pics tomorrow
my photos will be ready to pick up tomorrow, and I'm pretty excited to see them, although I don't expect very good image quality.
I've been reading some different touring blogs, and I'm pretty surprised at how much stuff some people actually bring along. One person started a 3 year, around the world bike tour, and I'm amazed at all the extra stuff he is willing to carry. His bike is a monster custom titanium rig that uses extra thick tubing and weighs probably 40 pounds, and he pulls a trailer, and all together has mounts for 14 water bottles, and he carries 20 liters of water per day. In addition, he has front and rear racks, full size rear panniers, what looks like a metal handlebar bag and a gigantic container in his trailer. He also has a giant tent AND a hammock. And an alarm for his bike. And a laptop computer. Is all of that really necessary? I could see needing some of that stuff at different times, but carrying it all from the start? I never found myself carrying more than 3.5 liters of water at a time on my trip to Italy, and there were some hot days. I could understand bringing 20 liters around if crossing a desert, but riding in the US and going through towns almost every day, I find it a bit much. I also have a buddy touring Australia right now with a laptop computer, and while I would rather carry 5 extra pounds of food, or another book, he loves having it. I could never justify bringing more than the bare essentials for survival, plus a journal and a small music player. I guess people's needs are different, as well as their goals. Some people want to take a shower every day and make touring a high-tech experience, and while I may personally might think it is excessive to ride a 150 pound rig, I am absolutely glad that people are interested in touring and riding bikes in general. The aforementioned tourer has obviously put a lot of planning into his rig and his trip, and I definitely wish him all the best, but I wonder if he will begin shedding some of the unnecessary items along the way.
I've been reading some different touring blogs, and I'm pretty surprised at how much stuff some people actually bring along. One person started a 3 year, around the world bike tour, and I'm amazed at all the extra stuff he is willing to carry. His bike is a monster custom titanium rig that uses extra thick tubing and weighs probably 40 pounds, and he pulls a trailer, and all together has mounts for 14 water bottles, and he carries 20 liters of water per day. In addition, he has front and rear racks, full size rear panniers, what looks like a metal handlebar bag and a gigantic container in his trailer. He also has a giant tent AND a hammock. And an alarm for his bike. And a laptop computer. Is all of that really necessary? I could see needing some of that stuff at different times, but carrying it all from the start? I never found myself carrying more than 3.5 liters of water at a time on my trip to Italy, and there were some hot days. I could understand bringing 20 liters around if crossing a desert, but riding in the US and going through towns almost every day, I find it a bit much. I also have a buddy touring Australia right now with a laptop computer, and while I would rather carry 5 extra pounds of food, or another book, he loves having it. I could never justify bringing more than the bare essentials for survival, plus a journal and a small music player. I guess people's needs are different, as well as their goals. Some people want to take a shower every day and make touring a high-tech experience, and while I may personally might think it is excessive to ride a 150 pound rig, I am absolutely glad that people are interested in touring and riding bikes in general. The aforementioned tourer has obviously put a lot of planning into his rig and his trip, and I definitely wish him all the best, but I wonder if he will begin shedding some of the unnecessary items along the way.
posted by Fahrräder at 7:03 PM
1 Comments:
You say that a laptop is not important and you would be right. But for handling all photos and maintaining my website it is a very useful tool and saves money on net cafes. When carrying up to 25 litres of water(25kg), the extra 1.8kg for a laptop isn't all that much - and it was my only luxury item.
Can we get the link for the titanium rig tourer person?
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