Bike and BBQ training ride, contemplating electronics

This weekend I took a training ride to the “Barbecue Capital of Texas” as well as nearby Lockhart State Park.  The distance was just over 40 miles each way, so an easy afternoon ride and then return the next morning.  Along the way, I was also experimenting with equipment, particularly contemplating what if any to bring in way of computer.

What electronic recording tool should I take on the trip if any?  This is one of the choices I am also weighing.  Since I first took a 286 Sharp laptop across the USA in 1992, my touring has often carried a small computer in netbook format (even before there were netbooks) and sometimes another device.  For example PocketMail was used to record my journals in Australia.

However, there are also good reasons to avoid taking a computer with me on this next trip.  Last year a bag containing multiple laptops was stolen.  There will be limited opportunities for connectivity and even getting power to recharge could be periodic.  Instead of a full-fledged PC, what about bringing a smart phone and sending brief SMS messages with twitter updates?

I do want to make an effort to record the trip in my journals for my own purposes as well as to put on the web.  A notebook and pen is likely journaling tool (just as I also did in Russia).  I will likely try bringing an unlocked phone with local SIM cards.  I’m wary of high data rates – so likely set that up only with wifi and SMS messages.

One experiment I am trying with this message posting is a chromebook.  That may seem like an odd choice since Chomebook is a web-focused PC and wifi/internet is likely to be sparse.  However, google docs has a good offline mode and the processor has long battery life.  This weekend is an experiment to try such offine edit and then cut/paste when I get back to a wifi zone.  Still have to see and sort things through.

TDA statistics

TDA has told us statistics on riders for our trip:

50 full tour riders

33 men/17 women

15 countries: Canada (10), Britain (7), USA (4), Germany (4), Netherlands (4), Australia (4), New Zealand (4), Switzerland (3), Ireland (3), Italy (2), Denmark (1), Brazil (1), Belgium (1), Norway (1), South Africa (1).  This is first full tour crew with Italian and Brazilian riders.

Age demographics: Teens (1), 20s (15), 30s (8), 40s (10), 50s (10), 60s (5), 70s (1).

The crew is slightly younger than I would have guessed and slightly higher % of women.  However, overall somewhat in line with my guesses having watched a few of these rides.  Will be fun to meet everyone in Cairo.

Equipment list: bike spare parts

What spare parts do you take to keep a bicycle running for 7500 miles – both replacing worn parts and anticipating things that might break?  I don’t want to bring too much, but it would also be a shame to not be riding because of mechanical failure.

The packing list TDA gives us is:

  • Derailleur hanger
  • 2-3 chains
  • 1 rear cassette
  • 5 patch kits
  • 5-10 spare tubes
  • Bottom bracket (not needed if you start with new one)
  • Chain rings
  • Spokes
  • Brake and shifter cables
  • Brake pads
  • Bar tape/handlebar grips
  • Seat post with clamp and collar
  • Saddle
  • Tires (3 sets including the one on bike)
  • Extra nuts and bolts

They also give us the following tool list:

  • Multi-tool
  • Mini-pump
  • Tire levers
  • Chain break tool
  • Gear brush
  • Chain lube, degreaser, rags

Along with an admonishment to not excess spare parts since they are heavy and bulky.

There are a few things on this list I will probably not bring (e.g. saddle, bar tape) and a few areas based on my past experiences of what has broken, I think of bringing spares.  If common things break, I might be able to borrow.  Here is roughly how I look at it based on sub-system:

  • Wheel sub-system: Tubes and tires are the most common things to wear and makes sense to bring spares.  A total of six tires is likely overkill based on reliability I’ve seen with Schwalbe XR (used three tires total crossing Russia) so might end up with five.  I always seem to bring more tubes and patch kits than I really need, but they aren’t too big or bulky so probably bring close to recommended amounts there.More significant is the wheels/rims themselves.  On past long trips, with my size, this is the sub-system I seem to have most stressed.  I broke three rims crossing Canada in 1997 and after that I switched to stronger 48-spoke wheels (as opposed to standard 32 or 36 spoke rims).  Even with strong rims, I broke one rim circling Australia in 2001 and one rim crossing Russia in 2007.  I’ve also broken those nice rear hubs once in New Zealand in 2002 and once in Thailand in 2007.  Hence, this time I’ve tried to account for this in a few ways: (1) I had new strong 26″ wheels built with solid cliffhanger rims and 40 spoke wheels (2) I’m using disc brakes rather than ones that rub and wear on the rims (my Russian failure in 2007) (3) I took a wheel-building class to help my skills in building a replacement wheel. This results in the following spare parts list:
    • Spare rim, hub, spokes and rim tape to rebuild rear wheel if necessary. Also a few spare spokes for the front wheel.
    • Three spare tires plus two on the bike
    • 5 patch kits
    • 5-10 spare tubes
  • Drive train: Chain rings, chains and cassettes are wear items.  I’ve broken pedals three times in the past (Natchez Trace, Atlantic Coast and Russia).  It has been a long time since I broke a bottom bracket and newer sealed cartridges seem pretty durable.  So I’m more inclined towards spare pedals than bottom bracket. This results in the following spare parts list:
    • 2-3 chains
    • 1 cassette
    • Spare pedals
    • Chain rings (candidate to leave behind if I have too much)
  • Derailleur sub-system: I’ve never bent/broken a derailleur hanger, but they aren’t very heavy so I’ll probably take a spare just in case.  Replacing cables and housing is a nice to have mid-way through the trip, particularly if go through a lot of grime.  However, a lot of separate ferrules and housing here as well.  This results in the following spare parts list:
    • Derailleur hanger
    • Spare derailleur cable kit (candidate to leave behind)
  • Brake sub-system: My bike has a hydraulic brake system. This is a plus from standpoint of not wearing on my rims and providing excellent stopping. Brake pads are a wear item and I’ll bring spares. However, I don’t have much experience with long-term reliability and maintenance items like bleeding hydraulic brake lines and carrying mineral oil.  Rather than repair broken hydraulic lines, I’m bringing replacement in form of a mechanical disc brake that works for both front/rear along with cables/housing.  I hope either front or rear hyraullic brake doesn’t fail but if it does, I’ll put in a mechanical brake instead.  This results in the following spare parts list:
    • Spare mechanical disc brake, rotor and both front/rear brake levers
    • Spare brake pads
  • Miscellaneous: I’ve broken both seat post clamp and even a seat post in the past.  I’ve got a good brooks saddle and these seem to last well. I’ve definitely had screws vibrate loose and will need to watch for these.  I also prepare for miscellaneous repairs with duct tape.  This results in the following spare parts list:
    • Seat post clamp
    • Spare screws/bolts for major areas such as those holding racks or shifters in place
  • Tools: The TDA list is pretty close to what I’ll bring.  I need to do basic tune ups and adjustments along the way.  I also assume that a chain whip, crank arm puller and more complete tools will be among things TDA has along.  This results in the following tool list:
    • Multi-tool
    • Spoke wrench (4-sided)
    • Topeak road morph pump
    • Tire levers
    • Gear cleaning brush
    • Chain lube, degreaser, rags

Overall, I still have some time to finalize the list (comments welcome), but feel like I’ve got a reasonable list in place based on both the TDA list and my past experiences of what has broken on me in my tours – and where I’m likely to stress the different sub-systems.

Applying for Sudanese Visa

There are ten countries on the TDA route. Four of them don’t require a visa (South Africa, Namibia, Botswana and Malawi) and four one can get a visa at the border/airport (Egypt, Kenya, Tanzania and Zambia). This leaves only Ethiopia and Sudan. Today I got my passport back with an Ethiopian visa – so sounds like I’m pretty close right?

Sudan is going to be a bit tricky. The Sudanese Embassy in Washington DC says it issues entry visas for 30 days, so I don’t want it to expire before I arrive. In contrast the Sudanese Embassy in Ottawa says it issues visas for up to 90 days. I will have to wait until 30 days before arrival in Sudan to apply but then still need to get the passport back before I leave the USA. That is a window of 14 days (including both Christmas and New Years holidays). Add in the note on Embassy web site that says normal processing time is 4 to 6 weeks.

This is a case where I’ll try working with a visa expediter. Probably call them up to make sure they can help hit this time window including processing time and otherwise make sure there aren’t problems with the application.

Vaccinated!

Made a stop through the travel clinic.  This was to bring immunizations up to date and get prescription for malaria pills.  I ended up with shots for Yellow Fever, Meningitis and Rabies.  From past travels, I was already up to date on other immunizations TDA recommends (Hep A, Hep B, Typhoid, Polio, Tetanus) which is a good thing or else my arms would have been sore.

I will still need to be careful about water, mosquitoes and blood (and hopefully not too much blood) since there are diseases you can’t guard against or aren’t 100%. However, better safe than sorry on these things.

Most immunizations made sense, but there was one I briefly waffled on: rabies vaccine.  As I’ve read and learned – it seems that getting a pre-vaccine helps if you are bitten by a rabid animal, however one still needs to get the post-vaccine as well.  Hence, my logic was that if you need to evacuate to get help anyways and probability of getting bitten was very small, why not wait.

However, in the end I decided to go for rabies vaccine this time, mostly based on two factors: (1) it was in the TDA recommend list and (2) when cycling across Russia, I had the same choice.  Both Mickey and I opted not for the vaccine but in eastern Siberia Mickey was bitten by a dog in back of knee.  The wound was promptly cleaned and we even checked on the dog the next day.  In that case, she did end up getting the follow up vaccine on returning to Netherlands three weeks later.

Plane Ticket

Bought a plane ticket to Cairo.  Plan is to arrive on 5th of January.  This gives a few days to get everything in place, look around and perhaps make a ride from Alexandria to Cairo.

100 days

Today is the 100 day milestone.  This past weekend I cycled from Canadian  border to Seattle on the Africa bike.  All rode well after past week tuneup.  This next weekend will fly from Portland to Austin and take bike with me.

A number of further details to arrange in the near future including:

  • buy tickets to Cairo
  • go to travel clinic and update medicines and immunizations
  • send off for visas for Sudan and Ethiopia

I also still need to send in my rider profile to TDA site (already 29 others posted), but wait just a bit before making this public for my team at work.

Bike School

This past week I’ve taken the one week bicycle mechanic class at United Bicycle Institute (UBI) in Portland.  During the class we took apart and re-assembled major subsystems of our bicycles, e.g. wheels, drive train, dérailleurs, brakes, headsets.

Most of these operations I’ve done once or twice, though my normal preference is to take my bicycle to a shop where mechanics have the right tools and more practice.  However, nice to go through all this in the instructor environment.  Helps confidence in getting this stuff right.

It has also helped my work through my spare parts list.  Asking lots of questions of what wears and what experiences folks have.  The class enables one-time discounts from UBI and Seattle Bike Supply so now I have some extra brake pads, chains, cassettes and cables.  While I didn’t disassemble, did get a chance to review the hydraulic disc brakes.  Overall, expect this to be a win (better stopping power and will not grind away at the rim), though if it does fail it would be tougher to do much other than replace.

Pedal the Plains

At end of September I took part in an organized ride named “Pedal the Plains”.  The ride was organized by same group that put on “Ride the Rockies” but this time the theme was cycling on Eastern Plains of Colorado.

It was a three day ride, Friday a short day of 27 miles.  Saturday multiple options including a 61 mile ride plus 22 mile option (my choice) and Sunday an 83 mile ride.  It was a good chance to do back-to-back 80 mile days as well as try some of my backup equipment.

Overall, felt like it went pretty well.  The Colorado plains are pretty flat and I noticed now that training in Austin also sets me up with better hill climbing skills than what was needed on this fairly flat route.  We did have some cross-winds on the ride though nothing too bad and at least as much tailwinds on the weekend.

I used a REI Quarterdome tent.  It worked well and would be my backup choice if my other tent wasn’t going to work.  I also rode my Trek 520 bike.  It rode remarkably well, almost making me think it would ride easier than the mountain bike – though not as well on rough roads.

Overall an excellent long weekend and a good training ride.  Now to see about getting some more riding in as well.