Originally Posted by
kroozer
But nobody built a true expedition tourer in the 80's, even though these were advertised as the ultimate touring machines. When I started touring in the 70's nobody built tourers at all, so these 80's models did represent an advance, at least with the brakes and gearing. But manufacturers still seemed to be in a road bike mentality, and these models were not really made for rough roads or heavy loads.
At the risk of derailing the thread:
- If the 80s true expedition tourer was the first, as you say, then doesn't that indeed make it a "true expedition tourer", sans the advancements that come with age with any product? Race cars go faster and handle better now but weren't they still race cars in the 1960s, fully capable of racing?
- Tourers were definitely built in the 1970's, seeming to have become more popular in the second half, though far from what we consider a tourer today, and even far from their mid 80s counterparts.
- How are they not made for carrying heavy loads? The geometry intended for carrying heavy loads and staying stable is there, the strength of the tubes is there, the eyelets for racks is there, the necessary gearing is there.
- Rough roads, perhaps not. Touring was road touring.
Countless people did cross city, cross state, cross country, and intercontinental tours on these things with little fuss, and still do today. And arguably more people did this back then than do now, as touring is less popular.
I think your actual thesis is that riding off-road on tours wasn't in the American psyche yet, so tourers maintained some road sensibilities, as tours were done on the road. This, of course makes them no less capable of road touring. Also, the French would take issue with all of this, as they had a strong tradition of 650b bikes with ~42mm tires for about 50 years with their tourers, campeurs and randonneurs.
If I were to buy another touring bike today it would be one with enough clearance for 42+mm tires. Otherwise I feel the technology for touring has been all that it has needed to be for decades.