cycling through france and spain

[JamesW]

In the summer I'm planning on cycling through france and spain with 3 others for about a month. I was wondering if anyone could give me some advice. We're looking to keep cost to a minimum and are camping.

I currently don't own a road bike, we went into a shop and were advised to get a £700 speedster, however I was thinking of going second hand to get a descent reliable bike for a much cheaper price. I am also confused about different frame sizes, I've heard it makes a difference. I'm 6''2 13 stone so I'm guessing the biggest would be right for me? Isn't that 60'' frame?

Any help in terms of which bike to get, any specific kit or route advice would be greatly appreciated, we were thinking north of france to santander, but this doesn't have to be a direct route by any means, thanks!

 

[betty swollocks]

With all the differing frame configurations out there these days, it's become very much more difficult to give advice about frame size. It used to be pretty simple by saying 'take your inside leg measurement and subtract 10 inches' for your frame size, but that's no longer the case: largely. It might still apply pertaining to some traditionally-styled frames with horizontal top tubes
Best advice is to have a few test rides on various bikes to narrow down your choice a bit. Nothing beats taking bikes out for test rides. Remember, you'll be spending many hours in the saddle.
Having got your bike, you can fine-tune it to exactly suit you and fit you by adjusting saddle height, sliding saddle fore and aft and maybe a different stem/handlebar configuration.

As regards the route, just head in the general direction of where you want to go and stick to the quieter minor roads and you'll have a whale of a time.
Drink plenty and fill up at every opportunity.

Good luck and happy cycling.

Ps. plenty of advice in these pages already about which bike. Just do a search.

 

[BigonaBianchi]

I am 6'4" tall and weigh in at around 16 stone currently....so im a big rider.

I ride a Dawes Galaxy 2007 frame tourer 64cm frame 120mm stem on tour and a Bianchi Via nirone C2C 61cm frame 120mm stem for 'local' loops at home. I also ride a 59cm frame 120mm stem peugot around town hack (Racer). The touring bike has had some upgrades...brookes B17 saddle, spd peddles, ITM stem,Schwalbe Marathon plus 28's on mavic rims, blackburn front and rear pannier racks, extra thick padded bar tape, and three water bottle cages.

Not saying these are what you need, but they work very well for me.

 

[andym]

These days a lot of bikes have what's called a compact frame which means that instead of the traditional frame with a short length of seat tube they are intended to be ridden with a fair amount of seatpost above the frame. So depending on the type of frame, the length of the top tube (distance from the seat tube to the fork) may be the more important dimension - you don't want to be having to lean too far.

The best bet is probably to try some bikes - do you have any cycling friends who would let you take a ride on their bike?

 

[mmmmartin]

Try a Galaxy at a shop. Buy the same size on ebay secondhand. Take advice from friends as to which one to get, some are bargains, others not. Fit front and rear racks. Buying new will give you exactly the bike you want and years of reliability, but might be a very expensive route for a first time camping trip. £300 or £400 should get you a decent one.
As for route, might be best to start at Santander and cross France homewards so that you do not have to buy your ticket home at the start of your trip and that will hang over your head all the time. If you get behind you could always get a train in France.
Buy the Camping and Caravan Club book of campsites on Ebay, get one a few years old as it is a fraction of the new price. It will have almost every campsite in France in it, and decide each evening where to go the next day. It can be a real worry, especially in bad weather, to have no idea where you're going to sleep that night.

 

[JamesW]

Thanks for all the useful advice! We were thinking of just camping wherever and not sticking to campsites. Or is that not such a good idea?