About the Bikes

Not to contradict Lance, but for us it's at least partly about the bikes! Our choices were based on stability, comfort, weight and cost.  The bikes are Raleigh Sojourn touring models purchased in January 2009 and now after their first trial run in the Cascades almost like new. The frames are Reynold 520 steel and the bikes are nicely set up with Avid disc brakes, Shimano Octalink cranks 30/39/50 teeth, SRAM PG-950 9 speed gear (11-34), and Brooks B-17 touring saddles.  The bikes weigh 34 pounds, which makes them seem heavy to lift, but the gearing has a wide enough range to handle most hills and even tough climbs fully loaded.

On the Seattle-Coeur d'Alene leg of the Tour, Jean experienced some worrisome problems with the gearing, which were resolved with some expert fine tuning.  More worrisome, even terrifying, was a loss of braking ability while negotiating the descent into the Columbia River valley and the Grand Coulee Dam.  Some frantic tweaking with the adjustment screws seemed to do the the trick temporarily, but once back home our friendly neighborhood bike shop Wheel Power in Exeter, New Hampshire gladly replaced the faulty rear break at no cost.

For The Long Haul, the bikes are newly tuned and well-adjusted, ready to roll.  We will also soon be the proud owners of an MSR Hubba Hubba tent with two doors and vestibules.  Much roomier than the tiny French backpacking tent we had last summer.  Still not bear-proof, however, and Mike is still fussing over how to keep the grizlies at bay while camping in the rest of the Rockies.