Club Tour unloaded

[BobScarle]

I am hoping to get to France next year to ride PBP. I would like to ride there and back carrying my camping gear. I recon it would weigh something like 12 - 15 Kg. One option that I am looking at is buying a touring bike frameset and building a new bike around it. I do like the look of the Club Tour and would like to ask owners of this if they have any thoughts on the way it rides when unloaded.

Any opinions?

[jags]

audax bike would be better, light fast good climber and can take panniers .
club tour is a touring bike.

anto.

[Neil Jones]

I have no experience of riding a Club Tour but I agree with Anto that an Audax bike with a rear rack would certainly carry your camping gear and would make unloaded rides a lot more fun.

I do remember a forum member having a Club Tour and racking up huge daily milages on it so it can be done. I suppose it would be best to get a bike that will suit your needs after your PBP ride as both bikes are more than adequate for the job. If you can get to Bridgewater and have a test ride of both that would be the best option I think, good luck.

Regards,
Neil

[martinf]

For once I agree with Jags. PBP is one of the hardest Audax events, so I reckon an Audax bike optimised for a good compromise between comfort and speed (high quality 28 mm tyres) would be best. The Thorn Audax will take a rear rack and panniers, but isn't designed for huge loads.

I don't do organised Audax events, but if I wanted to do PBP I would use either my old 700C lightweight derailleur bike or my (now run-in) Raven Sport Tour with Rohloff. I'd use a saddlebag and water bottles for the event itself. and add a rear rack and panniers to hold the camping gear for the ride there and back. And cut down said camping gear to a minimum to reduce any possible handling problems caused by carrying too much weight on the rear.

That said, PBP would certainly be possible on a Club Tour, people have even done it on Brompton folding bikes.

[B cereus]

I've got a Club Tour MK IV which I built up as a light tourer come fast day ride type of bike. Its a very versatile frame  with various fork options. Mine has the 853 fork and to further increase the versatility I run it with different wheel and tyre options. In my opinion tyre choice makes a bigger contribution to comfort than frame choice.

It's great for credit card touring and I even occasionally carry minimal camping equipment. I would say a 12-15kg load, split between rear rack and front bar bag, is well within it's capabilities. On day rides, with the right tyre choice, it easily handles unsurfaced tracks, and on road I'm happy to spend 8-10 hrs in the saddle without any discomfort.

The 853 fork is likely to be the best option for your purpose unless you especially want to have front panniers or a front disc brake. To be honest I'm not sure that the cost of the 853 fork can be justified. One option would be to get a frame builder to make you a decent pair  631 forks. I'm pretty sure you would have change left from your £270.

[leftpoole]

I am hoping to get to France next year to ride PBP. I would like to ride there and back carrying my camping gear. I recon it would weigh something like 12 - 15 Kg. One option that I am looking at is buying a touring bike frameset and building a new bike around it. I do like the look of the Club Tour and would like to ask owners of this if they have any thoughts on the way it rides when unloaded.

Any opinions?

Hello,
When I only (?) had one bike, it was a Club Tour. I still have it. I used to ride it regularly and only used it for camping a few times annually.
I was and still am more than happy with the ride either loaded or unloaded. It makes a nice distance day bike.
John

[John Saxby]

PBP is one of the hardest Audax events, so I reckon an Audax bike optimised for a good compromise between comfort and speed (high quality 28 mm tyres) would be best. The Thorn Audax will take a rear rack and panniers, but isn't designed for huge loads.

Bob,  Following up on the comments by jags and Martin's about the Audax, there's a forum member in Australia, "Vintage Tourer" (a.k.a. Graham Smith), and he's found his Audax Mk 3 to be a brilliant bike, capable of Audax-style events and also light touring.  I'd suggest you send him a PM and ask him for his thoughts.

Cheers,  John

[percussionken]

Hi!
I did the PBP 2007 on a Thorn Audax 853, worked fine and 2 years later did the Raid Pyrčnčen with 2 panniers at the rear with no problems. Used Rivendell Ruffy Tuffy 700x28 tyres then.

Well now I have the the Club Tour Mk4 with the lightest 853 fork. Done 1 tour in Spain with 2 panniers with no problem. I dont do any long Audax rides (200km or longer) on it but I wouldn`t hesitate to use it for PBP.
One key factor for making this sort of rides is that its comfortable to sit on the bike, I guess you know that already. And because of that I would not use any other tyre than the Compass tyres. Used them for 3 years and they are now on all my bikes except my commuter. The quality of ride is superior to any tyre I“ve used.
On the Club Tour Mk4 I use Barlow Pass 700x38. Its a slightly tight fit with mudguards but it works. For safety on this sort of event (PBP), I might instead use the Compass Bon Jon 700x35 tyre.
Dont know how the Audax is compared to my old 853 but I like the fact that I can use 38mm tyres on the Club Tour.
Regards
Ken

[aggs]

If I had only one bike it would be the Club Tour , my Mk4 has been used for loaded Touring, audax and gravel riding up to 200km off road.
Its an extremely versatile and comfy bike, and does not feel stiff at the rear when unloaded, like a previous older Touring Bike  I have.
Maybe a touch heavy for pure audax use, but the other attributes make it a great all rounder. I would think the main benefit over an Audax would be the option to use bigger tyres and this makes the comfort difference on rougher roads loaded or unloaded.
But for the PBP the Audax would be the perfect bike, a fast Tourer.

[jags]

see this thing about wider smaller tyres been better for long rides imho rubbish, now i mean that in a nice way so don't be getting  upset at anto

my 700c  conti tyres are great  never had a bother  with comfort on them no road buzz roll like a dream.
now over rough roads or  tracks yeah bit of a problem, but who in there right mind would ride rough roads when there's usually nice tarmac heading in the same direction ,certainly not this aul bird.
still say the audax is streets ahead   

night night folks
anto.

[BobScarle]

I have moved things on a little. Booked an appointment to see Sarah to talk about buying a Club Tour.

I am not going to buy an Audax as I have a bike very similar, a Condor Fratello. It is set up for audaxes and I would like to keep it that way. The Club Tour will be set up for touring. I know that there is some blurring of lines here but I think the two bikes will have two different jobs. I am not saying that they will not overlap though.

I need to ride to France carrying my camping gear over probably 3 days. I will ride PBP then I will ride home. The first and third parts will be loaded, the second unloaded. If I had the option of using the Fratello once I got to the campsite in France, I would.

So why not use the Fratello in the first place? This is a good question as a number of people have said it will carry the weight. A few years ago I used my Thorn Audax 853 for a tour. It handled ok. Not wonderful, but ok. I called SJSC and was told that it really wasn't suitable for touring. So I bought a proper touring bike, a Genesis Tour de Fer. I used that for a couple of tours and found it handled much better. It was doing the job it was meant to do. However, I thought some time back that my touring days had finished so I sold both bikes.

I still remember the difference between a bike that was asked to do a job and one that did a job it was designed to. I realise that things have moved on but I am still wary.

Anyway, I see Sarah next week so I'll let you know.

[lewis noble]

Sarah sized / specced my Audax for me late last year, did an excellent job, and I'm sure her advice will be sound. From what you say, I guess a Club Tour would be a great option . . . And the range of specs available on the bikes helps.

Lewis