North American Thorn Owners (NATO) Photo Album

[Cephas]

I'll start things off with my Nomad. Not a great photo, but it was too cold tonight to mess about for very long. Let's see what you've got folks.

Cephas
Manchester, NH
---------------
Granite State Wheelmen
Randonneurs USA
Adventure Cycling Association

[hoogie]

cool ... you ride a wee white square with a red 'X' []

I don't think your pic worked out mate ...

[Istanbul_Tea]

Cep-

Sweet ride!!  I can see the pic fine, no problems with it.

What kind of tires are you using for winter??

[Cephas]

quote:Originally posted by Istanbul_Tea

Cep-

Sweet ride!!  I can see the pic fine, no problems with it.

What kind of tires are you using for winter??

Thanks.
My winter tires are 1.9" Continental Town&Country's, the chunkiest tires that I could fit without having to mess around much with the  fender(mudguard) set up. (Most of the year I run 1.25" - 1.5" road tires.) http://tinyurl.com/ebom
I used the T&Cs on my old bike a couple years ago when touring SE Utah and found them a good compromise for the mix of highway and jeep trails I encountered, performing well in everything but deep sand. One problem: The T&Cs were susceptible to punctures from goathead thorns that would wedge themselves into the recessed treads. Next time I'll use tire liners and/or thorn-proof tubes.

Here's the old bike, a 1985 Schwinn Sierra, that served as a test bed for most of the kit on the Nomad.

[Istanbul_Tea]

Nice pic!!  That's one beefy-a$$ed seat tube... didn't know that you're an amputee.  ;-)

[Cephas]

That black frame bag does add a bit of a twist to the pic, doesn't it.

[Istanbul_Tea]

Do you still have your Schwinn?  Also, did you tour out to Utah or drive out and then bicycle around?

[Cephas]

quote:Originally posted by Istanbul_Tea

Do you still have your Schwinn?  Also, did you tour out to Utah or drive out and then bicycle around?

The Schwinn was stripped down, got a fresh powdercoating and is in the basement. I haven't quite decided what I'm doing with it, but have some ideas. Maybe a bare bones one speed.

I flew into SLC and caught a shuttle to Moab. The bike was shipped ahead to a Moab bike shop and ready to roll when I arrived. Then it was off into the desert and mountains for two weeks. Went as far south as Monument Valley. Here's my bike and tent at the most incredible campsite in the USA.
Although Moab is considered Mecca for mountainbikers, the posibilities for other outdoor adventures are endless. Gone once for canoeing, once for cycling and can't wait to go back. Someone said its like DisneyWorld designed by LL Bean.

Enough of me, already! Let's see someone else's bike and travel pics.

[Istanbul_Tea]

Beautiful photo... bet that wood for the picnic shelter was a drag to carry though.  

[Cephas]

quote:Originally posted by Istanbul_Tea

Beautiful photo... bet that wood for the picnic shelter was a drag to carry though.  

The pic has been carefully cropped so the you can't see any of the other 98 campsites in Mitten View Campground, Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park. But tent site 25 is the best and I had to beg to get it, due to the high winds that were blowing that afternoon. (If my tent blew away the Navajo didn't want to hear about it.) Being a huge fan of John Ford westerns, the view was to die for.  
The current website, http://www.monumentvalleyonline.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=document&ID=4  , says "There is no biking inside the monument", but no one objected in 1999 to my riding the dirt road thru the Valley out to Ford's Point and back. Perhaps there are times when it pays to look like a German tourist.

[Mario]

Wonderful Picture, I'm green with envy. What does a German tourist look like?

[Cephas]

quote:Originally posted by Mario

What does a German tourist look like?

Well, since you ask.....
       (This space reserved for "THE GERMAN TOURIST STORY")
                (Coming Soon To This Forum)

[Istanbul_Tea]

In the States we characterize a German tourist as someone who typically wears the following-

1.  Socks that reach to just below the kneecap.

2.  Socks that are either white or dark in color.

3.  Sandals on their socked feet.

4.  Very tight short pants e.g. gym trunks.

5.  A fanny pack.

6.  A Tee shirt with either some touristy American logo or some unreadable German slogan.

7.  A Macy's, FAQ Swartz, Toys R Us and/or I Love NY bag in their hand.

8.  A camera drapped around their neck.

9.  A mullet-style haircut(typically but not always).

10.  Some kind of 'floppy-style', foldable hat.

But what really stands out would be the very short, very tight shorts.  That and usually a lack of suntan on those very exposed legs.

[Cephas]

quote:Originally posted by Istanbul_Tea

In the States we characterize a German tourist as someone who typically wears the following-  (snip)

I thought those were the French Canadians who summer at the New England beaches.

[Mario]

I am speechless! You just described the typical tourist from the US of A. With a few exeptions -:
1)2)and 3): American; 4): I'm not sure. If 5) is the same as a bumbag: American. German males carry a sort of clutch bag. 6)and 7) definitely American. 8)probably of Japanese extraction, but also American. 9) don't know what that is. 10) that hat is pure American! The white legs are universal to start with, later they turn a sort of salmon colour! All to be viewed at hotspots like Stratford on Avon or Heidelberg for example. Or could it be that tourists of any Nation feel free to dress in a particular manner as CEPHAS' answer appears to suggest.