Trusty Steed

I meant to do this post on Sunday- which was exactly one month away from the start of my trip, but time got away from me. I've been meaning to do a number of things in regard to this bike trip, that haven't quite happened yet. Like putting some miles in on the bike... That seems to be the theme of this weblog- not riding bikes enough. Good thing this arrived today:

I have, however, managed to get a bike put together. The Brown Machine had been sitting idle for a while, and it has proven its worth over long distances. So that seemed to be the most logical frame of mine to hang some parts on. I'm going with a 2x9 drive train (no granny gear, but I won't have much in the way of elevation change to deal with), hand built wheels (natch) with Michelin tires, and my fave seat and pedals combo.

I'm going with the Surly Open Bar for the handlebar. Not a very conventional choice, but this guy has really grown on me. I think it's very comfortable, and it gives a couple of different hand positions. Will it work for me over a month of riding? There's only one way to find out...

I'm still on the fence about the front basket. I really love this guy (it's a Takeout Basket from PDW), but I'm afraid it won't fit enough stuff. I do have a nice CETMA front rack I could put on there for maximum cargo carrying, buuuut- it won't fit in the bike box I'm packing up in (like the Takeout will), so I'd  have to find some other way to get the thing down to FL. I don't want to brag, but I'm a pretty efficient packer (the last time I checked a bag was 2002), so I hope I can put those skills to good use here. I'm going to test those skills this weekend with a trial run/ride. I'll let you know how it goes. Keep your fingers crossed for me.