My Current major issue….bike choice.
- Number 1 consideration is comfort. Being able to ride an extra hour a day makes up for being 2 kph slower.
- Number 2 consideration… Speed
I need to be making progress.. So a slow bike is not only slow, it takes more energy to ride slowly. I use a cyclocross to commute on. It goes over anything, but sucks the life out of my legs.
Points 1 and 2 obviously conflict nicely
- Number 3. Resiliance.
The bike needs to cope with cobbles, 40k of gravel track at 2000m, and the shitty roads of the former eastern europe. Bulgaria or Albania both look a nightmare.
Solutions
I have a nice steel framed road bike (a fixie inc betty leeds 2010). its slightly too small, but its comfy.
The only down sides are
1. No disk brakes
2. 25 mm tyres max
Alternative 1
Salsa columbus frame. .. The prefered option is a Ti version. £1200 in the sale. i have always wanted a Ti frame since being a 80s mountain biker……
It looks lovely
My steel roadbike and cyclocross would be canibalised for parts.
Alternative 1b
Kinesis Decade ATR – another Ti frame, disk mounts, wide tyres….. £1200 approx just for the frame 😦
The missus says no!
Alternative 2.
Salsa columbus – steel frame. gives me disk brakes and up to 35mm tyres for £599 in the sale and canibalising the above bikes
Alternative 3.
use the betty leeds with 25mm gatorskins and go ride some gravel / cobbles to see how it goes.
Alternative 3 is winning from a cost perspective.
Other planed purchases….
Dynamo hub on a hed belgium rim. 32 spokes for strength
Matching Hed belgium rear wheel…. Love a power tap on it but…..££££
Exposure revo dynamo light
Dynamo to usb converter….
However nothing gets purchased till its confirmed I am in the race
A Pirate takes on The Transcontinental Race, again... 