Wow, guys thank you all for your time replying, read every reply and taken it on board. Did think about a Tandom, did wonder if they would fit within the dimensions that the airlines require, is on my list of things to research into. Health check from doctors is a good idea, one I'd never thought about, but now on my list too. Other half is a bit younger than me (both of us have big birthdays this year ) doesn't smoke and is reasonably generally fit quite slight build (think beauty and the beast) we will experiment with the weight distribution once we get going. UK try out trips are on the plan, along with a different bike for her, hybrid, and smooth tyres for me. Our work out route is by default, the downs link (think gravelly tracks) as we lucky enough to live right by it. I think our route, although not ideal, is probably set in stone for a few reasons and I might be fighting a loosing battle (or I'll be on my own) if it changes, I'm maybe slightly more keen start touring (she is willing I'm not dragging her by her hair) the finish is my mother in laws house and visiting me her mum at the end will be her incentive (I'm focusing on the cold beer) and if we really aren't enjoying the ride then the option of public transport straight to the mother in laws doorstep is an easy proposition
I would seriously get used to cycling before considering a tandem, unless it really is not practicable to solo cycle. Tandems are great fun but not if you need to gain experience, you need a very 'easy' companion to ride with, one who does not wriggle around on the back and 'fight' the steering.... believe you will find it very tough if you have to strain to hold the tandem upright as well as the other elements of riding / steering a tandem. It's not all doom and gloom and it is possible to click together on a tandem.... but they are harder and slow down quicker on hills than a solo, they are also much speedier down hill.
I stand and rejoice everytime I see a woman ride by on a wheel the picture of free, untrammeled womanhood. HG Wells
Ollie732 wrote: ... if we really aren't enjoying the ride then the option of public transport straight to the mother in laws doorstep is an easy proposition
This is what I was getting at early in the thread. There's a reasonable amount of time from now till September for both of you to get fit enough AND to know whether you both enjoy fairly serious cycle touring. If you intend to leave most of that till you are en route, you might as well book your public transport now. It's doable, but it won't happen just by planning, no matter how meticulous that may be.
It doesn't have to be all or nothing with public transport. Lots of people will have a rest day or bypass a boring bit with a single day on the train.
Supporter of the A10 corridor cycling campaign serving Royston to Cambridge http://a10corridorcycle.com. Never knew gardening secateurs were an essential part of the on bike tool kit until I took up campaigning.....
Yes you are mad. Smoker, over weight with limited physical fitness and definitely no cycling miles in your legs let alone riding a a bike with luggage on, your target of riding 65-70 miles is totally unrealistic. Maybe there is an outside chance you do it, but only the once. After which you and your wifey will be shattered. You won't be able to do it the next day. You don't want this holiday to end in divorce. Set a much more realistic distance of 30-40 miles on flattish terrain much less if riding up and down hills and mountains. As some one said visit your doctor as you don't want to give yourselves a heart attack!
"Zat is ze reel prowoking qwestion Mr Paxman." - Peer Steinbruck, German Finance Minister 31/03/2009.
Yep, brutal post, but understood. I've got to have something to aim for in life, biggest goal is to stop smoking, and get fitter, if I didn't have a trip 'planned' there is no goal (its how I get motivated) if we start our journey to achieve the goal of this ride and it just isn't for us, I'll end up fitter and I'm happy to have a holiday on the med and catch up with family, but I've been called bloody minded a few times and will try my damdest to achieve this
Sounds like fun. I would find your distances too much but I get easily bored and like to do other stuff in the afternoon than spend another couple of hours on the bike. I like big plans- I am cycling across the USA this year, starting section one in a month or so.
In terms of routes here is the outline of Eurovelo 8 for you. As someone said it’s not finished but it does cut inland so you’d see some variety. I see you’ve noted that Provence has some mountains!
If the finish point is fixed maybe consider Eurovelo 17 via Rhona from Lyon- it also runs along the med coast at the end and you can finish on ev 8 if you want to go further as they join up. It is a river route (Rhône) so is essentially flat. I did it in September and finished at Beziers. Obviously you can sort out your own route - here’s no need to do a fixed one or you can mix it up and use parts of a drawn up route. Cycle.travel is run by someone on the forum and is an excellent cycle route planner.
I think 70miles a day is too far. 30-40 can be hard work in hilly terrain with a loaded bike. Others have suggested a more local UK tour first, this will give you a better idea of what you're capable of.
Have fun, build up to it and you will know by mid August if 60 miles a day is doable. I say it is, go for it! If your MTB has rigid forks and slick tyres then it is fine for the job - I toured the west coast of the USA on a slicked up £300 MTB 25 years ago, it was fine. Concentrate on making it comfortable and above all ride, ride ride! Try to do some bits with hills as your fitness develops, as the Downs Link is an old railway with minimal gradients. Do a few weekend / overnight trips to help pare down the amount of stuff you need to take and to get used to two straight days riding.
I think this is a good idea that needs some adjustment. First, I think if you conceive of this as part of a life style change, you have to take a longer term perspective. The first thing I would do is include cycling into your daily routine, if possible. Ride to work, use your bike for shopping trips etc. I can tell you this will create the kind of baseline fitness that you need to build up first, and it will also be what secures that the newly won fitness will endure. Second, go on bike rides in the weekend, first short distances, and increasingly more. My hunch is that even towards the end of the training period you will discover that your 60-70 miles a day target is over optimistic. Next year yes, this year probably not. We don't know how (un)fit your wife is, but it sounds like a good idea if she also starts riding her bike on a fairly daily basis, and joins you on some weekend rides. You will have to find out what is comfortable for both of you. In terms of gear, you do not necessarily need much. Your mountain bike may well be very suitable (what is it?). It probably has wide ranging gears, decent brakes and clearance for wide tyres. Make sure it gets a decent overhaul (new cables, brake pads, quite possibly a new cassette and a new chain etc). You may want to fit a more upright handle bar stem and a leather saddle, plus a rack for rear panniers. You will need cycling shorts, a helmet, cycling gloves, some high visibility shirts vel sim, and proper shoes with stiff soles (I like mtb shoes with spd pedals, but that is an acquired taste). Since the bike probably has slow knobbly tyres, get some fast and comfortable touring tyres. My preferecne for all round touring tyres is the 55 mm Schwalbe Almotion (preferably the new version with Vectran anti puncture instead of the older thick rubber). The Schwalbe Big Apple is a cheaper alternative. Wide tyres are nice on bad roads and trails and are faster when the tarmac is less than perfect, not to mention grippier and more comfortable. I am not sure if your wife already has some kind of bike. If she does, she should start using it more often right now, so she will have more of a feel for what she wants for the real trip, and build up fitness from now on. I understand you will not be camping. In that case, luggage is hardly an issue (but don't take too much). For the two of you, one set of 40 liter Ortlieb backroller panniers will do. If you will indeed be the stronger rider of the two, you can take both of them. If she is the stronger one, she can take both. These panniers are very sturdy, and great for day to day use as well. Ours have already lasted twenty years of daily use. Do keep in mind, however, that you may discover that camping is a perfect component of cycle touring. So don't buy your wife a bike that is too light for some luggage. Enjoy, and please follow up with more questions.
Last edited by willem jongman on 11 Mar 2019, 11:05am, edited 1 time in total.
I think that if you do as Willem suggests, which is the tried-and-tested "get some miles in" and if you give up smoking in particular, then six months is a reasonable time to get reasonably fit. The improvement in fitness should be pretty much in proportion to the miles you get in. You will also get an idea quite quickly about whether this is really for you.
Only you know your own circumstances but I'll reiterate a couple of things which have been touched on.
Are you sure of your wife's commitment to this? Is it possible that she is going along with you now in the belief that it's just another daft idea and she won't actually have to go along literally in due course? You need your wife to be getting some miles in with you now.
Once you have a basic level of fitness, cycling any distance is more about your mind than your body. Obviously, there are physical limits, especially in hilly terrain, but a lot of this is sitting on a bike for hours on end and pedalling. If you can cruise at say 10 mph, then riding 70 miles means seven hours sitting on a bike, plus the time for any stops on top of that. Not everybody's idea of fun.
thirdcrank wrote: If you can cruise at say 10 mph, then riding 70 miles means seven hours sitting on a bike, plus the time for any stops on top of that. Not everybody's idea of fun.
+1. And don't under estimate the potential for crippling saddle soreness, especially if you are overweight. All the fitness in the world won't help you if you haven't found a suitable saddle and broken in your bum.
thirdcrank wrote: If you can cruise at say 10 mph, then riding 70 miles means seven hours sitting on a bike, plus the time for any stops on top of that. Not everybody's idea of fun.
+1. And don't under estimate the potential for crippling saddle soreness, especially if you are overweight. All the fitness in the world won't help you if you haven't found a suitable saddle and broken in your bum.
I find this quite negative. Being slower than most, a multi day trip will usually find me riding for more than seven hours a day ( plus stops etc ) - but to me touring is long days on the bike and I find it enjoyable. I have not yet found myself "crippled" by saddle soreness. The answer of course is to get the position and choice of saddle correct. The OP is still a young man - six months should be easily sufficient to get to the level of fitness he needs. A point I would make is that the exercise alone will not necessarily lead to weight loss, so some discipline will also be needed for food intake. Also losing weight may lead initially to a fall in power output - but this is a cycle tour not a race or ultra marathon. Of course I don't know if his wife is equally determined
) doesn't smoke and is reasonably generally fit quite slight build (think beauty and the beast) we will experiment with the weight distribution once we get going. 
