Choosing your bicycle..
As part of Karen Newman’s series on cycling the NC500 -Karen has provided some advice about choosing the perfect bike for you.
Choice of bike is very personal and will depend on how you like to travel, how much you intend to carry and how much you want to spend. These are the main categories of bike to consider for the NC500 – there is a lot of variation so choose carefully and seek advice, particularly about frame quality and design and especially gear choice if you are not already a ‘bike anorak’.
Frames can be made:
- Carbon (usually more expensive and light)
- Aluminium (usually a bit cheaper, heavier and can give a harsher ride)
- Steel eg Reynolds or Columbus (usually heavier but with a softer ride)
Fast Road Bikes:
- Drop handlebars, lightweight, fast and responsive.
- Max tyre size is usually 28mm
- Often don’t have braze-ons for mudguards or panniers.
Usually have calliper rim brakes, though disc brakes are starting to be used
For fast, lightweight travelling. Can be used for ‘credit-card tours’ (hotel, B&B) by carrying a few essentials in bike-packing bags, as below on our ‘best road bikes’ (one carbon, the other aluminium).
Photo: Karen Newman: I have comfortably used this set up for one or two nights in Scotland as well as a 2-week traverse of the Pyrenees
This classic Reynolds 531 steel framed Raleigh Randonneur has cantilever brakes, bar-end shifters, a leather Brookes saddle and very strong Mavic wheels. The stem and handlebars have been upgraded to modern comfort using a quill/threadless headset converter. Lightly loaded with half empty panniers for this 2 night solo camping trip from Gairloch to Durness, but will take a full load of rear and front panniers.
Touring bikes
Similar to the fast road bike but beefier, stronger wheels with more spokes suitable for carrying loads. Usually have a less racy, more stable geometry giving a less stretched out position for comfort rather than aerodynamics. Disc brakes are increasingly being used to give more stopping power, especially in the wet. Low gears for load carrying.
This classic Reynolds 531 steel framed Raleigh Randonneur has cantilever brakes, bar-end shifters, a leather Brookes saddle and very strong Mavic wheels. The stem and handlebars have been upgraded to modern comfort using a quill/threadless headset converter. Lightly loaded with half empty panniers for this 2 night solo camping trip from Gairloch to Durness, but will take a full load of rear and front panniers.
Hybrids
Basically, a cross between a mountain bike and a touring bike – largely replaced by the new generation of adventure and gravel bikes. Flat handle bars, wider tyres; often geared for city commuting so may not suitable for the hilly NC500, more upright position, often heavy and of variable quality. If you can’t cope with drop handlebars, a good quality, lighter weight but strong hybrid with gears for hills may suit.
Gravel/Adventure bikes – Updated concepts of the hybrid, with wide tyres and disc brakes.
Flat bars or wide, flared, shallow drop bars (for control off-raod); a bit like a like a non-competition version of a cyclecross bike. Often have a 1×11 drive train (11 gears with only one front chain ring so simpler to maintain on long trips on rough/dusty/muddy surfaces) and steel frames to give a little comfort (compliance) to the ride. Tyre size is typically 35-45mm. or more!
If you choose a well-designed frame, they can be surprisingly sprightly on the road and remarkably capable off road despite the drop bars and lack of suspension. Would be perfect for a NC500 tour taking in off-road forest tracks and the like…. and they do deal with the rougher minor Highland roads very well! Drop bars cope with headwinds better than flat bars.
Gravel bike set up for a snowy Easter 3 night camping trip – oversized saddlebag and smaller handlebar roll were very stable off road.
Mountain Bikes
Flat handlebars, low gears, wide tyres, disc brakes and front suspension (hard tail) or front and rear suspension (full sus). Some mountain bikes have no suspension and cross over into the Adventure bike category – can be quite confusing!) Heavier so not recommended for riding long distances on tarmac unless technical off-road is an essential part of your journey. Full suss mountain bikes are much more tricky to load up with the bike-backing kit shown below and this is only recommended for those who understand how their bike’s suspension works.
Tandems
Off the peg ones tend to be heavy and frame sized for a tall front rider and short stoker at the back. Disc brakes are essential as they give much needed stopping power for the weight of two people and their load on the long descents on the NC500.
- Advantages: battling into head winds; if one rider is much stronger than the other – you have no option but to stick together – so sociable. Fast downhill. All about team work and trust so not for everyone.
- Disadvantages: sheer length (can’t be taken on most trains); you can’t get away from each other; the stoker has to trust the cycling skills of the captain at the front (also known as divorce machines!). Needs practice to become fully proficient; slower on climbs; climbing steep climbs and changing gear takes some co-ordination between the 2 riders so practice is essential.
Can be hired in Inverness at Ticket to Ride: https://www.tickettoridehighlands.co.uk/bike-hire-electric.php
Custom-made tandem (note larger rear frame size and long top tube – I am 5’10”!) loaded for a 5 day camping trip.
E-Bikes
I have only ever tried an electric fat bike (an extreme type of mountain bike) at a demonstration – it was amazing and really gave your pedalling a boost! Most e-bikes are of a hybrid nature with flat handlebars and are very heavy as you are carrying a battery around with you. Absolutely brilliant invention for tackling the hills and weather of the NC500 for those who may not otherwise be able to cope with the route – I am confident that they will open a whole new way of more sustainable travel for people who are not ‘cyclists’.
Disadvantages: very heavy if you run out of battery power; may have limited range if you use the ‘battery power assist’ too much; need to be re-charged every night so you may have to negotiate a rate with your accommodation provider (for this reason, may not be so suitable for camping trips); may not be accepted on trains and would be heavy to lift in and out, especially if when loaded for touring.
Can be hired in Inverness at Ticket to Ride: https://www.tickettoridehighlands.co.uk/bike-hire-electric.php
