in hot weather cycling, to keep cycling all day. I found that I do not really want to eat when it gets really hot so sports drinks keep the energy levels up, and provide liquids and salts. I have found that buying Powerade from petrol stations is an expensive way of doing it, but it certainly works. My last summer trip down to Greece there were days when I was spending about 15 Euros a day on Powerade ! but cycled through the heat of the day (eg 8x500ml).

Good luck on your trip.
by Mattie
19 Apr 2012, 8:06am
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: How do you do it?
Replies: 10
Views: 6865

Re: How do you do it?

A small tent does not bother me, but do not like the idea of camping rough, in Western Europe anyway. I do not like being unclean - turning up at a hotel or being served in a shop - whilst being all unclean and not washed for many days would make me feel like a tramp.

Campsite, and a shower, and even a small tent will suit just fine :D
by Mattie
12 Apr 2012, 8:44pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Help needed planning tour through France
Replies: 6
Views: 5878

Re: Help needed planning tour through France

My vote would be for a route through the centre as you could visit the epic Puy De Dome. You could also include Clermont Ferrand, Vichy, Orleans and Fontainebleau on the way to Paris.

If you go by the coast all the way, well it is just more of the same thing - the coast !

I have found that the enjoyment of cycling through France is the reward itself - it is enjoyable just to be cycling through France. The other is that the country has quite a lot of farmland ! so you may have nothing much going on for a few days at a time !

But to take the bull by the horns and cycle across the middle of it, and take whatever comes would be my suggestion - you will love it anyway.

Bon Route
by Mattie
5 Apr 2012, 8:30am
Forum: Cycle Camping sub-forum
Topic: Price of tent on campsites in France.
Replies: 9
Views: 5764

Re: Price of tent on campsites in France.

There are still cheap campsites around in France. I kept a log of my trip last summer (2011) and here are a few examples:

Domfront municipal campsite: EUR 5.50 per night
GPS: N 48 35.310, W 000 39.63 (degrees decimal minutes)

Courville-sur-Eure municipal campsite: EUR 2.10 per night
GPS: N 48 26.768, E 001 14.419

Chaumont municipal campsite: EUR 8.45 per night
GPS: N 48 07.194, E 05 07.851

I have records of others that were more expensive, but often included internet WiFi, such as Munster EUR 25 inc internet charge of EUR 6.
It should be noted that none of these municipal sites were in busy South of France tourist hotspots !

Happy travels.
by Mattie
22 Mar 2012, 7:05pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Rear view mirrors?
Replies: 96
Views: 22124

Re: Rear view mirrors?

I got it !! :D

Anyway more alarming is without a mirror - you look behind you sometime back and see nothing and then all of a sudden there is someone in Lycra - barely 2 feet away from you !!

AAHHHH !! where did he come from ? :D

I find that a bit wierd. Going slowly you expect cars to be passing you all the time and it is sort of background - then all of a sudden out of the blue there is a human only inches away from you !! it has made me jump on many occasions :mrgreen:
by Mattie
20 Mar 2012, 7:02pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Rear view mirrors?
Replies: 96
Views: 22124

Re: Rear view mirrors?

Spending all day, sometimes for days at a time, watching traffic in a rearview mirror as it approaches you and overtakes, you get a very good idea of what is normal and what is going to be dangerous to you.

You can see traffic as it approaches, and watch it move out as it goes to pass you - you get a good idea of how close the vehicle should be before it starts to move out to overtake. If it gets too close and has not yet moved out to overtake you - its time to get out of its way !
by Mattie
16 Mar 2012, 6:47pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Rear view mirrors?
Replies: 96
Views: 22124

Re: Rear view mirrors?

Si wrote:...... I find that I have to lean my bike on something that is on its right side quite often, thus mirrors always get knocked out of position when doing this. And that one that mounts to the head tube is no good to me as it can't see past my luggage.


I first fitted a mirror for touring abroad, so the mirror went on the left side of the handlebar. When I got back home I ran into the same trouble as you, so I left the mirror on the left side of the handlebar - as it is still much better than no mirror at all. That way I can still lean my bike against the wall.
by Mattie
5 Mar 2012, 8:04am
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: The frustration of a (long distance) bike buyer...
Replies: 77
Views: 16963

Re: The frustration of a (long distance) bike buyer...

rollinbone wrote:How about considering a Koga Signature or Randonneur
http://www.koga-signature.com/koga-signature.aspx

I got a Signature in 2008 that had XT and with full set of Vaude panniers for just over £1600
You 'build' your bike on-line and it tells you the price as you go along and before you order
Its hand built and delivered from Holland to a store you select

Also the frame has attachment points for disk brakes so I have since upgraded with those and a Rohloff hub
P1010913_1.jpg


I got mine delivered to Cyclesense in Tadcaster Yorkshire - check out the other Koga bikes ->
http://www.cyclesense.co.uk/m1b134s21p0 ... ring_Audax


I have one of these also, a Koga Miyata World Traveller Signature. Mine was delivered to De Vakantiefietser in Amsterdam and they sent it on to me. Living in the smaller of the Channel Islands means it is not unusual to have to go that bit further to get what you want !

Bought mine in 2010 and very pleased with it. Also think it is very good value for money.
by Mattie
28 Feb 2012, 8:15pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Air France and CTC bike bag
Replies: 4
Views: 1011

Re: Air France and CTC bike bag

duncanharris wrote:Nobody been on Air France?


I have, in August 2009. I packed the bike up in bubble plastic from a DIY store and cardboard from a building site ( rather posh Italian tiles !)

Anyway flew Madrid to Paris CDG airport. At check in in Madrid the Air France girl asked a blokey if the bike was okay. He had a look round it and said that it was, and on it went.

In the picture you may be able to see that all of the oily running gear is covered in plastic.

I hope this is of some help to you.
by Mattie
28 Feb 2012, 7:35pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Starting to tour
Replies: 32
Views: 2780

Re: Starting to tour

I think the most valuable lesson that comes with a bit of experience is to know that there are emotional Highs and Lows to cycle touring, I did not realise that at first ! So when things are bad, you are somewhere you do not like, or there are hills and headwinds or rain, is to know that the dark mood is only a passing thing. Top tip number 1 !!
by Mattie
9 Feb 2012, 7:32pm
Forum: Does anyone know … ?
Topic: Rear brake on the left or right handlebar?
Replies: 65
Views: 6509

Re: Rear brake on the left or right handlebar?

Tigerbiten wrote:.......
There's no point in having any controls on the left after a Tiger ate my left arm ......... :P


Seen you on the tele !! :D

Doctor in the operating theatre asks asks if the arm will be along shortly - no, 'cause its inside a tiger !!

Shouldn't laugh, but some of it was funny !, I admire your sense of humour. Just don't let it happen again !! :mrgreen:
by Mattie
9 Feb 2012, 1:25pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: UK to Australia European leg advice please
Replies: 12
Views: 1037

Re: UK to Australia European leg advice please

unclebob wrote:thanks Mattie, what time of year was that? we will there early April probably and will be looking mainly to wild camp if possible, are the beaches reasonably accessible? i gather that the roads are busy in the summer but at that time of year should be relatively ok. Can you recommend any worthwhile stops and what maps did you use?
many thanks, Bob.


Hi Bob. I passed through there in the last week of August and first week of September 2011. Sunny and hot ! but this maybe past the peak tourist season as nothing was ever full and I just got the impression that the peak was over. Still plenty of traffic about but not like the south of France in August where everything is full !

Wild camping, there looked to be lots of opportunities, not so much on the beaches as they appeared mostly small rocky inlets, but rather on the other side of the road among the trees and rocks. If you have a freestanding tent then I am sure you could pitch it easily out of sight of the road, among the trees and big rocks. I never fancied it as I rather have a shower and a cold beer and a bit of civilisation at the end of the day, especially travelling alone. But it looked perfectly possible.

Maps; Western Balkans from Stamfords online store, £9.50 Also bought a larger scale Croatian map in Trieste I think it was, at a petrol station along the way anyway. Also had GPS with Garmin City Navigator 2011. I found the GPS quite useful for distances to, as there did not appear to be many kilometre signs, at least not of use to a cyclist, so the GPS worked well for that.

Areas worth a look: Around the river Neretva area was a welcome change from the hot and dry and up and down. I am sure it would be possible to explore some of this lovely area in a boat, organised trip or paid for somehow yourself. I would like to do that next time !

Spilt and Dubrovnik may not appear to be that special when siting in your home trying to decide which short hall trip, and comparing them to all of Europe, but when you have cycled down the coast from Rijeka you will probably see them in a different light ! They are still beautiful places in the warm summer evenings, and for me the highlights of cycling through Croatia.

Attached couple of pictures near the Neretva area : Stayed here by the river GPS 43 02. 984 N, 017 28.576 E (degrees, decimal minutes)

I hope you keep a blog of your trip to OZ with some pics and details. Good luck.