Originally Posted by
Symox
All the touring bikes I've seen are steel so I assumed there was something about carbon that wasn't desirable
It's not the frame, though a carbon "racing" bike might have insufficient low gearing to get the rider plus a load through Pennsylvania, it's really all about the wheels. I'd want a 32 spoke, double butted hand built wheel set as minimum. And I would not want to carry the load I'd put on a real touring bike.