I’m very much used to cycling in the Netherlands. Which means that I’ve successfully done multiple trips on a roadbike, fixed gear bike, and a bike with three gears.

However, now want to expand my trips to the UK - which is obviously more hilly. Would a city bike with 7 gears suffice? Not worried about speed or the amount of kms I can cover in a day. Am worried about hurting my knees.

My partner and I are planning to take around a year to bike pack in South America. We're looking to bike the west coast (ish). Does anyone who has ridden extensively there generally have thoughts on whether biking south to north or north to south is better?

Our preference would be to start in or near Ushuaia in November and bike north so that we can spend some extended time enjoying Patagonia in the prime summer months, but I have read that the wind direction coming off the west coast of the continent may cause biking this direction to be more difficult.

How much of a deciding factor should this be? Are the winds really that bad/debilitating going south to north rather than north to south?

Appreciate any and all thoughts/experiences/advice!

Hi, made a post yesterday about tents and furthered my research.

Now for the Durston X-Mid + poles I‘d have to pay 400$ (of which 100$ in taxes, shipping and duties). The Nemo Hornet is 400 and a local shop sells it. I chose this tent because it‘s the same price as the Durston (for me) and is as lightweight and small as the durston.

I‘m pretty sold over the Durston. Is there any reason I should choose the Nemo over the Durston? I don‘t really know why I‘m unsure, I‘m probably just not used to buying tents, lol.

Thanks!

I'm biking on the empire state trail through Hopewell Junction, NY and Stormville, NY. does anyone have local knowledge on where I might camp for free? The only camping I can find is Sylvan Lake for $65 for a night. I've done some deep research and contacted various places but no luck.

thanks!

Me and my bf both really like bike riding and like the idea of doing a small first-time bikepacking trip this summer - probably a 1 or two day trip.

Any good recommendations for beginners in north GA? We live in the Atlanta metro.

Hi all,

I just got back from a nice trip of 370km. And it was great! Unfortunately before I left I had a small crash and damaged my frame pretty bad and now I would need a new frame. I still went on my trip as I had everything planned and was told that it should be fine for the lenght of the trip but at some point would require my attention sooner than later.

When I arrived back I was thinking that maybe I upgrade my bike and find one that would properly suit my needs as the cost of a new frame is pretty high already.
I ran a Kona Rove and I do love the bike, It just has a few things missing.

I'm looking for something beefier, that can go off road with ease, something that can eat up gravel and difficult roads a bit more, while keeping a fast and zippy feel on road as I would use the bike for commuting and general runs around my city.
I would like flat bars as I feel I have more control too.

I have a few bikes in mind, like a Surly Ogre or Bridge Club. If you have any other options I would love to know so I can evaluate my options a hopefully come to a conclusion!

Thanks all !!

Pretty set on this being my new ride, would love to hear what peoples experiences have been. Leaning towards the steel version. Also, would love to hear sizing thoughts as it seems a bit different than some. 5'8" with 30" inseam and I'm leaning towards a small.

I do quite a bit of bikepacking, I'll use it on a section of the divide and a couple other rides this year. It'll also be used to explore lots of gravel around home.

hi, i dont know if is exactly that but iam pretty sure because nothing was so different, i buy two polartec from Senchi ( polyester ) i had red skin, itching, eyes swell... i take a antihistamine then it was ok but still my eyes are a bit swell ( normal) after this reaction i will need some day.

i clean again Senchi porlatec without the plastic bags that they give, and i will try some few day later for check if that happen again. I was ride outside and sweet so i guess the product of polyester was in my blood more easily because i was sweet and make effort.

i was thinking about food but nothing was different in my routine day only this polartec sweet and i make yogourt 30 hours fermentation, but the smell and taste was good.

the allergy was especially and the top of the body, armpit, arms, back, a bit on one leg, when i where this sweat i feel a bit itching in the first time.

i want to ask if somebody have the same experience one day with porlatec or gore tex?

thank

Hey fellow cyclists,

I'm gearing up for a cycling journey this July from Berlin to Madrid! If anyone else is planning a similar trip or wants to join along the route, hit me up!

My plan is to soak in as much history and culture as possible along the way. To aid my exploration, I stumbled upon this map: Historic Places Map. It's helpful, but sometimes lacks detailed information and the user interface could be improved.

I'm wondering if any of you have come across other sources with more comprehensive information and a better user interface for exploring historic sites along a route like this? Maybe even with a good workflow to add these locations to Komoot routs.

Additionally, I'm interested in finding ways to learn about these places while on the move. Audio guides or narrated content would be fantastic to listen to while cycling. I've considered using text-to-speech for Wikipedia articles, but I'm curious if anyone has found more efficient solutions.

Looking forward to your suggestions and insights! Happy cycling!

Coming from the USA. Looking to do a weeklong bikepacking Asia trip sometime in Sept-Nov, and curious to know if anyone could recommend some routes in East Asia or Southeast Asia that either have dedicated bike lanes or off pavement trails.

A loop would be preferred, but out and back works too.

Main factor is not having to bike frequently along side car traffic. Open to both wild camping, designated campgrounds, and inexpensive hotels.

Is there a way to estimate the cycling time if the weight, distance, grade and road conditions are somewhat known? I’m hoping there’s an online calculator of some kind.

Hi, I’m planning to cycle from Hamburg to Stockholm this summer. Do you have any recommendations regarding the route? Is there something I shouldn’t miss out, and which are the most scenic areas on the way?Komoot sends me this way, does anyone have experience following the eurovelo along the Baltic Sea? Any tips or recommendations concerning the route or anything else of my journey are greatly appreciated, thank you in advance! 😊🚴🏼

Noob on working on my bike. I've got an old Claude butler hybrid that I used as a pseudo mountain bike. But it was uncomfortable on rougher stuff.

So I got a stumpie for trails and turned the Claude into a commuter with racks and panniers.

I'd like to consider some upgrades on the commuter that will enable some bike packing trips.

New fork, maybe carbon. With bosses.

Drop bars instead of flat

Questions

Is it even worth converting to drop bars ? Any links to a way to do this. As I said, Im pretty handy but totally new to anything beyond basic maintenance.

This is kinda interesting anyone used them :

https://surlybikes.com/blog/the_surly_corner_bar_dropbar_mountain_bike_handlebar

I've considered getting another bike. And I may do that. But the Claude has traveled a lot of places with me. Id like to smoothen out the ride and keep using it if its doable.

today i try the hood senchi, it was really warm, light weight amazing zip, but i got really bad allergy skin, so i will try to clean one last time in the washingmachine but i think is not for me.

i dont know if iam the first or not but for me it's over, Merino only, i will try to sell it

Is there such thing as a good bang for buck 700c 40 tire? Usually go WTB but $80 a pop gets old quick 😅 thanks in advance!

I'm thinking of buying a bikecomputer. I don't really have too much experience with bikecomputers so it seems like a big decision to make. I'm planning on bikepacking through scotland coming summer. it's gonna be my first time bikepacking.

i have pretty big hands, with sausagefingers, so touchscreen is a nono for me.
I don't really like using my phone for navigation, because I don't want to drain my battery and i hate to use it while it's raining.

Which one do you recommend? do you have any other suggestions?

Hello to the community !

After cycling for the last 20 years on two Decathlon Rockrider mountain bikes, be it for my work commute, to go get groceries, or for multi day trips, I have finaly put away the budget to buy my first "real" bike, aiming to start a trip from Mexico to Ushuaia in the next few years.

I am choosing to buy a Aluminium Gravel bike, as I believe it is versatile enough to allow me to have the best of all the cycling worlds that I travel in. I also don't want to deal with the stress of analyzing every single bump and scratch on the frame as most people seem to do with carbon frames.

Both bikes have more or less the same budget, and I cannot for the life of me choose between both of them.

The two bikes I am looking at are :

The Cannondale Topstone Apex 1 : https://www.cannondale.com/fr-fr/bikes/road/gravel/topstone-alloy/topstone-apex-1 (for some reason it appears on the french website but not the US)

And the Canyon Grizl 8 1by : https://www.canyon.com/en-fr/gravel-bikes/adventure/grizl/al/grizl-8-1by/3467.html?dwvar_3467_pv_rahmenfarbe=R075_P02&dwvar_3467_pv_rahmengroesse=M

Concerns regarding Canyon : I hear that their unusual steerer tube size can be annoying to find spare parts, but as Giant uses the same 1 1/4 it should be ok ?

I also hear that Canyons have more of an aggressive position ? My back isn't as good as it was back in the day.

"Classic" seat stays, would I be loosing comfort with this style ?

Pro's regarding Canyon : Wheel width up to 50mm, and I love the look.

Concerns regarding the Cannondale : Max wheel width of 44mm. Probably not that big of a deal, but I am aiming to cycle from Mexico to Ushuaia in the next 3 years. Would those 6mm make a difference ?

Pro's for the Cannondale : Love the design, and I hear that lowered seat stays gives better comfort ?

Concerns : Smaller wheel width.

Thank you for reading, wishing everyone a great weekend !

Edit : very perplexed as to why someone would take time out of their day to downvote someone asking for advice...

How wide is the space between the handlebars? I’m looking at buying a handlebar bag but don’t currently have my bike to check the width between the bars. Does anyone know the max width that will fit between the bars?