Over the last year or so I have used my Ortlieb Bike-Packer Plus (Rear) a lot.
Mainly to carry my work stuff to and from and of course touring. I fondly called them “bags of evil” simply because you keep putting stuff in them, extra lock and a brick and some tools and a brick and extra layer as it might be cold tonight when going home and that brick you forgot, now did I take a lock might as well just put one in to be sure etc etc. And the pannier just takes it and you end up with all that stuff you don’t need to take.
Since I do carry heavy things in my panniers and rest my Surly Long Hall Trucker against the wall with pannier as the wall support I have already worn a hole in the pannier. Might resort to the classic repair job with some duct/gaffa tape to stop it wearing thin where it is rubbing.
For some reason the spacers or grippers (as Erin and Sam call them) are starting to fall out of the hooks, when taking the pannier of the racks.
Erin and Sam of “A honeymoon to remember” fame over on …

After I read Anne’s book A Bike Ride, I just had to read one of her other books and got hold of Lone Traveller: One Woman, Two Wheels and the World.
This book is written in the same way as A Bike Ride, very witty and page turning. You get into the book and just can’t get away, not that you are looking for a “whodunnit”. But because you are eager to learn what’s next – not only the touring tips and tricks, but also the history about the location she is touring through.
This book is not really a narrative from start to finish about her second trip around the world. It is split up into parts, each covering what you will encounter en route, such as where to stay, obtaining money and dealing with bureaucracy. One of my favourite chapters is “Men and Other Animals” where she spends a page or so talking about the problems with wild animals and the rest about men. :)
When we are touring we tend to avoid the metropolis and enjoy the countryside, but I still enjoy reading Anne’s books. Even though she states that “The country, abroad as in England, has less to offer …

Description: (From ukcampsite) Evergreen Farm is set in beautiful scenery of fields and woodland close to the medieval town of East Grinstead. Evergreen Farm has 12 pitches each with an optional fire pit (wood provided) set in 10 acres of idyllic woodland incorporating a natural pond. Natural wildlife on the site includes deer and badgers.
Site visited: 14,15,16th of May 2010.
As seen on the blog: Light my fire.
Last minute booking and since we had already booked the train tickets we had to go with the site or else we didn’t have a place to sleep that weekend. Jane at Evergreen Farm was very nice and even when we missed our train and would arrive late we were told that that would be fine. She even called up to check if we could find our way ok.
We arrived around 21:30 and were greeted by Chris and big pig and a few dogs, who are only doing their job. Chris took us to our plot, where he had already left two deck chairs, portable table along with some firewood and water. We didn’t expect the chairs and table at all, thank you very much for that, it made sitting around the fire so …

Up to two years ago I never tried merino wool and was pretty sure that it was just a gimmick. Thinking back at my old woolly jumpers I could only think about how itchy they were to wear.
Everyone who I knew who had tried out merino wool couldn’t stop talking about it. So since we where putting in an order at Ground Effects we got a Submerino and a Hot Toddy woman merino base layer.
True to woolly style it was itchy but not as bad as I remembered wool would be. But the itchiness quickly disappeared from wearing it and washing the tops.
The Submerino just fitted me without being to tight and the Hot Toddy fitted Peli too but the hoddie is a bit of pain. The hod just gets in the way when wearing something over the base layer.
Since I have worn the Submerino for nearly two years it was time to get a new one. Mainly because every time I find something that I love to use, the manufacture stops making it – see Ground Effect Draft Dodger among others.
The new Submerino base layer is so much better than Ground Effect old version, since …

I don’t wear lycra but don’t mind some padding on my dear derriere. I wear a normal pair of shorts with some sort of padded shorts under, more like a under liner.
This is where the Kiwi company called Ground Effect comes in with their Underdogs shorts liner. They are pretty much liners for their cycling shorts but can be used with other shorts.
I got a pair two or so years ago, which were very good. But compared to the new Underdogs the fabric was rough, a bit like sandpaper. The hem on the thighs left a mark even after wearing them for a short while. Though the pad was nice and comfy even on long and sweaty rides.
The new version is simply bliss, so soft to the touch compared to the old. Though still a bit rough compared to say lycra or cotton. The hems at top and bottom are firm which hold the legs to you but do not leave a mark.
And there is pad, oh boy, I was a bit worried when I saw the “wings” on each side of the pad as it was very big compared to the old pad. But they are soooo comfortable. The …

My old Keen sandals needed updating. So I was looking around on Keen’s website for a new pair. The Newport H2 are probably their best seller and I now know why. While looking on their site I also found a pair of cycling shoes they called the Commuter. Since my old pair was so comfy to walk in and wear I was dead keen (sorry) to try out the H2s and also the cycling shoe.
But unfortunately I could not find a shop here in London that had the Commuters in store. And if I wanted to try them on I had to get the shop to order a pair in at my cost*), which I wasn’t prepared to do. What if I didn’t fit them.
*) They would order in, if I don’t fit them they would send them back at a cost around 25% in some shops.
I then contacted Keen US, since at the time I couldn’t find a contact details for the European site. They were very helpful and got me in contact with their office in Rotterdam, who helped me to track down a pair on webtogs.co.uk who have a 60 days return policy, which is cheaper than …

Well not really, since I will go back to them any time. I got the Lake I/O SDL last year in May simply because I could get them where as As you can see they are well worn down from all the walking. Though last month I did feel a difference in the sandal in how they were clipped in and I was at first worried that it was my new eggbeaters falling apart on me again. I checked the pedals and found them ok, then I checked the cleats only find a crack in the sole of the sandals, just below the cleat.
Both sandals have the crack but it is the left sandal that has the biggest crack. Probably because I clip in and out with that foot much more than the right on my daily commute.
I have used them throughout the winter with a pair of winter socks and some over shoes and they have been warm enough down to a -5c. The soles are much more insulating that the Shimano shoes I had the winter before, as I wasn’t frozen in them as I was when walking/standing on cold pavement as I was in the Shimano’s.
The only …

The only reason why I ended up trying out this, was from my own stupidity, because I forgot my Exped DownMats on our last mini tour to Wales. So we had to get a mat for me for the last two nights.
We went into PSM Outdoors in Hay On Wye where we had a great service and had a look at what they had. I didn’t want to spend a lot on a mat which I only had to use for 2 days.
So I settled for the Trekmates Mummy camper lite, which weights in at 900g and is 183cm by 51cm and 2cm thick. The mat rolled up is pretty much the same size at the Exped I got and is around 500 or so grams lighter. And also it is smaller than me, but I have become used to that there aren’t many beds that suit me at 194cm (6’4″).
It was very easy to roll out and pump up not that I had to do much since it did the most of that by itself. Since it had been rolled up for a while I let it lay for around 20min before I blew some air …

Anne tells a lie in her book A bike ride, she doesn’t cycle 12,000 miles around the world. She only cycles 11,552 miles around the world, but I too would round it to the nearest thousand if I ever managed what she did.
I only learned about this truly remarkable woman last year when she untimely died. At least it was in Syria doing what she loved, what a way to go.
Anne did something that was and still is totally unheard off as woman (in some countries), she travelled the world on her own and on a bicycle. And remember when she did her trip the world wasn’t that much travelled as it is now. You couldn’t just pop into a shop write an email or call over VoIP and ask for money.
The book is a joy to read and it tells her journey around the world where she among other things follow the Romans, Alexander and the Pony express across the world. Great history lessons and reminder of what I have leaned in school but happily forgot over the years. While reading about her hardships and low moments, she still manage to put a smile on your face. The stories …

A few years back when I decided to go clip less, I search for something that was easy to clip into and easy to learn to use. I don’t like the “proper cycling” shoes as you can’t just jump off your bicycle and have a walk as you please, so I was looking for MTB style cycling shoes. Out of them all stood the Crank Brothers’ eggbeater, since they are four sided and also looked cool and simple.
Four sided : The four sided design made them extremely easy to learn to use. Simple to clip in, no flipping the pedal around to be able to clip in, e.g. just put your foot down and you are clipped in. The four sided design also meant that if you walk around in your cycling shoes or get mud on the pedals, the mud will just fall right off and you still can clip in.
Look : the eggbeaters just looks way cool, great design and the feel of them is like something that will last long and can handle a beating.
Simple : Being new to the game of cycling clip less and cycling shoes, back then, they looked well simple compared …