Gear
The foundation of our trip and, we hope, the secret to our success has to be the gear and equipment we use. Although we are striving to complete our tour on the lowest budget possible, when it comes to your cycling gear, there are some areas in which you simply can not opt for the cheapest way out. However, our major purchases- namely our bikes and child trailer- have been a combination of ebay bargains and a work-funded discount scheme, enabling us to stretch the pennies further than we would have otherwise managed. As we have yet to undertake any serious mileage with our gear- and still have bits we need to buy!- this list may change over time- and as always, if you have any particular experience or advice for us, we’d appreciate your input- just contact us!
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| Frame | Dawes Horizon 2010 with Reynolds 520 chromoly frame | Wheelies Direct | £750 | |
| Gears | 24 speed Shimano Alivio gears | – | ||
| Brakes | Tektro Oryx cantilever brakes | – | ||
| Wheels | WTB Dual Duty double wall alloy rims | – | ||
| Tyres | Schwalbe tyres | – | ||
| Saddle | Selle Italia FLX saddle | – | ||
| Panniers | Altura Dry Line Panniers (pair) | Wheelies Direct | £99.99 | |
| Pedals | Wellgo Single Cage 964 Black/Silver | Chain Reaction Cycles | £8.95 | |
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| Frame | Dawes Kara-kum touring bike (gents!) with lightweight alloy frame and butterfly handlebars | EBay | £440.00 | |
| Gears | Shimano Deore 27 speed gears | – | ||
| Brakes | Shimano V-brakes | – | ||
| Tyres | Schwalbe Marathon Plus (x2) | Spa Cycles | £42.00 | |
| Saddle | Bell Female Gel saddle (replacing the original Selle Italia FLX Gel men’s saddle- ouch!) | Asda | £13.00 | |
| Pannier Racks | Bob Yueh front and rear racks | – | ||
| Panniers | Altura Pannier bags | EBay (included with bike) | ||
| Dyno Wheel (front) | Shimano N30 Dynamo Wheel Rigida Sputnik | Spa Cycles | £80.00 | |
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| Trailer | Chariot Corsaire XL | EBay | £300.00 | |
| Wheels | Schwalbe Marathon Plus (x2) | Spa Cycles | £42.00 | |
| Raincover | (To be purchased in Canada if needed) | |||
| Footmuff/cover | Vango Nitestar Baby 2-season sleeping bag | Charlies | £9.99 | |
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| Camping Basics | Tent | Vaude Taurus II 3-man wilderness tent | Gumtree (secondhand) | £90.00 |
| Sleeping Bags | Gelert X-Treme Lite 1000 sleeping bags (x4) | Charlies | £119.96 | |
| Mattresses | Gelert X-Treme Lite self-inflating 3/4 mattresses | Charlies | £39.98 | |
| Rubber mallet/peg-extractor with wooden shaft | Surplus&Adventure | £4.99 | ||
| Theo Sleeping Bag | Charlies | £19.99 | ||
| Accessories | Torches | Icon Black Diamond head torch | Ellis Brigham | £64.99 |
| Wind-up torch | – | – | ||
| Pillows | ||||
| Rope | Gelert Multi Purpose Rope 10m | Charlies | £2.99 | |
| Cooking | Camping Stove | MSR Whisper-Lite liquid fuel backpacking stove | EBay | £54.99 |
| Pans | Karrimor camping pan set (2.0l pot, 1.5l pot, 1.1l frying pan & lid) | Field&Trek | £12.00 | |
| Utensils | Stainless Steel KFS cutlery clip set (3) | Surplus&Adventure | £5.25 | |
| Washing-up bowl | Web-tex Collapsible water bowl | Surplus&Adventure | £4.95 | |
| Bowls | Lexan Large Bowl – 20cm Blue (x2) | Outdoor Gear | £3.09 | |
| Mug | Lexan Mug – 415ml | Outdoor Gear | £3.95 | |
| Toaster | Four Slice Folding Toaster for camping stove | Outdoor Gear | £2.15 | |
| Can opener | Gelert can opener | Outdoor Gear | £1.03 | |
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| Matt | Underwear | Next Mens boxer (x3) | Next | – |
| Baselayer: Bottom | Trekmates Merino Long Johns Black | Outdoor Gear | £22.75 | |
| Baselayer: Top | Merino wool mens baselayer (top) | Mountain Warehouse | £14.99 | |
| Socks | Brasher 4 Season Socks Blue | Outdoor Gear | £17.16 | |
| Trousers | Bear Winter Lined Survivor Trousers – Long | Craghoppers | £39.37 | |
| Long-sleeved shirt | Kiwi Winter Long-Sleeved Shirt | Craghoppers | £15.00 | |
| Fleece | Craghoppers Corey Half Zip Microfleece Top Moss | Outdoor Gear | £17.58 | |
| Becki | Underwear | Endura Women’s Padded undershorts (x3) | Evans Cycles | £29;98 |
| Sports bra | Shock Absorber Run Sports bra | Wiggle | £32.40 | |
| Baselayer: bottom | Merino wool ladies baselayer (bottom) | Mountain Warehouse | £14.99 | |
| Baselayer: top | Merino wool ladies baselayer (top) | Mountain Warehouse | £11.99 | |
| Socks (3) | Sugoi Walleroo-Z crew cycling socks | Wiggle | £17.40 | |
| Cycling shorts | Revolution Pursuit 6 panel cycling shorts | Edinburgh Bicycle Co-op | £19.99 | |
| Trousers | Pika Winter lined trousers | Craghoppers | £18.75 | |
| Long-sleeved top | NosiLife Atoll Long-Sleeved Zip Top | Craghoppers | £10.50 | |
| Fleece | Craghoppers Ladies Miska ½ Zip Microfleece Navy | Outdoor Gear | £17.58 | |
| Short-sleeved top | Mavic Cloud Women’s Jersey | Evans Cycles | £32.99 | |
| Tank top | Nike women’s sports vest | Sports Direct | £8.99 | |
| Shorts | Bontrager Rhythm WSD Shorts | Evans Cycles | £34.99 | |
| Theo | Baselayer: bottom | Regatta boys thermal base long johns | Regatta | £6.99 |
| Baselayer: top | Regatta boys thermal base layer tee | Regatta | £4.99 | |
| Trousers | Fleece-lined jogging bottoms (x3) | Tesco | £12.00 | |
| Fleece | Craghoppers Bear Grylls Microfleece fleece | Outdoor Gear | £14.99 | |
| Waterproof Trousers | Regatta mud jump waterproof overtrousers | Regatta | £13.00 | |
| Socks | To be purchased in Canada | – | – | |
| Shoes | Boys Hi-Tec Waterproof GX Hiking boots | Tog24 | £19.95 | |
| Gloves | Boys lined all-season ski gloves | Tog24 | £6.99 | |
| Coat | Regatta X-ert Performance waterproof boys jacket | Regatta | £21.99 | |
| Cycle Helmet | Boys Junior cycle helmet | Asda | £6.99 | |
| Hat | To be purchased in Canada | – | – | |
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| Becki | Waterproof Jacket | Crane Run high-visability weatherproof jacket | Aldi | £8.99 |
| Jacket | Women’s Kruxx Jacket | Craghoppers | £15.75 | |
| Waterproof Trousers | Vaude ladies drop waterproof cycling trousers | Wiggle | – | |
| Hat | Merino wool skull cap | – | ||
| Helmet | Women’s cycling helmet | Asda | £9.98 | |
| Gloves | SealSkinz all-weather ladies cycle winter gloves | Wiggle | £22.00 | |
| Glove liners | SealSkinz Merino Thermal Liner Glove | Outdoor Gear | £6.04 | |
| Shoes | Merrell – Siren Sport GTX | Cloggs.com | £69.99 | |
| Glasses/Sunglasses | dhb triple lens cycling glasses | Wiggle | – | |
| Matt | Jacket | Viewfield Jacket | Craghoppers | £22.50 |
| Waterproof Trousers | Chandler Lined Overtrousers | Outdoor Gear | £19.65 | |
| Hat | Merino wool buff | Field&Trek | £18 | |
| Helmet | Giro Monza helmet | Wheelies Direct | £74.99 | |
| Gloves | Gore-tex outer shell waterproof gloves | Field&Trek | £29.99 | |
| Glove liners | SealSkinz Merino Thermal Liner Glove | Outdoor Gear | £6.04 | |
| Shoes | Merrell – Refuge Pro GTX | Cloggs.com | £74.99 | |
| Glasses (clear) | Freebie from work! | – | ||
| Sunglasses | Mens sports sunglasses | Boots | £6.99 | |
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| Phones | Iphone 3GS (Becki) | – | – | |
| Orange San Francisco (Matt) | – | – | ||
| iphone mount | Tigra BikeConsole iPhone 3G/3GS Bike Mount Holder Kit | EBay | £19.99 | |
| Digital Camera | Canon S95 point-and-shoot digital | Ebay | £249.99 | |
| Camera case | JAM Neoprene ultra-compact camera case | Play.com | £4.99 | |
| Tripod | Gorilla Pod | Play.com | £10.99 | |
| Universal charger/mount | Nokia DC14 bottle dynamo/bicycle USB charger and mount | Amazon | £25.00 | |
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| Toiletries etc. | Towels (Matt&Becki) | Microfibre bath towel large (x2) | Surplus&Adventure | £29.50 |
| Towel (Theo) | Microfibre body towel | Surplus&Adventure | £9.75 | |
| Clothes line | Flexible clothes line with built-in clips | Surplus&Adventure | £3.99 | |
| First Aid Kit | Basic first aid kit, compiled by ourselves | Boots | – | |
| Mosquito repellent | Mosquito repellent coil + spare coils | Surplus&Adventure | £5.94 | |
| Menstruation | Mooncup | Mooncup.co.uk | £19.99 | |
| Contraception | Mirena coil | GP | – | |
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| Spares | Inner tubes (Chariot) | Michelin G4 AirStop Butyl Tube – 20″/450a Confort | Chain Reaction Cycles | £3.99 |
| Inner tubes (Bikesi) | Michelin A2 Airstop Butyl Tube – 700c 700x25c-32c (x2) | Chain Reaction Cycles | £7.98 | |
| Spokes | Becki’s old wheel | – | ||
| Brake Pads | Clarks 55mm Caliper Brake Shoe (1 pair) | Chain Reaction Cycles | £9.99 | |
| Chains | Shimano HG40 chain (7 Speed) | Chain Reaction Cycles | £6.99 | |
| Shimano HG53 chain (9 Speed) | Chain Reaction Cycles | £13.99 | ||
| Repair kits | Weldtite Airtite Puncture Repair Kit(s) | Chain Reaction Cycles | £1.99 | |
| Bike Locks | Kryptonite KryptoFlex cable 7ft | Chain Reaction Cycles | £12.99 | |
| Kryptonite KryptoChain and Padlock | Ebay | £4.99 | ||
| Tools | Multi-tool | Topeak Alien II multi-tool | Wheelies Direct | £36.99 |
| Bike pump | Lezyne Micro floor pump HVG | Wheelies Direct | £34.99 | |
| Adjustable spanner | ||||
| Lubrication | Finish Line Wet Lubricant 4oz bottle | Wiggle | £6.64 | |