Today's title has a few connotations.

FIRST, it was 19 years ago that I cycled the Danube - in the other direction. Seeing that it was quite a few years ago, I have forgotten a lot. At the time I was not so wordy in my journals, and of course, this website did not exist. There were parts of Vienna that looked familiar; but really, it was pretty much like being somewhere new.

Second, when I first cycle-toured, I was usually riding solo; over the last few years I have been cycling with my wife and/or kids. This trip was a new direction in that I cycled with two non-family members. And it was great.

These three ways of traveling have their pros and cons. Going solo forces you to meet people and gives lots of time for reflection; but, it can be very lonely at times, and it is sad to be unable to share things with someone. I think that is why my writing is at its best when I am alone - I share my trip with my readers. Going with friends or family are great since you can share things as well as have the common language no matter where you are.

Third, all of my previous trips have been with one of my own bikes. Especially considering that I am foolishly attached to my bikes (in particular my first touring bike, my 1985 Raleigh Olympian) it was very difficult for me to use a rental bike that I was not used to.

In my tours I have see-sawed back and forth between my 2000 Cannondale XC-turned-touring bike and my Raleigh. I am equally 'at home' on either one, so I split the trips to keep both happy! The last few tours to Cuba have been with the Cannondale due to the road surfaces you encounter there. But at least we've had our regular bikes there.

On this tour, Austrian Airlines wanted to charge me Cdn$100+ per flight. Seeing that I would have to come home again, that would be a total of $200+. These airlines are run by non-cyclists. I know I'm preaching to the choir, but should they not be serving us cyclists better since we are likely only a tiny group? So that's right, for $200+ even if I do love my bikes there was no friggin' way! Thus the idea to rent, though there was/is another option.

Kevin (one of the guys on this trip) has had a Bike Friday for a few years now and has been quite happy with it as a tourer. I could have gone to Urbane Cyclist in TO and picked one up, but on such short notice, no thanks. I want the time to pick properly, and I like shopping when it comes to bikes!

Over the trip and afterwards, I have been studying Brompton, Bike Friday, Dahon, and now Tern, though the latter seems to be at a higher price point than Dahon and is also heavier. I had it almost down to the bike so I called Dahon - but they no longer carry the Speed TR, so it's back to the drawing board.

Anyway, we are going to get a pair of touring folders. They must be almost full-sized wheels, be able to fold to airline specs in a hard-shell case, and they must be able to accommodate our Old Man Mountain racks and our house full of the superb Arkel panniers.

EDIT: I ended up getting a Dahon Speed TR which already has the racks and fits into its suitcase with the racks and fenders. The Arkels fit on its racks without a problem, and due to the poor ratings the saddle gets, I picked up a Brooks B17 from Urbane Cyclist to keep all parts happy.

I'll stop this blibber-blabber here, but you'll likely see our next CGOAB tour with a folder of some type if the airlines force our hands! Let's just hope the bike that works best for us has a colour to my wife's liking!