I want to determine which is a better drive train for loaded bike touring....

1x, 2x or rholoff hub.

I currently have a 1x12 on my surly bridge club and have 18 gear inches for climbing. Ottawa bike and trail has a 2x conversion kit using the shimano Cues drive components...would still give me the same climbing inches but more top gear inches for the flats and downhills. If cost wasn't an issue I would see if I could put a rholoff hub on my bridge club but dont know if that is pissible with the vertical QR dropouts. I could just get an Ogre frameset and swap over my BC components to the Ogre since that bike is designed for the rholoff hub. The BC and ogre frames sets are about the same weight.

Would slso see about putting a dropper post on either bike to make mounting/dismounting easier for my older body.

Any suggestions? Switch to 2x or stay with 1x

I am trying to figure out a cockpit solution so I can have both my Garmin and phone available if needed. Primarily for when in cities navigating on the fly and also sometimes I feel like I take more pictures if my phone is mega accessible. I do have the top tube bag that’s helped with that but… this felt alright riding around the block so apart from looking rediculous anyone think it’s a bad idea? Or have any better ideas?

I just wrapped up a 4k mile tour of Europe on a Kona Rove DL gravel bike with 650bx47mm (27.5x1.85") Maxxis Rambler tires. All else equal I would have gone with a Kona Sutra (with Schwalbe Marathon Mondial 700x40 tires) but I got a great deal on the Kona.

The tires worked well (two flats, and I did some gnarly stuff like the Camino de Portuguesa), but it's time for new ones. Assuming I'll be doing similar tours, is it time for narrower or less knobby tires? Does it matter much? Thanks.

Im considering a custom titanium road bike with couplers, primarily for international travel. The bike would be a size 54 with 700x32mm tubeless road tires.

I'm trying to understand how practical it is to pack the bike into a compact Ritchey Break-Away-style case.

A few questions for owners:

1. Do you have to completely deflate your tubeless tires to fit the wheels inside the case, or can you leave some pressure in them?
2. If you deflate them substantially, do the beads generally remain seated? Any problems with sealant leaking or tires unseating?
3. How challenging is packing a modern hydraulic-disc road bike with 32mm tires compared with an older rim-brake travel bike?
4. Would you recommend a compact travel case over a larger EVOC-style bike bag after actually traveling with both?

I'd especially appreciate real-world experiences from people who fly regularly with coupled bikes. Thanks!

First, I like Brooks and have two B-17s that I’ve used for years. However, I’ve gone to a more upright riding position on my Surly DT and I’d like to consider an alternative that’s more friendly on my sits bones. All ideas appreciated

So I have been on dozen or so injury free long distance tours and I think I got a bit lax on my medical supplies. Seven miles from my house and I hit gravel, tipped over and sliced up my leg well enough to need 10 stitches. I didn't have my med kit, because, well, it was only a short ride that day (lesson learned). But it got me to thinking, what do you all carry with you for medical supplies? Sadly, my med kit wasn't that well supplied and even if I had it; it would not have helped.

Hi guys, I am planning to do a trans-Pyrenees ride next year. The route and direction (east-west or west-east) are still open to ideas, but I will fly to Barcelon and have my bike in a bike case. My initial plan was to then ride west, take a train to Barcelona, then fly home. After some research I found out that taking a bike on the high speed trains is only possible when disassembled. So I extended the plan to have my bike box shipped to Pamplona, pack the bike there, then take it on the train. I have the following questions:

- if the bike box doesn't 100% fit within the 140×90×40 bounding box, how much of an issue is that in practice? The bike will be packed but I cannot risk being stranded in Pamplona and miss my flight

- what would be the best way to have the bike box shipped from Barcelona (preferably airport) to Pamplona?

- is there an entirely different way to do stuff logistically? Open to riding in any direction, car rentals, anything really but the least hassle is prefered.

Anyone with experience, please share. Thanks!