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Good morning,
I have finally managed to persuade the wife to do some road touring in France next summer for a couple of weeks'. So my project for the winter is to build up a couple of capable, comfortable tourers for road, cycle path, possibly the odd dirt track/road.
We both have a couple of pub bikes that we use for local stuff, which probably aren't suitable, she's has a Ridgeback Hybrid, I have a banged up Carerra something road bike. So i'll pretty much be starting from scratch other than the odd bit that can come off the pub bikes and the odd bit I have in the spares bin.
Budget for both bikes, fully built will be about 1k. Comfort over speed preferable. And probably, although this isn't fully decided yet, flat bar as my wife has never ridden a drop bar bike.
My starting thoughts were, MTB frame with semi slicks, rigid fork, double or triple chainset and get the the sitting position as upright as possible.
Frame similar to something like a Sonder Frontier. But this particular example, will blow the budget for a couple of them.
So, what have you guys got that is similar to this?
Cheers,
Adam
TANDEM!
This is our old tandem set up as a tourer. We've done a trips like coast-to-coast-to-coast (workington to tynemouth and back), belgium, and this pic was taken at the end of the tour of the irish sea (holyhead-dublin ferry then wexford-fishguard ferry) - many of the chain hotela re find wit you taking a (clean) bike in the rooms
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this is us loaded up
S
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Bar bag, rack pack and and two panniers aer more than enough room for two people if you are using B&Bs.
(stealth ad - you may have noticed "old tandem" - we've upgraded to a drop bar tandem, so this one is for sale...)
I built this for my wife last year, it's now got carbon forks on it but it's the comfiest bike I've ever ridden. I always take her bike if I'm going round the shop!
Bought the frame from Evans for £85 or something, they usually have a load of cheap hybrid type frames for sale, got a cheap set set of wtb 29er wheels, and run it with schwalbe cx comps. Cheap Shimano hydro disc brakes and a triple alivio chainset with a 48th big ring means you can go pretty quick on roads.
Probably cost about £350 as I already had those forks, saddle, grips and stem but the carbon forks I got were something like £50 second hand.
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Tandem is a good call if you’re of markedly different natural pace; it prevents the inevitable frustrations of being left behind or feeling held back.
Otherwise I’d go for a pair of old steel MTBs and add mudguards, panniers and appropriate tyres. I got an old Kona for my wife in return for a carrier bag of booze, but you should be able to get something for a couple of hundred quid. A Carrera Subway is probably a good platform, too, and they regularly crop up on eBay at reasonable prices.
If you want budget what about a Carrera Subway 1? Only £240 new. Got triple chainset, which will be helpful for touring. And with your remaining budget you can buy racks, mudguards, panniers etc.
I recently bought two diff and classic touring bikes for less than £500 total
A month back I bought a hand-built British 1990ish tourer with newly-handbuilt wheels, rear-rack, full SKS guards and mudflaps, new Schwalbe tyres and a frame pump, replacement NOS spare rear mech, NOS spare cassette, and boxes of spare spokes. Original road-bars and also a set of sit up and beg touring bars. Rides slightly better even than a Dawes Galaxy. actually it rides like a dream.
£80 on Ebay. Had to travel to Surrey but made good use of a mid-stop on the Ridgeway for some chalk-road riding.
Only downside was pedals are slippery townie shit, but I have some old alloy road pedals with cages, so just need to buy straps. Also have some XT SPDs that came with the Longitude (see below) but my feet don’t like clipless. Will sell to fund bar tape.
The other tourer (for much rougher stuff) is a Mk1 Longitude that I bought in August after selling the Vagabond to fund. You can bag a decent used Longitude for about £400. I paid £375 and it had 60 miles on the trip computer. Near-zero wear on bike corresponds. I added an On One Jeff loop bars with cork tape. Reason for purchase being more hand positions, incl semi-aero tuck, and also light/bag/computer mount-space.
Also bought a full set of 4 Karrimor clip-on panniers for £25 from local FB marketplace.
You have to put in the hours and nouse to find legit used bargains From genuine sellers bit they are there.
"slow" hybrids (i.e. the ones that arent basically road race bikes with flat bars) make pretty good basic tourers - they're kitted up to take racks and mudguards, with the added bonus that she knows and is comfortable with it
maybe stick some bar ends on for a change of position.
We both have a couple of pub bikes that we use for local stuff, which probably aren’t suitable, she’s has a Ridgeback Hybrid, I have a banged up Carerra something road bike.
Are you both comfortable on those bikes? Do they work okay? If so, and assuming you'll be staying on stuff that's reasonably flat cos it's your, and especially her, first time, use them. Touring is essentially a succession of casual rides to the pub (one in the morning to a café for a brew, one after that to a pub for lunch, one after lunch to a café or pub for some cake or beer and a final one to wherever you're staying).
Add some racks/panniers (with p-clips if the frames don't have mounts), job jobbed.
pics
Longitude MK1 w/Alpkit Love Mud rear-rack, On One Geoff bars and Ergon GC1 grips (designed for swept bars) Just need lowrider racks to mount front panniers:
British Eagle Touristique after purchase, pictured before I fit original randonneur bars and replace rubbish pedals with cages/straps. Ditched the armchair saddle and it now sports a Brooks Professional (came fitted with the Longitude)
What a beautiful and light, comfortable, swift and silent bike. One day it will get the full new paint-job but as of now it’s a belter as is:
In truth, my ‘mountain biking’ has always been a series of frustrated punctuations in a larger touring/bikepacking agenda 😉
Tandem +1
And halve whatever distance you have planned in your head.
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Ton wins thread!
Note to self, read OP thoroughly
to do some road touring in France next summer for a couple of weeks’.
I was going to add, just pick a hire bike up where you get the ferry to. st malo has 3 good rental shops.
Thanks for the replies and tips so far!
Re: Tandem i socialised the idea of this to be met with a categorical, No! This is a case of too much too soon i think...
That carerra Subway is not a bad shout, that’s worth further investigation. I think that some cheap/older discounted “slow hybrid” as someone above mentioned is probably the way that i will go for this... Does this seem appropriate?
Re: being comfortable on our current bikes - I think my Mrs is, with some adjustments to the cockpit i think hers would be a decent little tourer, but mine, absolutely not!
I will start to scour eBay and the websites for deals etc.
I bought my wife a £400 Specialized Vita a long time ago - fast hybrid (but not a flat bar road bike) type bike with flat bars. Because it was a new bike it felt very special to her and being as it was a Spesh all the contact points she loved - saddle/grips etc. I put some DMR v8’s on and a rack and mudguards and ended up with a lovely looking bike that was actually reasonably light and certainly very nippy but able to take loads enough for a few 3/4 day bed and breakfast tours - used a couple of small panniers on the back and a nice bar bag and she handled 30/40 mile days despite not being very fit.
Her bike (it’s a few years old now) could only take 28mm tyres with the guards but we’ve been doing gravel cycle tracks and rough canal tow paths no problem with it. I know the newer ones take bigger tyres now but if she is light she won’t need huge tyres for comfort, just decent ones with a reasonable width.
I don’t think a Subway would be good, they are pretty heavy and ponderous bikes.
No point in riding a bike designed to handle massive loads like tents and such if you’re never realistically going to do it.
I think the key is a) comfort and b) ease of riding. But don’t sacrifice too much speed for those two as a new rider won’t want to drag a huge heavy bike eveywhere. Hence I carried the locks and coats etc and she took her own clothes and spare shoes/food/toiletries etc.
I don’t think my wife would ever let me sell her bike now, she loves it!
logedin to give a +1 for Specialized Vita ! my wife is into cycling having a carbon road bike a FS 29er Specialized and a vita , it's the chapest of the 3 but if you ask her what is the 1 and only bike to have she will not hesitate to pick vita.
Basic rack and paniers was ok for multiple 3-4 day's vacations in BB and more than 50km per day.
sirrus and vita +1
My Kona Dew Drop and Specialized Vita
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Something second-hand like THIS would be a good buy.
My wife bought the Toughroad SLR1 a few months ago and loves it. It was bought with a tour of Normandy next July in mind but is now her go-to bike for the majority of her rides.
Secondhand is deffo the way to go for you but I've found ladies like new bikes! Don't buy some horrible piece of iron when there are so many examples of quality touring bikes around. I bought a Dawes galaxy for a mate who wanted a town bike a few months ago - full deore spec, 653 frame and forks, looked like it had around 500 miles on it - £185 from a FB ad in my town.
Years ago when the Mrs and I went touring in much the same way as you are, I picked up another used Dawes for silly money and we bought her a new Scott hybrid. She still rides it 20 years later!
I have toured on a 26" converted rigid mtb but for lighter loads and shorter tours I reckon 700c wins every time.
That carerra Subway is not a bad shout,
😬 You can lead a horse to water... 😎
Off the peg, the £320 Voodoo Marasa is hard to beat https://www.halfords.com/cycling/bikes/hybrid-bikes/voodoo-marasa-womens-hybrid-bike-16-18-frames with 3x9 gearing that will help with touring.
https://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/15905565/calibre-stitch-urban-bike-15905565 for £400 is a bit lighter, but 2x8 gearing with what looks a standard compact chainset 34/50 up front.
https://www.merlincycles.com/merlin-malt-g1x-gravel-bike-frameset-2020-148101.html for £300 would make a great do it all bike that you build up, especially when you can get a full set of rs505 hydraulic "road bike" discs for £160 https://www.merlincycles.com/shimano-rs505-hydraulic-disc-brake-set-stis-rs505-flat-mount-calipers-11-speed-89846.html
@ Malvern Rider
"That carerra Subway is not a bad shout,"
"You can lead a horse to water… "
I was being polite! Don't worry i will be exploring ALL options including those lovely looking Longitudes.
There's quite a few suggestions to unpick here, so I will spend my evening working through them now I am back from work. This is exactly the sort of project that winter is designed for 🙂
That Touchroad that @dove1 linked to looks pretty sweet though.
Thanks for all the suggestions!!
Adam
I was being polite! Don’t worry i will be exploring ALL options including those lovely looking Longitudes.
Ah! Sorry. Yeah I’ve done daily 25mile commutes on
lumps of aluminium (not dissing decent alu frames) like the Subway and while could tour on any working bike it’d be lowdown the list even if faced with limited choice.
My example were just to hopefully show two extremes (old steel road vs new steel offroad) of quality touring/adventure bike that seem to be avaiable for under £500 used
If a tour was mostly road/surfaced with a bit of gravel then I’d take the classic steel tourer with 28c and the Brooks seat every time, rather than an MTB of any flavour. ymmv. The