Explore the world of bicycles

• Bicycle frame
• Bicycle performance
• Touring bicycle
• Bicycle trailer

Touring bicycle A touring bicycle is a bicycle either specially designed for, or modified to handle Recumbent  tourers bicycle touring. What makes a touring bike different from other bicycles is its ability Recumbents are very different in that the to carry gear on racks mounted to the front rider sits in a seat that's reclined to some and rear of the bicycle frame. Other commonly degree. The rider's legs are in front of them found differences are a longer wheel base and these bikes either have above seat or with sturdier wheels for carrying more below  seat  steering. weight, mudguard/fender mounting points, triple water bottle mounts and a frameset Tandem  tourers that  allows  for  wider  tires. Tandems are bikes built for two riders and Types  of  touring  bicycles many couples tour on them. They can make it easier for two riders of different abilities Touring bicycles are available in many to ride together but the tandem frame doesn't different types, such as road, trail, allow for any more luggage than a single bike recumbent  and  tandem. does. This limitation can be overcome by pulling  a  trailer. Road  tourers Touring  bike  specifications Road tourers are usually built around 700C wheels which are the same diameter as a Touring bicycles are usually equipped with racing bicycle but typically the touring bike luggage racks front and rear, designed to will have wider rims and clearance in the hold panniers or other forms of luggage. frame for wider tires. This is the classic Because of the increased weight requirements touring bike. Prior to the 1980s almost all and reliability demands, touring bicycles touring bikes were built on 700C or similar typically use road handlebars and saddles for but  now  obsolete  27"  wheels. long-distance comfort, combined with rugged hubs, heavy-duty rims and 36-spoke wheels to Recently some builders, especially Thorn provide the durability, reliability and wide Cycles of England, have attempted to gearing essential for loaded touring. popularise the 26" mountain bike wheel size Sometimes instead of panniers bicycle for touring bikes, whether intended for trailers are towed behind for carrying the off-road or on-road use. Other builders such gear; these are sometimes preferred as they as Roberts and Hewitt have followed suit and provide a low center of gravity and can be offer 26" wheeled touring bikes alongside detached  easily. conventional 700c wheeled machines. Claimed advantages of the slightly smaller wheel Touring bicycle frames typically have a long include additional strength, worldwide tire wheelbase and stable steering geometry, with availability, lighter weight and lower numerous attachment points for luggage racks, rolling  resistance. fenders (mudguards), lights, water bottles, tools and spare parts. Chainstays must be In practice most 26" tires are made for long enough to accommodate panniers without mountain bikes so are too wide, heavy and interfering with the rider's heels during deeply treaded to be useful on a road touring pedaling, and the entire structure must be bike. Few lightweight, narrow tires are stiff enough to safely handle long, fast available for 26" wheels, which negates any descents  with  the  machine  fully  loaded. weight advantage from the smaller rim and shorter spokes. Rolling resistance is hotly For gearing touring bicycles traditionally debated; theoretically a 26" fat tyre (say 38 employ wide-ratio derailleur gears, often mm width) has less rolling resistance than a with a very low-speed "granny gear" for narrow 700c tire (28 mm width being typical loaded ascents. However in recent years, for touring) due to lower casing deformation, because of their robustness and very but the larger 700c tyre will roll better on low-maintenance, internal-geared hubs have rough roads, is lighter and has less become  popular. aerodynamic drag. In any case, the difference in diameter between the two sizes is only in Touring bicycles are usually equipped with the order of one inch (25 mm) or 4%, so it cantilever brakes or linear-pull brakes, should not make a drastic noticeable instead of the caliper brakes used on racing difference. bicycles. The need for mudguard (fender) and wide tyre clearance precludes the use of There are numerous variants on the typical dual-pivot road brakes, which would traditional road tourer depending on the be excessively large and flexible if made to weight carried and the type of terrain fit a touring bike. Some newer touring expected. They vary from very lightweight bicycles use disc brakes, because of their bikes, little heavier than racing bikes to superior stopping power and improved exceptionally tough and heavy bikes designed performance in wet weather. However, tourists for carrying very heavy loads over the are inherently conservative in equipment roughest roads. The former are often called choice because of the need to repair and audax bikes while the latter are sometimes source  parts  a  long  way  from  home. referred to as expedition touring bikes. For expedition touring, mountain bikes are Thus, touring bikes trade off some speed for frequently used, these can usually be easily extra utility and ruggedness. This adapted to touring by the addition of combination of features is popular with panniers  and  road  tyres. commuters and couriers as well. 1 A B C D 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110