What Kind of Bike Should You Buy? By John Schubert T alway go heavy fo we ra abou a neighbo ge ing- and yo thorou thre br littl ld th oth sting rie u think ing bike e e one hav We B t s e r -s e s, -du ut mi tha r-in- of pe w ghly whe he es — you that rho e touri ider desi nor ty ed, be rac to we . t to la yo A Thi an urin fo od enjoy n r could ke gn. w ca oa y m na a be a ng re u d he ou nd ttri d rry bi eri s d r i sh g s ode led I bi too our k po buys i ed butes touri you ca seek s bi i co ould e ke ng a tli r kes true a n sh nti hi gue a pic i bra good g m n will ms c op ng, c some hte nu g o am your uch ky. stock — et ut ins w e elf. e, is d ve sume find ith m decent e a ge Co thi a of n let like xa and ount T bike Schwinn (and ne good our mple with ake his ng nside a me r ly tra ra ca b . ain in equ does roa l choice g to insp We nsc me pr r ear r e in r to emi oa 20 xa ob hav d b i th ont pme ur e ik i up d mpl in ha o t sp r 07 a a hr nd at a r in e, bl e ch to ti o ect ine ve a do wi e nt g y f s on f e ur g r e- s e or omewh e ca e no et te r a ve es th nt bik f x sp a cumbent, in um ro ty from tegory. a s b nd e n’t r al t mples l g, e a th yone m -s es in t ed ffl front o tour e of th e , light hav ing v each your e him. ev b en e pr for n re n e , n uances e. en i baske array as ma on stop ot years mi bet road thi tandem, cate size I’m d though r t ghty a we s id o y worrying S t gory. ). of trip s f not touring, , w i en ag chwinn e ub n and Se e choic e. l o picky tour , cate zero arch s t B and b the hat my ug A he ut ut s - - - - Rando faces widt These am made trou ply ing n dl are Rando Mo s tou Ge e e e r ss, b v ne o ring unt t po of e ars b ng yp h The The A Sm , d p l fe r e t si e o nneu nee a artl ical o ve ain, are rs g (w f ti l to ack o b bi oo carry cho on) n Ro f y Rando a u fram ke y , hich of b w d a s ring o g rs b de uy b old s ad r reat ice ide s e e and g i , y old caus k ad . x e s e ing and ou m amp es T ne tu at for nee cy is e ce ride any o an no f b ral f. bog REI y e clis ur i Re y f nte t u le our ro hey o ug , REI com npav . ro f o we n yno t m of r it do s f h s ad g , to in us s ow are ll al a e t w p f l , T e o res s ie t ds the art u s w d n by o n, re w til ld minu be ve uring el rai . t ly ith 520 k, he l It and s ry re l-de t p o ev f l s lat- b re p uring trai bike durabl Vit $950 C e m e airabil s fe b ral s cau i a ig re t t ike r re nnondale ls e t ned bro s oria el for . com w ar s i bike s s I’m e p e ith . tant ity tu adcas rice rack. , the It o to Randonne long pani bing , f ’ co cam cu s uring and i i on t r ts u ag me rre ts , T more niv -li es . p re he p Fuj p and S ve a ntly ing . s artl ers ret te tro- bike Y w s d rack ig e o i, ae it ty e g ur l y its ti u nal test grouch h ear. res. i is rodynam b J s coul is b ami 700x32 dropp sp ecause saves : the ad still ing t this ecifications It he s, d ’s road “ty a b p y ed cussed m b R e opu pair ou it pical ic ike y tires. oc wel han sim sur rid t the ire l k ar of is l y ” ------

GREG SIPLE Then there’s the gearing. The front chainwheels are 26/36/48 and the cog cas - sette is a nine-speed 11-34, giving you a good low gear of 21 inches and an overkill high gear of 118 inches. In this $950 price range, you’re paying enough to get an actual brand name on your components, and in the Randonee’s case, that name is usually . Brakes, hubs, chain, crankset, crank spindle, and of course, the derailleurs. You’ll also get a pair of unprepossessing platform pedals with toe clips. This is pretty standard: bikes either come with usable-but-inexpensive pedals, or no pedals at all, on the theory that most rid - ers will want to use the clipless pedal system of their personal choice. The Randonee, and other bikes like it, REI Novara Randonee. will go almost anywhere and endure for between a racing bike and a full-on touring your choice. decades. There’s a reason why bikes in this bike. For 2007, the Sequoia comes in a $770 The more expensive model has nine- class have remained the staple for transcon - model and an $1,100 model. It has skinny speed gearing, with a low gear of 31 inches tinental and similar rides. rims to fit skinny tires (It comes with and a high gear of 113 inches. The less Light Road Touring Specialized 700x23C), but frame and fork expensive model has eight-speed gearing, 32 But what if you’re a confirmed credit clearance to fit tires up to 700 x 32C. Both inches and 113 inches. If you’re in good card tourist? You need carry very little stuff models have carbon fiber forks (advantage: shape, these low gears may be tolerable for for a multi-day ride (I’ve done it with an less vibration, less weight. Disadvantage: very lightly loaded touring. Some riders may eight-pound rack trunk that held all my don’t clamp pannier racks on those carbon choose to have their gearing modified at the clothing and other stuff). You plan to avoid fork blades); the more expensive model also time they buy the bike. unpaved roads, or use some combination of has carbon seatstays. Both models have To underscore the core point: you get skill and caution to ride on them. And you “Zertz” elastomer inserts to reduce vibra - an almost racing bike, lightweight and spry, want your bike to be as spry as possible for tion. You get three chainwheels, mounting with good tire clearances and rack mounts. this kind of riding. bosses for a rear rack, a more upright (and Don’t overload it and you can have some ter - Four years ago, Specialized reignited the more comfortable) rider position than you’d rific adventures. choices for this kind of rider with the find on a true racing bike and cheapie resin Other companies have started to follow Sequoia, which is pretty much a hybrid pedals awaiting the pedal replacement of Specialized’s Sequoia formula. If one of them intrigues you, double check the tire clear - ances and rack mounting capability, because the marketplace is full of otherwise-wonder - ful bikes that lack these two key attributes. Heavy Duty Road Touring What if you are just plain hard on equipment? You carry a lot of weight, you bash through potholes, you ride on rough unpaved surfaces, your weight just has more metal bending karma than other people’s weight. Maybe you plan on riding vast dis - tances over rugged terrain in remote coun - try. You want a bike that is overbuilt and reliability is your top concern. While there are several good examples of heavy-duty touring bikes, the ones that many people will think of are made by frame builder Bruce Gordon, whose $2,550 Rock Specialized Sequoia. ‘n Road and more affordable $1,849 BLT

18 ADVENTURE CYCLIST FEBRUARY 20 07 ADVENTURECYCLING .ORG (Basic Loaded Touring) set the standard for bikes very disinclined to bend or break. Every one of his bikes is hand made in his FAST RIDING ON A “SLOW” BIKE Petaluma, California, factory, and he lives When it comes to riding fast, tour - But is this a disadvantage? I don’t and breathes the needs of the touring cus - ing bikes get a bad rap. I’m sure you have think so. A 20C tire may cool, but a tomer. often heard someone say, “That thing 26C tire handles better. One compelling reason to select a weighs so much,” or “The frame angles The Surly Long Haul Trucker I Bruce Gordon bike is to get Bruce Gordon aren’t right for hard cornering,” or simi - recently road tested weighed 24.16 racks. Gordon pioneered in the United lar epistemological rubbish. pounds with its fat tires. I used to ride States marketplace truly rugged racks that The true differences between a go- USCF races on 23-pound bikes. So I are extremely unlikely to fail in the field. (I fast bike and a touring bike are much think the Long Haul Trucker is pretty was once privy to instrumented rack testing exaggerated. Do you want to have a one- good. Sure, today’s carbon wonders rou - in which Gordon’s racks clearly outshined unit bike collection and still go fast? Buy tinely trounce the 20-pound barrier, but every other rack of that era.) Other rack a touring bike. Put skinny tires on it for so what? You can go plenty fast on a 24- makers have caught up over the decades (or, your go-fast days. Your misinformed rid - pound bike. The “additional” weight in the case of Blackburn, simply de-empha - ing companions will marvel at your hampers your acceleration, but you sized their rack business), but Gordon still moose-like muscles, but you and I will won’t notice that unless you’re doing sets the standard. And Gordon’s racks have know that you really aren’t overcoming a exhaustive sprint workouts. The weight special mounting points for your fenders, so huge mechanical disadvantage. doesn’t hamper your top speed. It ham - you can have more rattle-free, rigid fenders Here’s the weight difference: a go- pers your hill climbing, but only as much than you thought possible. fast bike’s frame weighs two to four as the weight of a few more water bottles. On Gordon’s web site, you’ll find pounds. A touring bike’s frame weighs Finally, an anecdote: decades ago, I something few other vendors mention any - four to five pounds. There’s another half- held a USCF racing license and I trained more: top tube diameters and wall thick - pound weight difference in the fork, and daily on exotic racing bikes. Each morn - nesses. Gordon correctly points out that a sprinkling of ounces here and there in ing, I would time my commute to work. touring cyclists with panniers need a more other components. The most important This commute was six miles long; it had rigid top tube than do racing cyclists, to of these differences is in the wheels and 680 vertical feet of climbing, and it had avoid steering shimmy. And so Gordon’s tires, and you can minimize that by using 1,030 feet of descending. It had hard cor - top tubes have wall thicknesses 25 percent the lightest tires your touring rims will nering, washboard pavement, and one greater than the competing brands listed. allow. memorable switchback climb. My stop - A Bruce Gordon frame is made from Your touring bike’s rims will be a bit watch and I rode many a world champi - retro-lover’s steel, shod with high-end wider than a go-fast bike’s rims. The onship racing machine over those hills, Shimano components, and available in a touring bikes I’ve tested in the past few and yet my fastest time on that commute huge range of frame sizes with your choice of years have rim widths of 22 to 24 mm, was on my Cannondale touring bike with 700C or 26-inch wheels. A 700 x 45C or 26 and a typical go-fast rim is 18 mm. This fenders, a rear rack, and 27 x 1 1/8 inch x 1.25 tire will fit in the generous clearances means you can’t fit the narrowest tires on touring tires. in the frame and fork. With 26-inch tires, your touring bike. Depending on your So if you want to go fast, it ain’t the you get an 18-inch low gear and a 102-inch bike, the narrowest tire that works well bike that’s holding you back. high gear. I’d call that a perfect range. With may be in the 23C to 26C range. 700C tires, you get a 19-inch low gear and a 111-inch high gear — perfect on the low end, a bit of overkill on the high end, and tours, but for rugged dirt tours like the Great feel a full-suspension bike is the way to go. changeable if you want. The BLT is a “no Divide Route or serious sin - The Specialized Stumpjumper FSR is my substitutions” menu item; the Rock ‘n Road gletrack touring, you’ll want a mountain own favorite from that point of view. offers more customizing and nicer compo - bike. With their upright riding position, Adventure Cyclist deputy editor Aaron nents for its price premium. wide hand placement, meaty tires, and ter - Teasdale has had good luck on all manner of Yes, you pay a price premium for having rain-smoothing suspension, mountain bikes dirt roads and technical trails, using both a bike handmade in the United States, but give cyclists the ability to ride on roads and trailers or racks, with a Santa Cruz Blur. the premium is surprisingly small. If these trails that simply wouldn’t be possible, or at After riding the never-ending washboard are the specs that meet your needs, this bike least wouldn’t be much fun, on traditional roads of Wyoming’s Great Basin, many is a great value. tourers. Great Divide Route riders swear by the ben - Mountain Bikes In recent years, full suspension technol - efits of a fully suspended bike. Beefy touring rigs like the Rock ‘n Road ogy has gotten so reliable, and its comfort To get another expert opinion, I asked are tough enough for extended off-pavement benefits are so immense, that many people the man who’s put the most racks on moun -

ADVENTURE CYCLIST FEBRUARY 20 07 ADVENTURECYCLING .ORG 19 tain bikes that weren’t made with rack suspension has a small telescoping tube on bikes. Accordingly, there is no one price or mounting in mind: Channing Hammond, the seat-stay, and no pivots anywhere. The component specification chart for a YBB, founder and major domo of Old Man rear triangle simply flexes upwards to absorb though you already know that titanium Mountain racks. For long tours in remote shock. Moots can do this with titanium, doesn’t come cheap. But if you’re looking for a sweet ride that’ll outlast several sets of components you bolt to it, the YBB will be your loyal sherpa from the Arctic Circle to the Steppes to downtown Brooklyn. Recumbent Say good-bye to the sore butt, numb hands, aching neck, and “watch my front tire” riding position. Say hello to armchair comfort, more daily mileage on less training, and a rider position that naturally puts your eyes watching the scenery, not your front wheel. Really, is there a rational reason why most of us ride “wedgies” (as recumbent fanciers dismissively refer to our bikes)? The recumbent buyer faces a plethora of choices, and the differences among the various designs are very real. You can have your handlebars in front of you, or under - Bruce Gordon’s Rock ‘n Road. neath your seat (my favored position, but a places, Hammond recommended a bike that because, when properly engineered, the small minority in the marketplace). You can combines rear suspension comfort with no metal has pretty much infinite fatigue life have a long wheelbase, a short wheelbase, or rear suspension moving parts — the titani - when flexed within its elastic zone. one in between. And these wheelbases vary um Moots YBB. This bike has a conven - Moots sells framesets and titanium by many inches, enough to make a real han - tional suspension front fork, but the rear components, and its retailers sell complete dling difference. (The millimeters by which

HOW GOOD IS YOUR STOCK GEARING?

For decades, touring bike buyers have loaded bike up a steep hill at the end of a cadence of 90 rotations per minute will get found it necessary to replace the gearing long day? Young strong riders may find a you 27 miles per hour. Very few riders that comes stock on the bike, to get gear - gear of 27 inches low enough. Mature rid - have the strength to go faster than that, ing that properly meets their needs. ers may need the 19-inch low gear that especially when an aerobically sustainable The good news is that this isn’t as big comes stock on a Bruce Gordon. pace is a goal. a problem in 2007. But you still might Production bikes all seem to fall in Changing your gearing is sometimes want to know what all the fuss is about. between these two numbers. Fuji, Jamis easy: you buy the smallest granny chain - Touring bikes should have a low and Trek have 25-inch low gears; the wheel your crankset will accept, and that enough gear for the worst-case scenario: Bianchi Volpe, 24 inches. Cannondale has lowers your low gear somewhat. It’s a sim - climbing a brutally steep hill with full a 21-inch low gear. Many riders will find ple one-part swap. packs at the end of a long day when you’re these satisfactory. Other times, changing gearing may be dog tired. Since there was a time when produc - complex and expensive: it could conceiv - And bike companies have often been tion touring bikes routinely had 31-inch ably involve getting a different rear reluctant to equip bikes that way. low gears, this is a big improvement. derailleur with greater chain wrap capacity, (Any gear is expressed in “gear inch - At the high end of the gearing range, a new cog cassette, or other complications. es.” The definition of gear inches is the what you get is unusable excess—gears If you are fortunate, your local bike chainwheel-to-cog ratio, multiplied by the much higher than you can really use. Fuji, shop will help you figure out the gearing rear wheel diameter. This gives you a sin - Jamis and Trek give you 128 gear inches; options for your particular drivetrain com - gle number, your “gear inches.”) Cannondale and Bianchi give you 118. ponents. If so, be extra nice to them. It can What should your lowest gear should Here’s why that’s bogus overgearing: A be a trying exercise for the shop personnel. be, so you can comfortably pedal your high gear of 100 gear inches and a pedaling

20 ADVENTURE CYCLIST FEBRUARY 20 07 ADVENTURECYCLING .ORG TOURING BIKES FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION

All prices and specifications may vary to some degree. Please check with the manufacturers before making any decisions. Bianchi offers the steel Volpe offers offers three tour - Lightning Cycle Dynamics ($899), which comes with a the Independence frameset ing bikes — the titanium Vacanza offers the P-38 ($1,900 frameset; wide, low gear range and 32C ($2,100) for self-supported, long- ($5,700 to $9,000), the Vacanza $2,800 and up for full bike). tires. www.bianchiusa.com, (510) distance touring, and the light- Steel ($3,200 to $6,000), and www.lightningbikes.com, (805) 264-1001. touring Club Racer ($1,995). the titanium Muse, ($3,800 to 736-0700. Plenty of options available. $7,500). www.sevencycles.com, Breezer Bikes offers the Liberty www.ifbikes.com, (617) 666- (617) 923-7774. Longbikes offers the Eliminator ($1,199) and Greenway ($849), 3609. ($2,699 and up) and Slipstream both with fenders, generator Specialized offers the light-tour - ($2,599 and up). www.long light, reflective tires, and rear J. Peter Weigle makes custom ing Sequoia in two aluminum bikes.com, (303) 986-9300. rack. www.breezerbikes.com, steel touring and randonneur versions ($770; $1,100). www. (415) 339-8917. bikes. Email: bikesjpweigle@sbc specialized.com, (877) 808-8154. Rans offers the long-wheel-base global.net, (860) 434-0700. Stratus and the short-wheel-base offers the Spectrum offers custom, hand- VRex ($1,595). www.recumbent Tourlite, a light tourer starting at Jamis offers the Nova made steel and titanium touring .com/rans.html, (714) 633-3663. $2,050, and the Midlands, a tra - ($1,300) and the Aurora ($850). bikes and tandems (average ditional steel touring bike, in a www.jamisbikes.com, (201) 768- frame price $2,400). www.spec WizWheelz offer the TerraTrike variety of configurations. 9050. trum-cycles.com, (610) 398-1986. recumbent in a variety of www.bilenky.com, (800) 213- models ($1,299 to $4,499) 6388. Kona offers the Sutra ($1,499), a Surly offers the Long-Haul including a tandem. www.wiz steel tourer with mechanical disc Trucker frame and fork ($420), wheelz.com, (269) 945-5581. Bruce Gordon offers the hand- brakes. www.konaworld.com, Karate Monkey frame and fork built Deore XT Rock ‘n Road (360) 366-0951. ($460), and the Cross-Check Folding Bikes ($2,550, or $2,820 with racks) ($410; $930 for full bike). www. Airnimal Designs offers the 24- and the Deore LX BLT, which is Mariposa makes the custom surlybikes.com, (877) 743-3191. inch, rear-suspension Airnimal factory-made in California steel Petite and Randonneur ($2,100 and up) in multiple tour - ($1,849 or $2,119 with racks). ($1,700 frame and fork; $4,500 Terry Precision offers a ing configuations. www.airnimal www.bgcycles.com, (707) 762- average for complete bike) in woman-specific, aluminum tour - .com. 5601. Toronto with choice of fenders, ing bike, the Madeleine ($1,200). lights, and custom racks. www. www.terrybicycles.com, (800) offers a variety of Cannondale offers the rack- mariposabicycles.com, (416) 423- 289-8379. folding bikes, including the New euipped, aluminum T2000 0456. World Tourist (from $898 to ($1,599) and the T800 ($1,299). Trek offers the venerable steel $1,895), the Air Glide ($1,998 to www.cannondale.com, (800) REI offers the Novara Safari, a 520 ($1,240). www.trekbikes.com, $4,790), and the Sat‘R Day travel 245-3872. 26-inch-wheel tourer ($849); the (920) 478-2191. recumbent (starting at $2,950). Randonee, a traditional touring www.bikefriday.com, (800) 777- Co-Motion Cycles offers the bike ($949); and the Element, a Vanilla Bicycles offers custom 0258. Nor’Wester ($3,295 to $3,360), a cyclocross/light tourer ($1,099). touring frames ($1,850, frame light tourer; the around-the- www.rei.com, 800-426-4840. only). www.vanillabicycles.com, Birdy offers the Birdy Rohloff worlder Americano ($3,150 to (971) 570-3244. (£1,950) with a Rohloff hub, and $3,325), and the beefy, upright Rivendell Works offers the Birdy Touring (£1,080). Vicious offers the steel Casual Mazama ($2,895). www.co- custom touring frames ($2,495 www.foldingbikes.co.uk/birdy.htm Agent ($1,775 frame and fork; motion.com, (541) 342-4583. to $2,550; or complete bikes for +44 (0) 1225 442442. $3,400 to $4,000). They also around $3,000 complete) with Fuji Bicycles offers the tradi - offer the Atlantis frame ($1,400; available disc brake-compatible Brompton offers the P-type fold - tional steel Touring model or around $2,700 for a complete rear rack ($150). www.vicious ing bike series ($885 to $2,105). ($910). www.fujibikes.com, (215) bike). www.rivendellbicycles. cycles.com, (845) 883-4303. www.bromptonbicycle.co.uk, +44 824-3854. com, (925) 933-7304. (0) 208 232 8484. Waterford Cycles offers the Gilles Berthoud offers highly Rodriquez Bicycles offers the Adventure Cycle 1900 ($1,600) Moulton offers a wide variety of customizable steel touring bikes Adventure ($2,199) and the S&S- and T-14 ($1,299). The T-14 is folding bikes ($885 to $6,350). from France ($4,800 and up). equipped W2 ($2,699 to $3,199), available for both 1” and 1 – 1/8” www.alexmoulton.co.uk, +44 (0) www.gillesberthoud.fr, (818) 248- co-designed by Wilie Weir. steerer tubes. www.waterford 122 586 5895. 1814. www.rodcycle.com, (206) 527- bikes.com, (262) 534-4190. Other Touring Frame Builders 4822. Gunnar Bikes offers the 26-inch Recumbents Pereira Cycles (801) 209-9301, Rock Tour ($925 for frame, addi - Rocky Mountain Bicycles intro - BikeFix offers the Street www.pereiracycles.com. tional $275 for a Vicious Rigid duces the Sherpa this year, a Machine (£1,430) designed for self-supported touring. Peter Mooney Cycles (617) 489- Fork). www.gunnarbikes.com, steel tourer that comes in two 3577, www.peter-mooney.com. (262) 534-4190. models ($1,149 to $1,399). www.bikefix.co.uk, +44 (0) 20 www.bikes.com, (604) 527-9993. 7405 1218. Ramblumtick (406) 721-6781, Heron Bicycles offers the www.ramblumtick.com. Wayfarer ($1,300) and Touring Santana offers a wide array of Easy Racers offers the Tour ($1,045) frames, which they tandems suitable for touring Easy in two models: Speed & Steelman Cycles (650) 364- 3939, www.steelmancycles.com. describe as perfect for “true, (starting at $2,995). www. Sport and Expedition (both $1,995). www.easyracers.com, loaded touring.” www.heron santanatandem.com, (800) 334- Willits Brand Bicycles (512), bicycles.com, (815) 223-1776. 6136. (831) 722-9797. www.willitsbikes.com.

ADVENTURE CYCLIST FEBRUARY 20 07 ADVENTURECYCLING .ORG 21 one wedgie’s wheelbase varies from the want. Your seat is 14 inches wide, making it delightful. Your companion is within easy have no such importance.) You can have a the envy of everyone who’s gotten sores on conversing distance. Every pedal stroke is fairing, or not. Your chosen recumbent may a conventional bike seat. teamwork, which, when done well, makes have its own custom racks and panniers. Plus, you’ll be invited into the fold. you gush with good vibrations. The bigger, But even partisans of other brands will Tour Easy riders have their own club, their heavier bike is more stable over bumps, and tell you that the Easy Racers Tour Easy EX (the “EX” stands for “expedition”) is an excellent choice for a touring recumbent. Designed by the late, and greatly missed, Gardner Martin, the Tour Easy has a long wheelbase (about 66 inches, depending on frame size), gentle handling, and a plethora of innovative touring accessories. The Tour Easy is made in the U.S., costs $1,995, and has a 27-speed drivetrain with a stump-pulling 19-inch low gear and a knee-busting 113-inch high gear. It has a 20- inch front wheel, a 700 x 35C rear wheel, and it weighs 30 1/4 pounds. But these sta - tistics don’t tell the whole Tour Easy story: the Tour Easy can be had with a windshield- style fairing and also a body stocking fairing, so you’ll look like a little cruise missile - ing down the road. More significantly, you’ll The Moots YBB. have a fraction of the aerodynamic drag of wedgie drivers. own magazine, and their own annual rally. a reasonably well coordinated team will ride Your panniers can be integrated into (“Look, Ma! Hundreds of those things cruis - faster on a tandem than they would on a pair the aerodynamic shape defined by the stock - ing down the road.”) of single bikes. ing, and your dashboard under the fairing Tandem Most mid-price tandems are at least fair - can have every electronic gadget you’d ever Touring on a tandem can be utterly ly suitable for touring. They usually come

BUYING A TOURING BIKE SIGHT UNSEEN

Why should you be comfortable buy - buying touring bikes sight unseen. Here’s you’ll be struck by how similar they are. ing a touring bike sight unseen? why: Your choice of one over the other will One reason is that you might not •True turkey sightings are pretty hinge on component selection, availability, have a choice. There just aren’t many much extinct. It isn’t 1975 anymore, and which dealer you like more, and cosmetics. touring bikes in stock in bike shops, and today’s product managers know what The one semi-exception to this rule is it’s common to have to order the one you touring cyclists want. buying a tandem. If you are new to want. The reason why is brutal mathe - •The major differences among bike tandeming, you’ll want the full demonstra - matics: a given bike company may make, models are all things you can find from tion by a good tandeming coach/salesper - say, 300 units per year of a given touring manufacturers’ web sites and/or catalogs. son. Without the skills imparted by a bike, with those 300 units divided among Want to know sizes available, standover good demonstration, you are extremely four or five different sizes. That company height, maximum tire width, top tube likely to convince your tandem partner may have 500 or 1,000 retailers nation - length in your size, or gearing? All this that tandeming stinks. But with the wide. So the odds are that your local retail - information, and much more, is easily demonstration, you can learn how to expe - er won’t have your size in stock. available. rience the togetherness of bicycling bliss. Another reason is that if you go •Do touring bikes of similar purpose (The reason this is a semi-exception is upscale and buy a made-to-order bike, the ride differently? In a word, no. If you do because you still might wind up ordering bikes aren’t even hypothetically available an A-B comparison test between, say, a the tandem you want after riding a demo to look at before you buy them. Jamis Aurora and a Fuji Touring, after first model.) All this said, I’m pretty relaxed about making sure the rider position is identical,

22 ADVENTURE CYCLIST FEBRUARY 20 07 ADVENTURECYCLING .ORG with rack mounting eyelets, plenty of low gears, and room for nice wide road tires. Still, some tandems are more “touring friendly” than others. One of my favorites is the Santana Fusion SE, which Santana calls an “” tandem. It’s optimized for tour - ing, Santana says, “whether or not there’s pavement.” At $3195, the Fusion SE is not the cheapest tandem around, but then again, Santana has long been the Mercedes of tandems. You’ll be treated well for the money you spend. The Fusion SE has 26-inch wheels, for which you can buy a plethora of tires, rang - Bike Friday New World Tourist. ing from racing skinny to huge mountain bike, and the chromoly alloy steel frame is packing, the Fusion SE fits into a single hard - sarned airlines), or in small cars, boats, and made to clear just about all of them. The 26- shell suitcase you can take on an airline planes, where bringing a non-folding bike inch wheels are inherently stronger than the flight. can be a hassle. The multimodal tourist with larger 700C wheels most of us use. The cap - Santana’s Enduro comes in four frame a folding bike can instantly shift travel tain’s cockpit is made with an unusually low sizes and is the right tandem for many kinds modes: cycle one day, boat the next, hike the top tube, giving you gobs of standover of riding. You can fit skinny tires for go-fast next, and then stay in a city with his bike height. Your gearing includes an 11-34 cog rides, or bring your camping gear on rugged unobtrusively stashed someplace small. cassette and your choice of 24/28/48 all-ter - trails, or anything in between. And you’ll One could argue in favor of any of a rain chainwheels, with a delightful 18-inch have your spouse/best friend/parent/child number of different folding bike brands as low and a well-chosen 113-inch high gear, or along with you for the ride. It doesn’t get any being the most suitable folding bike for tour - 30/42/52 road chainwheels with a still- better than that. ing, but I give the nod to Bike Friday. The respectable 23-inch low gear and an overkill Folding company has a dizzying array of models, but 123-inch high gear. (Note: a tandem team The sophistication of good folding bike the two that stand out for the touring cyclist can make good use of a somewhat higher designs is truly a pleasure to behold. There are the New World Tourist and its upscale high gear than can a single rider.) is nothing like a splendidly compacted fold - lightweight cousin, the Crusoe. S&S couplers are a thousand-dollar ing bike to accompany your travels on pub - It takes only seconds to fold either bike option, and with skillful disassembly and lic transportation (including those con - continued on page 45

Adventure Cycling Corporate Members

Adventure Cycling’s business partners play a significant role in the success of our nonprofit organization. Our Corporate Membership Program is designed to spot - light these key supporters. Corporate Members are companies that believe in what we do and wish to provide additional assistance through a higher level of support. These Corporate Membership funds go toward special projects and the creation of new pro - grams, such as our Outreach and Education Program.

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ADVENTURE CYCLIST FEBRUARY 20 07 ADVENTURECYCLING .ORG 23 continued from page 23 enough to stash in a car trunk or lug onto the bus. It takes longer to do enough disas - sembly to fit the bike in its airline-acceptable suitcase. If you want, you can buy wheels and a towbar, with which the suitcase can come behind you as a trailer. But don’t let all this folding technology keep you from seeing the reason why Bike Friday has such a devoted following: it han - dles like a big-wheel bike. Many an owner and many a bike reviewer has expressed amazement that the small wheels do not detract from the bike’s performance. You can tow your possessions in the aforemen - tioned suitcase/trailer or use Bike Friday’s shipBikes.com elegantly designed racks to mount your pan - niers. Hassle free shipping from $72 Even though all Bike Fridays are made door to door anywhere in the USA. to order in Eugene, Oregon, the entry price for a flat handlebar New World Tourist with an eight-speed single-derailleur drive - train is a very reasonable $898. The 15 other models in the New World tourist/Crusoe lines range up to $3,640. Along the way you get three choices of han - dlebar configuration and five choices of dri - vetrain. Weights range from 17.9 to 25.1 pounds. And the company loves to cus - tomize bikes for your needs. Bike Friday’s dizzying variety also includes folding recumbents, suitcase-able travel tandems, a go-fast bike that you could bring on the airplane as carry-on luggage in the good old days when bike parts weren’t considered weapons, and numerous other configurations. All bikes are sold factory-direct through TOSRV WEST the website. Since a lot of riders trade up to MAY 19-20 2007 fancier models, the company also sells pre- THE 37th ANNUAL TOUR OF owned Bike Fridays at lower cost. THE SWAN RIVER VALLEY Buying a Bike Friday also effectively WESTERN MONTANA 300 RIDERS gets you a club membership. There are actu - THREE MILEAGE OPTIONS INCLUDING ONE DAY RIDE al Bike Friday clubs across the United States, and even touring events directed at Bike Friday owners. And Bike Friday own - ers are always very interesting people!

John Schubert is Adventure Cyclist’s technical editor www.tosrvwest.org and shares his views about a wide variety of cycling- related topics in each issue. He can be reached for further comment or clarification at [email protected].

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