So some of you may be interested in the more how-to aspect of the trip and sometimes the nitty-gritty of the everyday reality of the trip can be some of the most interesting part. Anyway in this installment I discuss my bike and gear.
The bike itself I have nicknamed the "B-2", since both it and its panniers are all black, it is the second bike in my heart (after my mountain bike, which is totally unfair, but maybe I like the bad girls), it handles like a bomber when loaded, and it's pretty stealthy. It's really a 2006 Gary Fisher "Utopia"- designed to be a commuter bike. It has a heavy-duty aluminum mountain bike frame, but 700 c wheels like a road bike, with rims designed to take either very thin mountain bike tires, or more usually, road bike slicks on the fatter side to take the punishment on all the weight. Unlike most road frames, it also has a short-travel suspension fort on the front, which makes things much more comfortable on rough roads.
It sports front and rear racks (I had to jury-rig clamps to hold the front rack on the fork-generally this isn't done). There are four main panniers (2 front and 2 rear), as well as a small bag apparatus on the handlebars and another small bag that sits on top of the rear rack. I have been messing around with different configurations of gear stowage, but what I like the best is this:
Rear panniers are mainly clothes for around town and for biking, but also have some other misc. items in there, light the poles for the tent. Speaking of, one front pannier holds the tent and cooking gear, including a compact alcohol stove. The other holds my sleeping bag and pad. The handlebar bag holds all the expensive and vital stuff like wallet, passport, this tablet I am writing this on, and maps, the one currently in use stuffed in a handy waterproof transparent flap thing so I can look at it when I pedal along. That bag detaches easily so I can keep it with me all the time, even though I look like a weirdo carrying what appears to be a football around under my arm as I view castles and whatnot. The smaller rear bag holds bike tools, first aid kit and is the food pantry. It also has a spare tire wrapped around it!
I have sufficient camping gear to handle most conditions, including being able to purify water and camp pretty much where ever. The alcohol stove is kind of primitive, but works great for boiling water, and its fuel is available cheaply at any pharmacy.
So far, I have yet to use any of my heavy weather gear, and have kind of resented its bulk and weight, but I may feel differently in the inland section of spain. I also wonder about the usefulness of my nice light, it being bulky and heavy and not really used.
The bike fully loaded is about 100 pounds. Its a little wiggly at low speeds, and catches the wind like a sail, but at normal speeds it rides well enough. I have certainly enjoyed its mountain bike gearing, which has greatly helped getting up and over the many hills a so far. Normal cruising speed for me is around 20 km an hour on flat ground. I max out at around 50 km an hour going down passes. Just too spooky with all that weight.
I have a range of instruments aboard, including an altimeter, compass, and of course timpeice in my watch, a bike computer to measure distance, several paper maps, and this tablet that has a GPS functionality.
So that's about it for gear. Hope that illustrated things a bit for you all!
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