I am going to buy a touring bike. I plan to do some riding in Europe. I can get away for up to a month. I like Italy or maybe east to Budapest. There are a thousand good routes. The ones I like will be "mostly paved" but there are many miles of "natural surfaces" meaning dirt or gravel. One route I plotted Is Zurich to Naples. it is "only" 1000 km. In theory, I can ride 100 km per day but I want to only do half that and add some "tourist days" So I'd do a route like that in about a month.
About me, near to home, I ride a carbon frame road bike 100+ miles a week. I can do about 18 mph on flat roads. My local hills are only 1500 ft tall and I get up there quick enough for an old guy. I'm male and 5-6 with shorter legs, 724 mm stand over with no shoes. I think I'm looking for a smaller frame size.
The canonical bike for this is Salsa Marrakesh. They sell for about $2050 new but I found an REI ADV1.1 on sale for half that price. To my eye, the ADV1.1 looks like it might be not only a better deal but actually the better bike. REI puts Deore parts and TRP Hylex (hybrid cable/hydraulic) brakes on the ADV. The ADV comes with 38mm tires and the Merrakesh comes with 42 but I'd swap tires before doing any serious ride. Both come with rear and front racks.
Both are about the same weight (30 lbs, a full 50% more than my road bike). The frame geometries look close enough, they are steel with triple chain wheels. I can change the cogs to "what ever" so I don't care about stock gearing.
What I'm not sure about is fenders. and if 38mm is wide enough for "natural surfaces" if it has rained.
But maybe someone here has personal experience with either of these bikes and can offer something to consider that is not on the specs web page.
by ChrisAlbertson
1 Comment
Are you planning on buying in the US and flying it over? Neither brands will be easily available in Europe.
If you’re only touring in Europe, maybe look at rental agencies, or buying from Decathlon.