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Cycling in India - bike advice needed!

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fingerbell:
Hello

We are two relatively inexperienced cyclists planning a trip from Mumbai to Chennai around the coastal route from Jan - May, and have some newbie questions.  Both of us have travelled extensively in India before, but never with bicycles!

- What type of bike should we get?  We've read a lot about mountain bikes... we have hybrid bikes (not very expensive ones), would they be OK or should we invest in something else? Some sites say you must get mountain bikes, others say just use what you're comfortable with.
- Is it an option to buy a bike out there, or should we take our bikes with us?
- If it all gets too much, can we take bikes on trains easily?!
- Should we take a tent, or is the weight prohibitive?


Any other advice gratefully received...

L & C

rualexander:
I cycled from Madras (as it was then) to Goa in 1995, great trip.
I would recommend a bike with 26" wheels but not really necessary, however spares and tyres for 700c might be hard to find, but then again if you go with decent stuff to start with and carry a spare tyre, and have the ability to replace a spoke then it shouldn't be a problem.
You could easily buy a local Indian bike and it will be easy to get it repaired if you have any problems but it might not have the gearing you are used to or the light weight.
I imagine there would be no problem taking bikes on trains but there might be a lot of bureaucracy involved in booking them on, but I don't know.
Very little point in taking a tent, the hotels and guest houses are very cheap and there's something in most towns. Somewhere suitable to camp would be hard to find, it would be pretty hot spending nights in a tent, and the wildlife can be unfriendly.

acousticmotorbike:
Hi, I've been to India five times in the last 10 years, and I spent nearly 10 months there in 2009 / 2010 as part of my rtw bicycle trip.  I wouldn't recommend buying a bike there, they are big and 'clunky' and about as strong as marzipan.  The heat is extreme in India, especially Goa in May, that is when all the 'long termers' start heading north on their Enfield Motorcycles.

You can put bicycles on a train, for a price, but expect them to be thrown around as it is 'just a bi-cycle'.  Indian mechanics can fix anything though, especially with a hammer and an old Coke can, but DON'T expect a good job! 

I've never used my tent in India as it's so hot (or cold in the Himalayas) and forget about it during the time you're proposing, especially down south.  And do you really want to wake up every morning with 30 locals crowding around your tent, or trying to get into it (out of curiousity). 

To be honest, I put my bicycle in storage in Delhi when I was last there and borrowed motorcyles from friends, and I met other RTW cyclists who put their bikes in storage and rented motorbikes.  The coast road is the main road down the west of India and it is BUSY!!! 

Sorry, if it all sounds a bit negative, but it ain't fun on a bicycle over there!  Whatever your decision, best of luck.

Namaste
Aidan: www.acousticmotorbike.com

rualexander:
It was February, March, April, when I was there and the heat was not too extreme, probably around the 30'C mark, and cycling generates your own airflow so its ok. I really enjoyed it after the first couple of weeks acclimatisation (both heat and culture), and if you stay off the main trunk roads the traffic was fairly light once out of the towns, in the towns it was chaos!
I would definitely recommend it.

fingerbell:
Thanks so much for all the advice people!  This is really helpful.

Doing my research, I've come across a lot of people saying avoid the trunk roads, but is this always possible?  I'm guessing cycling along an idyllic beach from village to village is not really how it's going to work...

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