Panniers
Front Lowriders
I finally got some front racks that are compatible with the brazeons on the forks. They are the type with an over-the-wheel component, which I believe will give more strength and hopeully prevent any roation of the pannier into some fast moving spokes!
Rack Fitting, Testing Panniers
I finally got round to fitting the rear pannier rack that Recycle got for me. It’s super light, and they assured me it would easily take the loads I plan on hauling! I thought it was going to be lots of hassle, and take ages to fit but I had it installed and working within 10 minutes.
I had to use a couple of washers that originally came with my road bike on the seat-tube bottle screws (I’ve no idea why you would space the cage away from the frame??). Also, I only managed to use one of the (two) holes on each top bracket mounting point. Aside from these (possible) bodges, I think the whole thing is actually pretty sturdy!
I then fitted the panniers, which I also thought would take hours. This was done within 5 more minutes!
Excellent, the whole hellish installation only took 15 minutes, I then extensively tested my handiwork by cycling all the way to Henry Price with the bags full of two pairs of rock boots and the bike lock!
Panniers Arrrived & Examining Gina
My new panniers arrived the other day, Ortleib Front & Back-Rollers and a barbag. These are the sexiest, plushest, most exciting panniers money can buy and have a price tag to match! Luckily I got them cheap through work!
I’ve still not got any racks, they’ll have to wait til payday. In anticipation to this (next week) I went up to the local bike shop last night and had a bit of a chat with the owner there.
I showed him Gina and we agreed that he would change the freehub for something a little more useful (28T low gear), and I can keep the chain as it has hardly been used. He’s going to sort me out with some racks at a good price and will service the hubs too. All this, to me: £50.
Jobs on, I’ll be fully racked and loaded by Tuesday! That is, excluding any fancy dynamo hub and battery setup I’m thinking about……….
Wishing a List
During some ‘quiet time’ at work I decided to write a kit list for everything that I could possibly need, so I can see what I still need to buy and then figure out how much longer I’ll need to stick to bread and water for dinner.
The inital list was massive, I’ve no idea how I’ll get it all in the 72L kindly provided by Mr & Mrs Pannier, however, I’ll pretend it’s not a problem for now as it’s shopping time!
The wishlist is almost as long as the kit list, it seems that I don’t own anything that a cycle tourer needs. It seems like the number of pounds needed for the kit alone will be more than I’m planning to spend on the whole trip…
I’ve always appreciated quality (read: want the most expensive thing) and I always like to be prepared as best I can (read: unwilling to compromise). It might be that my buying ethics need to be bent a little bit for this trip, either that or I might need to rob a bank.
My first wiggle shopping basket/wishlist is going to be huge, it’s a shame my next paycheck may not be quite as large. I’m also trying to get some sexy Ortleib panniers through work, if I can’t it’ll mean there will be even less food in the next few months.
Hauling Ass…
I’ve been thinking a lot about how best to prepare for the 72L of load I’ll be carrying on-board the already quite weighty Gina.
I think it could be quite a shock getting on the road with all the necessary gear after spending all summer training on my expensive super-light racer! Despite there being months and months between now and when I plan to leave, I might have to start to factor in the extra weight and subsequently the extra power I will need to transport all my kit and myself around the Continent.
The other thing that may affect my competence on Gina will be the geometry and feel of the bike. I’ve already almost come a cropper on my racer when jabbing on the brakes at a stop-light, where I attempted to headbutt the rear window of the car in front! Another slightly less obvious consequence of the differences between the bikes is the saddle sores I’ve developed this week due to perching on my ultra-thin racing saddle after a few days getting used to the very comfortable Sella Italia I was given with the new bike.
I think the best way to go now is to concentrate on my usual training for the next few months in order to get my right (screwed) leg back into shape. Then I will try and begin some more power/endurance work, and finally to begin riding exclusively with Gina as D-day gets nearer.
I’m sure a few weekenders/overnighters with full panniers will help too, but these will be primarily used to help iron out any creases in my packing and kit list.
Watch this space….