Overall another successful trip. We really enjoyed seeing the Gorge de Galamus, and our experiences with our French hosts made the trip really special.

The Wahoo Elemnt Bolt worked really well for navigating. We have a winner, finally! The routes transfer smoothly from RideWithGps and the map display on the device gives Robin a much better handle on navigation.

On this trip I had some new problems with my Terranno intercom. I sweat a lot while riding, and the sweat was getting into my microphone, making communication impossible. I posted for some help on the venerable Tandem@Hobbes mailing list, and got some recommendations for fixes. A microphone cover called a "Cat Ear", along with a Halo headband, have eliminated this problem in subsequent local rides.

Finally, about that rear wheel. I guess I should not have trusted my LBS with the job. I took the wheel to a more professional shop in Carcassonne and they told me that he had used the wrong length spokes. When I checked the two flatted tubes, both punctures were on the spoke side of the tire.

So lesson learned - giving business to local guys is good, but make sure they have the expertise to do the work right.

We're currently riding our "racy" tandem while waiting for a new rear wheel to be built.

That's why it's so important to have multiple tandems!!