With 38x21, my lowest gear is just under 13 inches.

That corresponds to about 5.5 kph at 90 rpm.

If I am very tired I may drop pedalling rate to 60 rpm, which is 3.7 kph, about my lower limit for keeping balance.

That works on the loaded bike. With no front panniers, the front wheel lifts on very steep climbs.

Excellent photos and reports Ron, makes me want to go back!  I've ridden the Fort Augustus road in both directions, it's a lot more fun going down!

I rode from Ullapool to Garve, excellent ride but with a big long hill.

Yes, that hill is the real deal. Did you catch a train at Garve? I wanted to, but the Scotrail app thwarted my efforts to book a spot for the bike.

There's an eery, otherworldly quality to your photo taken near Oban. 

Thanks, Andre. The ambient light seems to have fooled the white balance on the phone, but I liked the results.


 The outer Hebrides may have been my favourite part of the trip, not least because I was joined on that stretch by my daughter and her partner. The scenery was spectacular and varied. I didn't make it “tip to tip” because the wind was just too strong in our faces and we didn't cover as much ground as was planned.

 We spent six full days and two partial days on the islands. Accommodations were in commercial campgrounds, with one Gatliff trust hostel. In Stornoway we took advantage of a cabin at the local campground because the weather had turned quite windy and cold with showers. All the campgrounds had excellent facilities, with kitchens that we could use, and friendly hosts. When we arrived at the campsite, which was 8 miles out of town, on Saturday afternoon, the owner said “I’m just headed to the shops. Would you like to come along? Everything will be shut tomorrow.” Such a kind offer. Fortunately, we knew about Sunday on the Hebrides, and had stopped at the grocery on the way.

Please enjoy some pics from the ride.

1 Arriving at Castlebay from Oban

2 Loganair flight 451 at Barra airport. The only one in the world with scheduled flights that uses the beach for a runway. There were more tourists photographing the flight than passengers on the plane!

3 Riding across North Uist

4 Climbing the giant hill out of Tarbert

Have you considered 27.5"/650B? Then the ride isn’t going to feel much different from the 26" you are used to, but unlike 26" where options are dwindling, Schwalbe releases all its options in 650B. At 650B wheel size, the Nomad Mk3 (with the Thorn Bikepacking Fork up front) will fit up to 2.60" tire width, so you’re good for some famous sandy routes; honestly, the Surly fork might have been a step down.

Tire availability on the Central Asia route isn’t a big problem. I cycled from the Caucasus through the Pamirs last season, and when I needed to replace a 650B tire, I easily found someone through the WhatsApp group that everyone is on (“Cycling East”) who was flying in to Central Asia, and was willing to bring along some spare parts for people.

Even if you don’t plan to use tubeless tires anytime soon, you should future-proof the build by asking SJS to use a tubeless-ready rim.

I’m really surprised that you broke spokes on a SJS-built 32h Rohloff wheel. Never had a broken spoke on that in tens of thousands of km of cycling rough roads and singletrack, though I am a rather light rider. If you want 36h, wouldn't that require getting a completely new Rohloff shell?

Seems to me that well before you arrive at Rohloff's CYA lowest permissable transmission ratios, never mind transgressing them, your choice will be logically determined by the best cadence you can maintain on a hill such as the one George walked up, photo above in this thread, and consequently by the lowest velocity at which you can maintain your balance and a relatively straight line of progress.

Transmission Tooth Tables at http://coolmainpress.com/BICYCLINGHebieChainglider.html illustrate the point. The first one is for me -- and demonstrated that for my best cadence of 60rpm, even on the flat, my choices (of Chainglider-capable transmission couples) was limited by my balance to  about 3.5mph/5.6kph. It wasn't even necessary to recalculate for my best maintainable cadence on a long steep uphill, of which there are plenty where I live in a town called "the Rome of West Cork". Mental arithmetic told me an ultraconservative 38x16 would suit my best high-stress cadence of 40rpm. (Note that the calculation is for a 622mm wheel with a 60mm wide tyre.)

If you want a similar table to help you determine the right choice, post or send me in a PM your wheel and preferred tyre sizes, your all-day cadence on the flat, plus your maintainable cadence on a long steep hill, and I'll create two tables.

Andre Jute