You don't need a Long Haul Trucker to tour. I's love to have one. It is not the money, I can afford it. The problem is that I am already tall and have a fairly big frame. The bike just makes it into a standard size box. Touring bikes have a much larger wheelbase. I would probably have to go to an over sized box when I shipped it or go with S&S couplers and add $1200 to the cost of the bike.

I do just fine on my Trek hybrid.

And my Cannondale road bike

The first pic is on the C&O Canal which connects to the Great Allegheny Passage, which connects to the Montour Trail which is a mile from my home. I can ride about a mile or so, jump on the trail and ride to nearly over 300 miles to DC with only about 10 - 20 of that on the road.

You should consider coming up to ride it. It is a great beginners tour. Lots of camping and indoor lodging too.

The second pic is a bike trail between Austria and Italy which is spectacular.

There is nothing like seeing an area by bike.

 

Reminds me of this fish:

This is Dolphin or Mahi Mahi on the east coast, El Dorado on the west coast.

 

So here's the question parts of my question: (1) Why do bikes cost so friggin much?

I don't get it either. I have 2 friends that are semi pro bikers and drop $7000 on a bicycle like its nothing but won't commit to making a car payment on a $4000 honda. Yet they have $30,000 in 7 bikes.

 

spinnaker, what's your lowest gear ratio? Mine is 1:1 (I think 28 teeth front and back).

 

I would go with the mountain bike tires for reliability and wear a back pack.
Those skinny tires are just too easily punctured.

I just finished fixing my first flat on my year-old bike. It's a road bike with 700 x 32 tires.

Then again, I probably should have just walked it over the rocks!

 

I just got back from exploring the hike/bike trails and learned a couple of lessons:

#1 proper seat height adjustment makes a world of difference. My experience biking has been limited to BMX style until now. Growing up I owned many a BMX bike and was of the juvenile opinion that multi-speed bikes were for sissies. So, true to my BMX roots, I had my seat adjusted so that I could stand flat-footed over the seat. I watched a video last night on how to properly adjust a bike seat, and today I raised my seat ~6" and boy what a difference. Biking is half as hard or less. My ass doesn't hurt either.

#2 - Bikes are quiet. Pedestrians wear headphones so they couldn't hear a bicycle even if it had an engine. Pedestrians do not look over their shoulders before veering off the path, like they would do if they were driving a car. The act of passing a pedestrian has some supernatural effect on probability; passing a pedestrian apparently causes them to veer off the path, in front of you. Headphone-clad pedestrians who make unannounced trail exits in front of bicyclists who are passing them, for some strange reason, get upset when they are nearly ran down. For this reason, on shared hike/bike trails, there exists an etiquette; you are supposed to shout at pedestrians "PASSING ON YOUR (LEFT/RIGHT)!" and if you don't follow this etiquette you're only showing your noobness; as if your noobness weren't already obvious in the fact you're riding a Schwinn and not wearing spandex. This etiquette should also be followed when passing other bicyclists, should that ever happen (ex. old ladies or children biking)

 

Funny memory: I was traveling on a city street and approaching 2 guys tossing a football. I moved to the right, the far guy threw the football, the near guy (facing away from me) moved to the right, I moved to the right, etc. We met when the near guy crashed into a parked car and I crashed into his back. Over the handlebars and the near guy, right shoulder down so I would not roll over the calculator that was hanging on the left side of my belt, one forward roll and I popped up, unharmed.

Apologies all around and on my way as if nothing happened.

 

spinnaker, what's your lowest gear ratio? Mine is 1:1 (I think 28 teeth front and back).

Yours is a 21 speed then? That 1:1 is plenty of gearing unless you plan on towing cars or something.

I bought an oval shaped smallest front sprocket, it's very cool. It is "timed" so the leverage is easier when my foot is at the top, and more sprocket diameter when my foot is past 1/2 way down. It gives better power under high torque situations.

Actually i think you can get oval front sprockets in all sizes? Or maybe they stopped making them?

 

Yours is a 21 speed then? That 1:1 is plenty of gearing unless you plan on towing cars or something.

Towing cars? no, but I am pulling more than my own weight. I pull 2 kids plus a picknick and some tools and other obligatory "family outing" crap. Probably an extra 80 lbs. I was a healthy shape when I weighed 150lbs, so I call that my "ideal weight" or "what I'm supposed to weigh." I currently weigh 200, so I'm carrying my extra 50lbs plus the 80lbs trailer; total is another full sized adult I have to carry up hills. Oh yeah, and there's the extra rolling resistance and wind resistance of the trailer and the fact that none of my 4 wheel/tires are the nice thin fast kind. When my bike app says I burned 500 calories, I just go ahead and double that.

Here's my setup:

Before anybody says it, yes the big one should be big enough to ride her own bike, and she is, but she can't ride as far or as fast as I want to go, so I haul her around. She enjoys it, and she keeps the little one occupied so I don't have a baby screaming at the back of my head while I ride.

I bought an oval shaped smallest front sprocket, it's very cool. It is "timed" so the leverage is easier when my foot is at the top, and more sprocket diameter when my foot is past 1/2 way down. It gives better power under high torque situations.

Actually i think you can get oval front sprockets in all sizes? Or maybe they stopped making them?

I've never heard of that. something like this?

 

Towing cars? no, but I am pulling more than my own weight. I pull 2 kids plus a picknick and some tools and other obligatory "family outing" crap. Probably an extra 80 lbs. I was a healthy shape when I weighed 150lbs, so I call that my "ideal weight" or "what I'm supposed to weigh." I currently weigh 200, so I'm carrying my extra 50lbs plus the 80lbs trailer; total is another full sized adult I have to carry up hills. Oh yeah, and there's the extra rolling resistance and wind resistance of the trailer and the fact that none of my 4 wheel/tires are the nice thin fast kind. When my bike app says I burned 500 calories, I just go ahead and double that.

Here's my setup:


Before anybody says it, yes the big one should be big enough to ride her own bike, and she is, but she can't ride as far or as fast as I want to go, so I haul her around. She enjoys it, and she keeps the little one occupied so I don't have a baby screaming at the back of my head while I ride.



I've never heard of that. something like this?

What's the wife pulling?

And it looks like you didn't replace that front tire.

Oh yeah. Cute kids!

 

What's the wife pulling?
Psh.. She lucked out. There's only one trailer and I'm the pack mule. Also her bike doesn't have any holes to mount racks. I'm the one who needs the exercise anyway.

And it looks like you didn't replace that front tire.

Yeah I rode on (2) 20 y/o dry rotten tires for about 15 miles until the rear one turned to bits underneath me. The front one seems to be holding up though; I'm sort of curious to see how many miles I can put on it. I've already put another 20 miles on it.

Oh yeah. Cute kids!

Thanks!

 

You might want to consider getting some toe clips also. They make a big difference in pedaling performance. Allows you to use power on both down and up stroke of the pedal. Not as good as the pedals your shoes lock into, but they make it so you don't need the special shoes.

 

Good to see a pic of the Schwinn. Nothing basically wrong with that bike except I wouldn't like the handlebars that low. (personal preference.)

 

Yeah, that Schwinn is alot nicer than you described. Nothing at all wrong with it. When I was a kid, everyone wanted a Schwinn.

 

Yeah its in surprisingly good condition for having sat outside for so long. I've got all the shifting bugs worked out and as soon as I replace that tire it will be 100%. But a tube and tire costs 30$; replace both tubes and tires and I can almost buy a brand new schwinn at Walmart for that price. That's why I described the bike as being almost a total loss - it almost IS.

However, I learned that being from 1992, this bike is from before schwinn went bankrupt, was bought out by Pacific Cycle, and whites out to Walmart. I *assume* that means it is higher quality than a brand new schwinn.

 

Count on it.

 

You just can't beat old iron.

 

Yeah, that Schwinn is alot nicer than you described. Nothing at all wrong with it. When I was a kid, everyone wanted a Schwinn.

I used to race BMX's and paid $1200 in 1989 for a schwinn frame alone. No brakes, wheels, cranks, gears, seat or anything, just the frame.

 

You might want to consider getting some toe clips also. They make a big difference in pedaling performance. Allows you to use power on both down and up stroke of the pedal. Not as good as the pedals your shoes lock into, but they make it so you don't need the special shoes.

Clipless peddles are much better. The shoes are more healthier for your feet too. But I thing you meant clipless.

Toe clips have straps that your feet slide into.

 

I've been thinking about biking to and from work for some time now... but there are couple of high-speed busy roads between my house and work, so I'm a bit scared to take the plunge.

I'm working on becoming debt free, so I would love to save the $150 in gas each month and get in shape as well. I just don't know where to start - I'm also cheap... How big of a bike should I get? I'm 6'0 220#. I'm thinking Craigslist.

Something like this would break even if I rode it for 15 days. http://denver.craigslist.org/bik/3768357798.html