On Jan 24, 2010, at 11:50 AM, Bob W wrote: > ... Whatever you choose, make sure you do a decent shakedown ride before your > big trip... I'd recommend that you be utterly ruthless about what you > take, reducing it to the absolute minimum... > > Bob
I can strongly endorse the above two recommendations. Several decades ago my wife and I did some touring. We borrowed some gear and did a four-day trip as our first venture. Did a few other short trips with our own gear. Still didn't learn all of the lessons we should have. Did a 3-week trip in England and Wales (cycling interspersed with train rides to connect between the interesting bits). For the first 3 or 4 days, every morning we would send a package of unnecessary stuff back to our friend in London to hold for us. Eventually we got down to a reasonably manageable load. One thing I did learn is that my ME-Super was worthless in the pannier - it took too much time and gear rearranging to retrieve it. A handlebar bag is a crucial item. It keeps your camera accessible and also gives you a place for any other valuables. If you need to walk away from your bike, you only need carry the one small bag with you. stan -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net to UNSUBSCRIBE from the PDML, please visit the link directly above and follow the directions.
