I have had thoughts of upgrading to a new bike, a Kona Sutra. I am still up in arms about it. Do I need it? Do I just want it? Yes it is a far better bike that I have. But I have to be honest, I very much enjoyed riding the Merida as tourer. It gave me little trouble and seemed to handle the eight, that was carried over the back wheel very well. Yes, there was that small issue of the chain jumping, but I put that down to cable stretch as it had new cables installed not long before I left on my trip. And let's face it, that could happen to any bike really!
I suppose I can look over the last trip, not so much as I need to upgrade my bike, but rather what have I learned. This is what that trip was all about, a learning process. I had never done it before so of course I was going to make mistakes.
The first mistake was I tried to carry too much. Even though the bike handled the weight alright, the weight placement made it difficult in some situations. There was on one occasion that I thought I was going to flip after hitting a sudden sharp incline. The front wheel lifted and it seemed to guide me back and forth across the road on the back wheel. Nail biting stuff.
If I had front panniers, truly the weight distribution would have been far better. It's not so much that I tried to carry too much as I needed and used most of the stuff that I carried. Nearly all my food was gone. Maybe I could've cut back on one or two canned items, and I did not use all the clothes I packed.
The items I had were also bulky. I used my old mozzie dome as a tent, it was bulkier than a hiking tent, and I had to carry the fibreglass poles ontop of my rack, sticking out from the back. My sleeping bag, which I had purchased just prior to the trip, was still somewhat bulky. Even though it was smaller than my winter Black Wolf, it still took up some room in the pannier, making packing a squeeze to pack.
I have purchased a new hiking sleeping bag, a Ronan brand. It is only a +5 temperature rating, but coming onto summer, I don't think I'm going to need anything that needs deep thermal capabilities. It is slightly narrower than my other bags, but like my Black Wolf, it has a zip all the way around and can opened right up. I'm not a stuff myself in a sleeping bag kinda guy anyway, so I can just use it as a light doona.
My second mistake. I underestimated water. Although I went through towns and was able to fill up, I had to change my plans because of my concerns with water storage. I suppose normally touring up and down highways where water can be plentiful, there is a lot of area in this country that town aren't so close. When camping in between them towns, and possibly needing to be two days before a refill, these are things I need to consider more greatly. After all my plan is to be fully self sufficient and travel into remote areas.
With the front panniers and smaller camping equipment it will be possible to carry some extra bottles with the panniers themselves. On this trial trip I carried three liters in a container on top of my rack. The storage container held a two litre hydration bladder, as well as a one litre water bottle. This on top of my rack coupled with a blow out in items that filled my back pack on the rear as well made the load quite high, causing a higher center of gravity. Down low is best, especially for weightier items.
My third mistake. I planned my route by distance I thought I was capable of riding in a day. This made it a push some days as there wasn't a lot of crown land that I could camp on. It made sight seeing difficult, and getting video footage and photos difficult.
Next trip I will work out what I want to see, rather than a distance I need to travel. I will plan a day the is "x" amount of hours long, on and off the bike. If I only travel fifty kilometers in that day so be it. Working out the sights I want to see and planning an allotted time to spend at each one, my trip will be more like a joining of the dots. Some days will be short in distance, some days I will need to get the kilometers done. But that will all be worked out before I leave.
My fourth mistake. I underestimated what it was like to climb a hill with a heavily loaded bike. I spent little time riding prior to my trip which was a big fizzle in my books.That is being rectified as I am back on my bike on a daily schedule. Track season has started so that has been a great motivator.
I also need to consider the possibility in changing the gear ratio on the bike. Although I do think with better weight distribution and some better fitness it probably won't be a major drama.
The front chainring on the bike is a 48/34/24 combo with a 7 speed 12-30 cassette on the rear. Maybe I need to consider going to a 42/3020 chainring and 12/36 cassette. I don't know...or maybe stay away from hills. All in all there was only one I couldn't ride up and it was about a 25% gradient. It was also dirt which made traction difficult. The way the bike was loaded made it hard to push the bike up this hill as well.
My fifth mistake. I forgot stuff. Yes, twenty minutes out from home on day one I realised I left my pump at home. Day three I realised I left my chain lube at home. Yes, they were only small things, but they were important things. So, once the bike is packed, it remains packed. It will also be packed a couple of days out prior to a trip and a list gone over several times in those days.
My sixth mistake. I overestimated the capabilities of my home made solar pack. Yes it worked, but being only 5 watts the slightest bit of shade stopped it from charging. It was also slow, trying to charge the battery, phone and Garmin just didn't happen. I will upgrade to a 15-20 watt panel. I also have a small 1.5-2 watt panel here at home that I will set up to be a charger for my phone and Garmin whilst riding. Mounted on the lid of my handlebar bag it will help keep power for when I need it keeping things topped up throughout the day. I also plan to purchase a small lithium charger unit just to keep charged up for a just in case moment. Day two was overcast and rainy all day. I had very little charge left in my phone as I was Live Tracking on Garmin, which chewed the power. These little things will make a big difference to security and safety.
That's probably about it really. I expected mistakes, this was the purpose, make them close to home. I don't mind admitting to them as I do never intent to refer myself as a touring pro. The purpose of these blogs are to document my journey in learning this wonderful side of cycling. Yes some days can be hard, but as I have learned it all comes down to planning. Something I lacked a little on as I changed plans midstream although it was necessary.
Some more weekend trips are planned over the coming months with a week or two long trip planned at Christmas. Hopefully the smaller trips will help me refine my theories and practice before the biggy.
I have long term goals that I want to achieve through all this, longer trips, more remote areas and I need all the practice I can get. That's my story and I'm sticking to it, just in case my wife asks...lol
And yes, I do sooo want the Kona, but I need to justify it...more trips, more trip, more trips :)
Cheers, and ride safe.
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