2-22-2013 - Airport Loop on Dahon

Miles: 24.2
Time: 2:15:27
Elevation: 518
Average Speed: 10.7
Max Speed: 27.2

Cold N wind. Tour bike and Dahon are just different enough seating wise to raise heck with my legs and knee. I was in about 16 miles before my legs loosened up and my knee stopped hurting. Sunny day around 60 degrees.

02-18-2013 - Test Ride on Tour Bike with 50 LB Load

Miles: 25.6
Time: 2:51:07
Elevation: 538
Average Speed: 9.0
Max Speed: 22.5

In the Boonies with 50 Pounds of Luggage on Board

Beautiful afternoon for a ride in spite of the 5-10 E to S to SE wind. The bike performed well. After a few hundred yards the load on the front is hardly noticeable. After you accept the fact that you are going to travel between 6 and 10 MPH a good part of the time riding a rig like this becomes a real joy, especially on a nice warm day. This is not a setup for people on a tight schedule with places to go and things to do and see in a hurry.

The Dyno Hub/Biologic Recharge Unit and Battery/Phone setup worked pretty well on this ride. I left home with the battery full, the phone at 94% and plugged into the battery and Strava running with the screen off. When I got home the phone was still at 91% and the battery shows a full charge.

I received my Opteka Thin Solar Charger this morning. It can be charged via USB or solar power. I had it on the USB charger until I left for the ride. It did not reach a fully charged state even though the LED's said it was full. I tethered it to the bike and every time I looked at it is was charging. When I got home I put it back on USB and it topped out in about 30 minutes. I am attempting to top off the phone with it now. I will report later on the results. I need to devise a way to hold it on the bike in a fully exposed position.

Hopefully between the Biologic setup and the solar unit I will be able to run Strava as far as I go.

02-16-2013 - Airport Loop on Dahon

Miles: 25.0
Time: 2:22:24
Elevation: 484
Average Speed: 10.6
Max Speed: 26.1

Cloudy Day. NE pointing Wind Sock

Pleasant afternoon ride on Dahon. Lots of time to think about upcoming tour and make decisions about gear and packing.

02-14-2013 - Airport Loop on Dahon

Miles: 27.1
Time: 2:34:21
Elevation: 620
Average Speed: 10.5
Max Speed: 24.5

At The Airport, N pointing Wind Sock Barely Visible

Pleasant ride on Dahon Folder. High 60's, 5-10 N wind. I explored a couple of places in town I had not been before.

2013-02-12 - Airport Lopp om Dahon

Miles: 24.5
Time: 2:21:02
Elevation: 409
Average Speed: 10.4
Max Speed: 24.1

At The Airport

Decent ride on Dahon Folder. A chilly high 50's sunny afternoon with mild NW breeze.

02-07-2013 - Airport Loop on Touring Bike, New Schwalbys

Miles: 20.1
Time: 1:54:29
Elevation: 447
Average Speed: 10.5
Max Speed: 21.5

New Front Tire

Airport Loop on touring bike with new Schwalby Marathon Plus tires. Nice afternoon with a brisk wind. It got chilly near the end of the ride.

The tires came this morning. in spite of what I read in online reviews they were not hard to mount at all. I have 22mm touring rims from Harris/Sheldon brown and the tires are 700 x 35. Smaller sizes and narrower rims may be a different story.

The tires are heavy, stiff and solid. They have a good reflective sidewall strips. The replaced a pair of Kenda "semi-slicks". The rear Kenda is almost dead after less than 1k miles, about 470 with a 35-40 pound touring load. The front is still good enough that I will take it on tour as a spare/backup. On the bike the Marathons give a harsher ride but the roll feels better. I am pleased.

The bike is ready to tour. I got it naked except for the tire pump and it weighed 38.0 pounds. I think I have everything I need to go except for a few food items. Perhaps tomorrow I will get out everything on my list and see if it will all fit on the bike and how to best pack it.

The Kendas

02-04-2102 - Airport/Town Loop on Tour Bike

Miles: 33.4
Time: 2:52:04
Elevation: 849
Average Speed: 11.7
Max Speed: 27.3.

Airport Loop on touring bike. Beautiful warm afternoon with a mild West breeze.

02-02-2013 - Another Afternoon on Dahon

Miles: 31.1
Time: 2:48:51
Elevation: 812
Average Speed: 11.1
Max Speed: 33.2

With the Sheep Hole Mountains in the Background

The usual ride to the airport and back to Park HQ with a short jaunt up the hill then home via Rite-Aid.

I am still conflicted about which bike to take on tour but I am leaning more towards the touring bike all the time. The Dahon would be fun and would work well but it is innately slower and lacks ideal gearing. I am pretty sure I will use the Nashbar for this trip then in the future buy a trailer and take some local rides on the Dahon. Of course I may feel differently tomorrow.