Gearing Back Up: Europe was tougher on gear than expected.

Our image of cycling in Europe is that of an easy, relaxing cruise, with good food and great scenery. We are sticking to that. The European circle that we just came back from was easy and fun all the way through. That is not to say there were not some challenges. There were some heavy rains, some dirt tracks, some large and dangerous roads, some missing signage, some lonely mountain sides in the rain, some places with no camping to be found, places with no groceries, places without the right bike parts, etc. etc. However all these are normal parts of an "easy, relaxing cruise". I mean, no long distance cycle tour is perfectly easy and totally relaxing. But as these things go, this one was no problem.

So, we are just a bit puzzled to look at the wear and tear our bikes came back with. Three of the four starting tires are gone, dumped in various garbage cans around the continent, a V brake arm snapped, a derailleur cable snapped - leaving the head forever stuck in the trigger shifter, our chains totally wore out, our kick stands crumbled, the frame piece that holds the kick stand on one bike had its weld tear, a dropout that holds a rear rack stripped, our derailleurs look like they have been slinging muddy logging chain in their spare time, and a $40 USB rear light either jumped off or was lifted in Amsterdam.

What did this rear derailleur do to deserve this?

The rest of this gear cable is stuck in the shifter.

Jim, at Experience Cycling will soon declare the shifter DOA.

Gunk and corrosion made this brake cable very sticky.

A few other parts of our kit took some hits as well. There was the brand new Nikon S6500 that died early, the Icebreaker shirts that developed dozens of tiny holes, and the windshell that reacted so poorly to Dodie leaning back against a nail!

There is really no moral to this tale of our stuff falling to pieces. We are not saying the route or season was too tough, or that the equipment was weak. We are not even saying that we should be doing more maintenance while on the road (though this is always a good idea). Rather, these things just happen, and the story is that time is needed at the end of a tour to put things back in order.

In our case, we are heading down to Eugene, Oregon tomorrow, where Bike Friday will be making repairs to the one frame, the trigger shifter and rear light are still on order, and we will drop in to Icebreaker in Portland to see what they think of their failed shirt. We will replace all brake and gear cables (at least the cores), and start out with all new tires and tubes.

Other cycle tourists reading this may recognize some of what we are talking about, and maybe find parallels in their own experience. We actually find this part a bit entertaining. Here at last we have unlimited tools, light and shelter; internet, and a van to use is running around chasing down parts. What a difference from being on the road, where all the resources we have here are in such short supply.

Warm, dry, well lit, wheel and tire lab on the dining room floor.

Sandra and Dodie diagnose whether this Merino shirt has become stinky or not.

A bright spot, we (Dodie) have finally figured out how to work this mini can opener. It took two years of fiddling with it before the big breakthrough.

Rate this entry's writing	Heart	0
Comment on this entry	Comment	0