Re: Using racing bike for touring

On Sun, 23 Nov 2003 13:16:46 -0500, Sheldon Brown
<[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

>The most common mechanical failure with bikes overloaded for touring is 
>spoke breakage in the rear wheel.  For a load like this, I'd recommend a 
>pair of low-rider _front_ panniers.  Most front wheels are way overbuilt 
>compared with rears, and it is very unusual to have any problems in front.
>
>This also will provide more even weight distribution, and avoid issues 
>of heel clearance with the rear panniers.

For about 5 years now I've been using a front low rider rack only. It
works really well for me. I see almost no people doing it around
Chicago. People think balance is poor. Of course it is harder to ride
with no hands, especially with only 1 pannier, which is what I do most
of the time, but my experience is that the front end has more inertia
and in fact the front tire is more likely to grab the pavement. Spoke
breakage in the rear wheel is reduced.

I think hitting heels on a pannier is only an issue if you use the
largest panniers. I have size 13 (Euro 48/49) feet and never came
close to hitting medium sized MEC panniers on cyclocross frames. Not
even close.

These days road racing bikes often do not have any eyelets, making it
difficult to attach anything to the frame. Cyclocross framesets are
much more suitable to setting up with racks.

>  It's also sometimes feasible to temporarily install a touring fork on 
>a racing bike for this purpose.

Yeah, or even a cyclocross fork, which are pretty easy to find. This
is a much better solution, then you can put the other rack on the back
for lighter weight stuff.

Bob VonMoss

Bike-Chicago Email List
http://home.mindspring.com/~bvonmoss/bikechicago.html

>You might also use a seatpost rack for light/bulky stuff like a sleeping 
>bag.
>
>Sheldon "Front Loading" Brown