Tour Prep

With only about four hours of sleep between Friday and Saturday, and having some fun --and a couple drinks-- at a small shin-dig last night, I was elated when I got back to Ryan's place to flop down and sleep the night away. Compared to ten years ago, I'm better handling the jet-lag of the transatlantic trip. For example, in my twenties I remember laying down shortly after arriving, thinking I was going to puke and pass out, thus creating a disgusting scene that would be surprisingly suitable as an intro clip of Law and Order.

This morning I was raring to get the bike assembled and get the general feel of how it would look and handle all loaded up. Although noticeably heavier with a set and a half of casual clothes, two extra sets of cycling kit, tools, toiletries, and treats, I can still accelerate well from standstill. Riding out of the saddle, even with weighted front panniers, was more comfortable than I thought it'd be. The Axiom front racks proved to be a bit of a problem with my front disk brake (clearance problems) but this was easily managed. And finally, after about a month-long wait, I was finally able to set up my ride with the Apidura saddle-pack, top tube pack and treat bag I ordered a month ago. 

 

Although there's some issues with the panniers (again, disk-break clearance problems), I'm overall happy with this setup. Moreso, I'm itching to start our ride tomorrow, despite what is slated to be a humid, and possibly rainy day.

What will be the first piece of equipment that I'll despise having taken? What will I forget to bring? What will be the first mechanical failure? Will the weather cooperate? All questions I hope I won't have to deal with.

Packing the essentials

Leading up to Friday, I'm starting to feel as though I may have left packing and planning a little bit to the last minute. But better late than never, right? 

Although I'm still a little undecided on some of my warm-kit, or if I should bring as many kits as I've laid out, I think overall this is what I'm packing during the ride. Take it all in!

I have problems with overheating during long rides, so I'm going with some of my whiter, blander kits. I also have my white sleeves in the top left there. I do find they help during that initial hour of a long ride, but as you warm up they switch from being sunlight deflectors to heat-trappers. I'm also hoping to take my Giant kit, as it's been a staple of many of my touring trips. 

Here's my warm-up and rain gear. I'm a little on the fence about bringing the vest, but the MEC Drench Jacket has been a solid addition to my commuter gear. After looking into the weather recently in the Southeast UK and Northern France, it looks like I may need it! In the top right are some shoe-covers (MEC Cloudburst covers) --also rain proof. We've got the Shimano SH-XC31 cycling shoes. We've also got some MEC Logic sunglasses with clear lenses and and MEC Lift glasses with dark lenses. 

Some additional deluxe items I'm bringing: a simple Giro helmet that I got from Cyclesmith, my super-cool bandana, a couple pairs of gloves, a notebook and some bike lights. I'll also be bringing my iPad (it's really getting old at this point), a portable charger and a crib set. I'm using a simple Specialized speedometer as well. A couple special items will be my Wahoo TICKR heart rate monitor and a silly amount of Gummiland Gummy Bears!

After listening to the Velonews podcast about post-ride binging, watching Peter Sagan devour a bag full of bears after a classics-series race this spring and giving it a try myself (albeit mid-ride), I'm really starting to take a shine to these guys!

No pictures is my iPhone 5S. Although I used to be into Map My Ride for a long time, I've made the conversion and switched to Strava. 

My bike is all packed up. I'm bringing my MEC Cote as a touring bike. It may be a bit hard to see, but I also have a couple front-racks by Axiom (Journey DLX-Lowrider) and a couple small MEC World Tour pannier bags. I'll also be bringing two Camelback 750ml bottles. 

As you can see, I'll be using the biknd Jetpack bike bag that I got from Cyclesmith. It looks good now, and I feel like it'll do well in the hands of some surley baggage handlers, but time will tell. I'll be sure to make a review post about both this bag and the MEC Cote after this trip is over. 

Just a little personal touch from my super-cute girlfriend, a little name tag for my bike bag! It has my contact deets on the back. This was a really cool Birthday present!

Will have another update closer to my departure date. Take care out there!!

Halifax Bike Week and Chester-Windsor-Halifax mini-tour

Another Bike Week has come and gone, and with it, summer has officially started --in my mind at least. Actually over the past three years or so, I've noticed that Halifax's official week dedicated to the bicycle has been the harbinger of warmer weather and sunny skies in Nova Scotia. With another bike lane being established in a high-use area --our new protected bike lane along University Blvd.-- and our existing lane along Windsor St. seeing sustained and growing usage, I'm feeling a surge in bicycle use by people looking to transit into the peninsula without relying on the automobile.

But if you stopped to ask me how my bike week turned out, sadly with moving to a new apartment and unpacking and trying to organize my life from a series of 40 boxes, I was unable to attend any events. To make up for this, I took three days to grind out a ride from Halifax to Chester, then Windsor, then back to Halifax, making a mini-tour of about 200km.

Roughly the Halifax-Chester-Windsor-Halifax Route

Overall this was an awesome idea, and was probably the best road trip I've done in the past several years! Not only did the distance feel perfect, I performed a lot better than I thought I would! Though a lot of this could be attributed to using the indomitable Defy 2 with an Axiom Flip-Flop seatpost rack on the back and Axiom's Paddywagon trunk-bag to haul a couple changes of clothes, ratty shoes, snacks and a good book. 

In any case, with that 200km under my belt, I find I'm looking for a slightly longer route to try later this summer! With a couple friends around Moncton and Truro, I was thinking that linking up a route from Moncton-Amherst-Truro-Halifax would be a great challenge! Until then, I hope you guys enjoy some photos of my trip and the inns I stayed at during my ride!

Ready for Rain on Wednesday, June 10

Checking out the bar, Fo'c'sle at my first stop in Chester, NS

Staying at the Mecklenburg Inn in Chester, NS

My suite in the Mecklenburg Inn (I was upgraded to a larger room)

Waterfront shot in Chester, NS

Just chillin' by the Docks

Suiting up for Day 2: Chester to Windsor

Clockmaker's Inn in Windsor, NS

Clockmaker's Inn in Windsor, NS

Winding road leading back home to Halifax, NS

Tunnel of trees while climbing Mt Uniacke

Total trip distance!