The Best Gear: Bicycle Touring the Pacific Coast Route
When I agreed to accompany my friend on an epic bicycle tripfrom Canada to Mexico on the popular Pacific Coast Route,my previous biking experience consisted of a 1.2 mile commute to work. Suddenly, I’d be goingfrom nada to 60-plus miles a day for almost two months on a 2,000-milejourney.
Bike touring is more about determination and raw grit than finesse—noone looks graceful on a loaded bike. Similarly,the gear for bike touring is more about getting you from point A to point Bthan about being the fanciest, most expensive, carbon-fiber-enforced product you canfind. After all, dropping cash to shave ounces from your handlebar fork seemsridiculous when you’re carrying over a pound of peanut butter. Below is some ofmy essential gear, with a few splurges I rate well worth the price. You can also read the blog from my trip, or to help us reach our goal of raising $3,000 for WorldBicycle Relief by clicking here to donate to our trip. Above right, a photo of my bike on the scenic Highway 1 in Mendocino County.
--Melanie Lidman
Kona Sutra
I grew so attached to my green Kona Sutra ($1,200, konaworld.com),whom I christened The Lady Merle, that when I had to break her up and ship herhome I almost cried at the thought of a five day separation. I had some initialproblems with the bike, like the stock chain breaking and dragging the rearderailleur between the spokes (I spent $120 in repairs the first week of thetrip). But other than that first expensive issue, Lady Merle carried me downthe coast like a noble steed. On the road, you’ll see people making all sortsof crazy bikes work for their trips. But having a bike especially designed fortouring, with the wider tires, a bomb-proof steel frame, and racks tailored tomy bike, meant I wasn’t constantly worrying about various jerry-rigged piecesbreaking. For the first month of the trip, I wished for regular cantileverbreaks, rather than the disc brakes every biker said I was so lucky to have.Living off my bike and banging it around everywhere meant that the Avid discbrakes were constantly coming out of whack and rubbing against the brake pads.I called them my “obnoxious prepubescent teenyboopers” because it felt likethey were always complaining (Penelope was the front disc brake, Gertrude wasthe back). But once I entered California,with steeper grades and terrifying downhills that share the narrow highway withlogging trucks, I wanted to sing Penelope and Gertrude’s praises across thePacific. Even with a loaded bike, the disc brakes shortened my stopping timeand gave me more control.
Novara Safari PanniersLuckily, we never had to test out the full waterproofability of Novara’s Safari Panniers ($110, rei.com). But even if we had less luck with the weather,the welded seams and waterproof dry bag material meant that these bags couldwithstand a monsoon. And at 3.1 pounds, they were the lightest bags I couldfind that were still over 2,000 cubic inches. My friend Jess loved theKlick-Fix attachments, which featured an easy button to take them on and off. Thestraightforward closure system, even when accidentally left open, never leftanything hanging that could get caught in the spokes. The only downside to thesimplicity was that there were far less attachment points for tying down extrabeer, ahem I mean gear.
Living on the road for two months, setting up my Kelty GrandMesa 2 ($105, amazon.com) at night was one of touring’s small pleasures thatmade me feel “home” regardless of where I laid my head. Some bike tourerslooked down disparagingly on my tent, but between the heavy Pacific mist andthe bold coyotes and raccoons that frequented areas within feet of my sleepingbag, I loved having a tent and thought it very much worth the extra four pounds.The color-coded, snap-on rain fly made for easy set up—even at dusk when I was near delirium. I never hadany problems with condensation and never had to use a tarp underneath. The tentcomfortably fit two people with no gear, or me and all of my gear.
Brooks SaddleThere were many times on the trip when my body was unhappywith me for one reason or another. But when I got a Brooks Saddle about halfwaythrough the trip, my tushie was practically singing the company’s commendations.The softer leather of the B17 S Aged($125, brookssadles.com) was comfortable from the first time I used it, withoutthe painful breaking-in period I heard about from some of the other Brooks users.Plus the saddle initiated me into the secret club of Brooks Saddle BikeTourers, who would nod wisely when they saw my saddle choice, as if the saddlealone legitimized any other shortcomings in my biking abilities.
Comments
Nice choice on the bike. I've been using a Sutra as a daily commuter for three years now--I call it my pickup truck. I understand the mixed blessing of disc brakes. Love them when it's raining, but love them less when I'm changing pads and mucking about. One thing is it has 700c wheels. The Surly Long Haul Trucker uses 26 inch wheels at 54cm and under. 26 inchers are stronger, and might make for easier acceleration on the hilly and twisty highway 1. The flip side is that the 700c's should cruise better. Sugoi makes the best cycling gear. I have the previous version of the jacket. Very nice. I'm wondering how long it took you to get to San Francisco? I'm considering a Vancouver to San Francisco ride next summer.
Flag ThisHey Skooter, It took us a while to get started (we only biked 150 miles in the first week--that gives you an idea, we kept getting sidetracked by sea kayaking, scuba diving, breweries, etc). It took us about 6 weeks, though I'd say if you're more concentrated on biking a good average is about a month or five weeks. I'd never been to the West Coast before, so I enjoyed going much slower and exploring stuff. The San Fran to San Diego portion, however, was not as scenic save for Big Sur. I pretty much flew down the coast from San Fran, finishing that section in 12 days with no rest days. Hope that's helpful! Mel
Flag This> we kept getting sidetracked by sea kayaking, > scuba diving, breweries, It is a hard knock life out here on the raggedy edge, isn't it? That's really helpful. Thanks. I've never been on the coast south of San Francisco, but I've been north of there many many times. Last time was a motorcycle trip: http://tinyurl.com/ydxqebf and it is stunningly beautiful, even for those of us who live in stunningly beautiful places like Vancouver. Sounds like you had a great trip! I'm glad you did it. Proof that you don't have to be an elite cyclist in order to travel by bicycle.
Flag ThisHi I rode the Pacific Coast too last Summer, on my beloved Sutra. That's the perfect rig for that ride; I've seen so many people experiencing mechanical problems while I had none (except for breaking up my front rack twice - but it was not the one taht comes along the newer versions of the Sutra). I would strongly sugget using front panniers and rear panniers for stability and avoiding putting too much weight on your rear wheel. I would do that trip again in a heartbeat! keep on riding! JP
Flag ThisBike touring is more about determination and raw grit than finesse—no one looks graceful on a loaded bike. QUITE TRUE! elmono.
Flag ThisThanks for sharing this with us. I always had the dream to venture on such a tour but never seemed to have or make the time. Sharing your experience must definitely inspired me to actively start my planning for my trip. Thanks
Flag ThisGreat recommendations on equipment. Gotta have the right gear to enjoy your trip. Any recommendations for emergency gear?
Flag ThisI love my Brooks saddle. Recommend them to anyone who will listen. Be sure to pack a good repair kit as well.
Flag ThisI have read some complaints about the cost of the ACA maps, but I think they are well worth it.
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