Finding The Ultimate Outback Touring Bike
Reading Time: 5 minutes Step one in turning my plan to bike across the Outback into reality (before the excitement of the new idea wears off and I change my mind) is to invest in a bicycle (and everything that comes with owning a bicycle).
Thankfully, I am in Melbourne (Australia), and people here love their bicycles (there appears to be a clear divide between the hipsters and the lycra lovers in this place) – so I’ve got options (although I suspect finding the proper shoes for my 4E width foot will prove difficult).
My first two days of bicycle shopping have narrowed my options to three different bikes: the Fuji Tour, the Kona Sutra, or the Vivente World Randonneur.
Just in case any of you are cycling enthusiasts, as undoubtedly many of you have far more experience on two wheels than I do, I’m going to preface everything I’m about to say with the fact that I know little to zero about bicycles and cycling (which is why I’m riding across a continent of inhospitable terrain – to learn).
First of all, there exists a category of bicycle (and style of riding) called touring; this is what I will be doing and what all the bicycles above are built for (aka, they’re heavy, and you can put racks on them). Second, everything turns out to be a lot more expensive than I imagined (how a bicycle can cost more than a car, I don’t know).
And once I get past the question of which bike to get, there’s still the question of all the added things I need (which apparently goes far beyond a helmet and light), but that’s better saved for another post.
Here’s my understanding (as it now stands) regarding my current three bicycle candidates:
The Fuji Tour
Beginning with the least expensive (and therefore most favorable), the Fuji Tour is a touring bicycle from Fuji. Yeah, that’s about as sophisticated as my knowledge gets – I think I’m in trouble.
Fortunately, I found some nice local bike shop employees to guide me through the process, and they assured me that this bicycle would suit my needs just fine.
It has a rear rack and two water bottle mounts (which I assumed all bikes had), and that’s about it. I don’t know if I will need to invest in a front rack or not (hopefully not). Still, I do know that I will have to buy new pedals and possibly fenders and a new seat (although bicycle seats appear to be one of the most personal choices out there, and since I have no point of reference, I should probably just take what it comes with).
Other than that, it has regular bicycle brakes (I don’t know what these are called), weird new shifters that I’ve never seen before (they’re at the ends of the handlebars), some gears, and brown grip tape.
The Kona Sutra
The Kona Sutra reminds me of Hawaii and looks a bit more badass than the Fuji Tour; it’s also nearly twice as expensive (why there isn’t something priced in the middle (that I’ve been shown). I don’t know – maybe the Fuji Tour is just a fantastic value for the money).
As for the more objective evaluation of the bike, it’s got fenders (which I am not sure if I need or not), a rear rack, a Brooks saddle (that’s fancy cyclist talk for “seat”—and apparently Brooks is a good brand), disc brakes (I don’t know whether these are superior to regular brakes—it’s a divisive issue, I think), and strange new shifters at the ends of the handlebars.
Not knowing anything more than that, it looks like a nice bike, but again, it’s expensive (and seeing as how I don’t know anything about bikes, it may be difficult to justify buying things I cannot appreciate).
The Vivente World Randonneur
The Vivente World Randonneur is built as a touring bike that you can buy, hop on, and be ready to go.
I am usually skeptical of “ready to go out the door” type items since I can’t accept that one configuration exists that everyone could agree on being ideal. Nevertheless, here’s what I’ve been told about (and seen on) this bike. That being said, it looks to be quite nicely equipped.
It’s got a Dynamo lighting system, which is (again, apparently) an incredibly bright light that allows you to charge devices via USB as you ride (cool), some nice pedals, fenders, a rear rack, funky shifters, water bottle mounts (and cages), disc brakes, a kickstand, a seat, and some gears.
It sounds pretty nice, but at $1,750, it’s more than twice the price of the Fuji—even when you take into account all the extras (although apparently that Dynamo lighting system can be pretty pricey to install—but I can just get a regular light instead).
I suppose I’ll have to shop around a bit more and see what the bike crazies of Melbourne can convince me of.
If it isn’t apparent, I have a lot of research and shopping around to do; it’s a good thing my departure date is less than a week away.
For the cycle-savvy of you, I would love to hear what you think I am doing right, wrong, or not at all. Leave a comment and let me know.
Also, learn the lyrics to Cold Chisel’s “Khe Sanh”, you will need them at any pub you visit on a weekend night in the bush.
I’m goin’ nowhere and I’m in a hurry.
Hey man! I think I met you on the PCT in 2013 somewhere in northern WA right? (was checking pctplanner.com link referrals (thanks!)) and ended up here.
Anyway, I rode my bike around Australia in 2002-2003 (blog is at lunky.com, has not been updated since!). If you are riding gravel/dirt (“unsealed” they call them there), to put it bluntly, GET THE BIGGEST DAMN TIRES YOU CAN! I got so many flats because I was not running as big of tires as I could have. Even 700x38c tires were too small for the load I was carrying in the outback. (six gallons of water weighs a lot) When I went I wasn’t planning on riding gravel/dirt roads, but ended up having a lot more fun being in the middle of nowhere so I started seeking them out.
I nearly went back in 2012 to bike through the center but ended up opting to do the PCT again in 2013…hence, going through the center might be in the cards again down the line.
If I were to do it again though, I would have taken a mountain bike with very large tires. My Trek 520 held up pretty well despite breaking the frame twice.
The road trains you need to be careful of, but they are also the best drivers out there, so if they can get over they will. Everyone kept telling me about the road trains, but they didn’t tell me about something a lot more dangerous.
The single most dangerous thing I encountered in Australia were young teenage drivers who just got their driving privileges. If you are biking through suburban towns, be careful of them.
The hardest part I had about biking in Australia was sticking to any kind of schedule. I kept meeting so many people and going off on crazy side adventures that it took me twice as long to get around the continent as I was expecting!
Drop me a line through the planner site if you have more questions/etc. I still think about that bike trip every day and it is pushing 15 years now.
take care,
Craig
Hey Craig! What’s your trail name? Humanclock? If that’s it then I don’t know if I remember meeting you? Where in northern WA?
Anyways, THANK YOU for this info. A lot of people have been trying to(?) provide their help, but few have any actual experience having done this sort of thing, so I appreciate your input.
I did switch out my bikes tires (although I don’t know if they’ll be big enough), but I’ve already found myself on plenty of unsealed roads. They’re hit and miss thus far in terms of rideability.
Until I make it out of civilized Oz, I will be sure to look out for anyone with a P or L on their car (those are the letters they use, right?).
I’ll hit you up on the planner for more info.
Hello, Unless you have good quality roads all the way I would go for a MTB with traditional brakes.(Specially if you carry some heavy luggage with you) These touring ones are very nice with the disc breaks but if you have any problem you will need to find a service.
Good luck and keep on posting!
Regards, Gabor
I think I am going with the Fuji because it’s just so much cheaper (and I am told disc brakes aren’t going to be easy to repair in the field). I’ll keep posting – thanks for the advice!
Get one with disk brakes. Look for a light weight trailer to hitch up
Dont go the dynamo get a small solar panel and usb battery yoy can charge during the day
You will need to carry a lot.of water – you will have to be incredibly careful of the road trains
You will need to add another couple of hundred for spare parts as well
Look for the heaviest duty frame and thick tyres and wheels/rims as some of the roads are bad where you are.going
Do a day maintenance course on how to fix bent/buckled wheels or take two spares in your trailer
Craig
Got myself a solar panel and have opted not for the Dynamo – thanks for that. I have also upgraded the tires on the bike and have gotten front panniers to help carry the extra water I’ll need. Thanks for the advice!