I love the smell of urinal cake in the morning
03-14-19, 08:08 PM
#51
Senior Member
this was in Mexico--yup, truck drivers. All over the place, about as common as dead dogs, but not as bad smelling fortunately.
03-14-19, 10:52 PM
#52
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Then there was this clever idea:
This might gross out some folks but it works well for those that get up frequently at night to pee. Pack a flexible, synthetic hot water bottle. You can get them fairly cheap at a pharmacy like Walgreens.
They scrunch up pretty small and hardly take up any space for packing but they can hold a full night's worth of fluid. Some have a screw top that tightens and is very water proof. You can rinse it and reuse it as needed.
They scrunch up pretty small and hardly take up any space for packing but they can hold a full night's worth of fluid. Some have a screw top that tightens and is very water proof. You can rinse it and reuse it as needed.
03-15-19, 04:55 PM
#54
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03-16-19, 03:45 PM
#55
Let's do a Century
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Here’s a photo of the bag that Jim from Boston mentions in his post above.Alan, it has an extra wide opening so I think you’d find it to your liking! If folks are brave they can put it in the sleeping bag with you after using it for additional warmth..........
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Ride your Ride!!
03-17-19, 08:52 PM
#56
Occam's Rotor
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Just use your water bottle, so you won't have to cary anything extra.
Brings a new meaning to the term "weight weanie."
Brings a new meaning to the term "weight weanie."
03-18-19, 06:59 AM
#57
Senior Member
The only thing (it's more of a compound problem of things but I digress) that has really made me consider taking a plane home (and has made us take trains pretty often. Train travel is also fun) is pain caused by fit issues.
The worst offender for me was and has always been saddle sores. I've been through so many saddles I think I could buy a decent carbon fiber fatbike with the money I've put into them. But it has been a learning experience and so it has taught me a great deal about bike fit. Mainly that almost all fit philosophies get as much right as they get wrong and that there are no rules. There are only guidelines but even with those one may need to pick and choose from many different schools of thought.
Also bicycling isn't all that great for general posture so it'd be a good idea to follow some sort of easy yoga routine during tours and do other exercises when at home.
The saddle sores were due to a wrong philosophy in saddle fitting (for me). What I ride now and what seems to be the most successful saddle for me so far is the Selle SMP Dynamic. In terms of SMP fitting, Steve Hogg has the right idea, but his blog lacks emphasis on the longitudinal axis and as an effect of that the vertical axis of the saddle/pelvis interface. He does have have the lateral axis correct though.
But what works for me is again something that works for me and my particular pelvic posture. Other people have other postures so for them other guidelines apply.
But essentially going with a wrong saddle fit ideology caused me to seek support from the wrong places which then applied immense pressure to the skin in these areas which then caused saddle sores via irritation.
But a wrong saddle also links to everything else. Hand pressure issues were the bane of my existence on our honeymoon and those were in part caused by the wrong saddles (I had several during the 3 months we were riding) which did not give proper support.
And then if I would try to seek support from the correct areas I was supposed to seek it from I would get epic numb crotch syndrome.
So yeah, essentially I was contemplating on giving up touring for good or getting a recumbent tourer. But then I tried aerobars with ISM's and a Specialized Power which made me realize a few things
1) Aerobars are a crutch. Only get them when you don't need them. If you get them thinking they are going to solve a fit issue, they won't. They may ease the issue, they may even make you feel the issue has disappeared but reality will come crashing down at some point.
2) It all boils down to saddles. ISM kinda has the right idea but their implementation is completely wrong. They may take pride on their understanding of anatomy, but they do not have the saddle making expertise to support those ideas. That's actually also a pun, because their saddles sag down from the sides, which is not something that should happen in a saddle which is designed to give side support. And ISM's have ridiculous amounts of padding (we're talking beach cruiser seat padding levels here) which should go against their philosophy.
Specialized power on the other hand doesn't know what it is supposed to be. Is it a traditional wide rear saddle, or is it a wide nose saddle? Because you can't be both. But it does have enough rigidity to be supportive.
Selle SMP however is weird. It's like uhh, a wide center saddle...? Anyways it works for me. My pelvic posture requires a center support saddle instead of a rear support or front support saddle. But the funny thing is that Selle SMP also has the upwards sloping nose which stops me from slipping forward. This way I can actually put the saddle forward enough to get some decent power out (I was suprised how far forward I needed to go with the SMP to feel good). With my pelvis supported I could then support my upper body as well and get rid of any hand issues that were plaguing me. And then I didn't need the aerobars anymore. So I should probably put them back before our next tour.
But no need for a recumbent apparently which saves me a TON of money. And I also like upright bikes better. They're easier to deal with.
Bit of a rant. Sorry for that. But it is kinda on topic.
The worst offender for me was and has always been saddle sores. I've been through so many saddles I think I could buy a decent carbon fiber fatbike with the money I've put into them. But it has been a learning experience and so it has taught me a great deal about bike fit. Mainly that almost all fit philosophies get as much right as they get wrong and that there are no rules. There are only guidelines but even with those one may need to pick and choose from many different schools of thought.
Also bicycling isn't all that great for general posture so it'd be a good idea to follow some sort of easy yoga routine during tours and do other exercises when at home.
The saddle sores were due to a wrong philosophy in saddle fitting (for me). What I ride now and what seems to be the most successful saddle for me so far is the Selle SMP Dynamic. In terms of SMP fitting, Steve Hogg has the right idea, but his blog lacks emphasis on the longitudinal axis and as an effect of that the vertical axis of the saddle/pelvis interface. He does have have the lateral axis correct though.
But what works for me is again something that works for me and my particular pelvic posture. Other people have other postures so for them other guidelines apply.
But essentially going with a wrong saddle fit ideology caused me to seek support from the wrong places which then applied immense pressure to the skin in these areas which then caused saddle sores via irritation.
But a wrong saddle also links to everything else. Hand pressure issues were the bane of my existence on our honeymoon and those were in part caused by the wrong saddles (I had several during the 3 months we were riding) which did not give proper support.
And then if I would try to seek support from the correct areas I was supposed to seek it from I would get epic numb crotch syndrome.
So yeah, essentially I was contemplating on giving up touring for good or getting a recumbent tourer. But then I tried aerobars with ISM's and a Specialized Power which made me realize a few things
1) Aerobars are a crutch. Only get them when you don't need them. If you get them thinking they are going to solve a fit issue, they won't. They may ease the issue, they may even make you feel the issue has disappeared but reality will come crashing down at some point.
2) It all boils down to saddles. ISM kinda has the right idea but their implementation is completely wrong. They may take pride on their understanding of anatomy, but they do not have the saddle making expertise to support those ideas. That's actually also a pun, because their saddles sag down from the sides, which is not something that should happen in a saddle which is designed to give side support. And ISM's have ridiculous amounts of padding (we're talking beach cruiser seat padding levels here) which should go against their philosophy.
Specialized power on the other hand doesn't know what it is supposed to be. Is it a traditional wide rear saddle, or is it a wide nose saddle? Because you can't be both. But it does have enough rigidity to be supportive.
Selle SMP however is weird. It's like uhh, a wide center saddle...? Anyways it works for me. My pelvic posture requires a center support saddle instead of a rear support or front support saddle. But the funny thing is that Selle SMP also has the upwards sloping nose which stops me from slipping forward. This way I can actually put the saddle forward enough to get some decent power out (I was suprised how far forward I needed to go with the SMP to feel good). With my pelvis supported I could then support my upper body as well and get rid of any hand issues that were plaguing me. And then I didn't need the aerobars anymore. So I should probably put them back before our next tour.
But no need for a recumbent apparently which saves me a TON of money. And I also like upright bikes better. They're easier to deal with.
Bit of a rant. Sorry for that. But it is kinda on topic.
03-18-19, 07:08 AM
#58
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03-18-19, 12:25 PM
#59
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03-18-19, 05:35 PM
#60
Partially Sane.
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I think my biggest thing is definitely headwind. It affects my mood sometimes when there's a lot of it. Coping? Yell and swear at it is all I've come up with so far. That coping method has seemed largely ineffective, unfortunately. I haven't found a way to make it stop yet. 
I did hitch-hike once when I'd been riding in a strong headwind all day. It had reduced my mileage and I wasn't to camp yet, it was dark, and still windy. I said "f*** it" and stuck out my thumb while I took a break. A nice guy in a pickup stopped, tossed my bike in the back of the truck, and gave me a ride since we were headed in the same direction.
I did hitch-hike once when I'd been riding in a strong headwind all day. It had reduced my mileage and I wasn't to camp yet, it was dark, and still windy. I said "f*** it" and stuck out my thumb while I took a break. A nice guy in a pickup stopped, tossed my bike in the back of the truck, and gave me a ride since we were headed in the same direction.Second is riding anywhere there are LARGE numbers of elderly drivers. I swear, they think it's a game, to come as close to killing you as possible, without actually doing it. Even worse, is when golf carts are legal on roads, and most are driven by elderly citizens. 😳 Trust me, Phoenix isn't very bicycle friendly, at least in that regard. 🙄😉
