Cycling from Cardiff to Paris

Mas0n

Hi all, I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice please?

In 2 weeks time I'm cycling from Cardiff to Paris and with one other rider and a support driver. My question is: what spares should I be taking with me? We're lucky we've got the support vehicle to put it all in so trying to take advantage of it.

I've got the basics spares :
Inner tubes
Tyres
Break pads
Spare seat
Spare wheels

But was wondering if anyone else would take anything else with them? Should I take a spare chain? In running a 11 speed ultegra set up and so is the other cyclists so should i buy a chain to share just in case?

Also - was wondering, when ever I ride over the 80 miles mark (roughly) I get pins and needles in the balls of my feet, is this a common thing or is it a fact that my shoes are on their way out and I should buy a new pair?

Hope someone can help

bendertherobot

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19640883#p19640883]Mas0n[/url] wrote:

Hi all, I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice please?

In 2 weeks time I'm cycling from Cardiff to Paris and with one other rider and a support driver. My question is: what spares should I be taking with me? We're lucky we've got the support vehicle to put it all in so trying to take advantage of it.

I've got the basics spares :
Inner tubes
Tyres
Break pads
Spare seat
Spare wheels

But was wondering if anyone else would take anything else with them? Should I take a spare chain? In running a 11 speed ultegra set up and so is the other cyclists so should i buy a chain to share just in case?

Also - was wondering, when ever I ride over the 80 miles mark (roughly) I get pins and needles in the balls of my feet, is this a common thing or is it a fact that my shoes are on their way out and I should buy a new pair?

Hope someone can help

I'd take a spare chain, certainly. I'm not sure about saddles. A seatpost is probably more likely to break. But I'd not really advocate taking a seatpost! I guess, if you have support, take whatever you can, and can afford to have as a spare!

Don't get a Shimano chain. Get a KMC 11 speed one. Make sure you have already cut it to the right length.

mfin

Along with the chain a couple of spare quick links.

A toolkit in the car to deal with any problems inc allens, any torx, chain breaker, and it's worth throwing some cable inners in too just in case. Enough puncture repair stuff to deal with sods law.

It's not unusual to have feet start to become a bit uncomfortable later in long rides, but in time I would think you could address it. I doubt it's to do with shoes being on the way out, if they seem to fit well enough to go that long then maybe you can tweak it out with some new/better suited to your feet insoles.

jameses

I doubt you will need anything more than some lube, pump and a couple of spare tubes/puncture repair kit (just in case). Really, you're looking at 4 or 5 longish days - would you normally expect a saddle issue in that time? Or a wheel to fail? If you're worried about the state of your tyres, chain and brake pads, change them before you go.

Given you're not actually carrying the gear yourself, I guess it won't do you any harm to be (way) overprepared, but you would be very unlucky to experience anything more than the odd puncture on your journey. A track pump in your support car would be handy, though!

Enjoy the ride - what route are you taking? I've done it myself, although perhaps not by the most direct route as I stayed with family along the way. The roads in France are a joy to cycle