- 4 Sep 2015
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- #26
Wow! Thank you so much. I'll share it with the wife.
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Ahh today I cleaned off and tuned up the old pilgrimage bike and rode about 40km today. Even though it's a little small for me, I missed it!
I have no idea how I did 1600km+ with those stock ones, halfway through the ride my hands were killing me! I was looking for bike gloves but settled on some new handlebars with palm rests and side grips,
!View attachment 29140
Nice! Is that an R3 Escape? looks like our setups are identical, even the same kickstand and pannier rack haha. I bought mine specifically for doing the 88-temple pilgrimage in Shikoku back in 2015, and outside of that I don't have any real touring experience (it was a mix of camping/hammocking and staying at places set up for ohenro). The bike has been sitting in a friend's garage, waiting for me to come back and put some more miles on it.
I installed my new handlebars yesterday (~¥2700, worth every yen), I really wish I had done this from the start, the stock Giant handlebars are way too rough on the palms. I remember even with heavily padded gloves that became a sore point while touring. Your mileage may vary, but if you're going to do any serious distance every little comfort goes a long way.
Also, be aware of how much weight you're putting on the bike; if you have a lot of cargo, consider getting a front rack and spreading it out, or you'll end up with broken spokes! View attachment 29146
Nice, mine is a 2014 or 2015 i think, but it doesn't look like they've changed much. Unfortunately the L size in Japan feels more like a M back home, so it's a bit undersized for me. I think I have the stock seat but I threw one of those padded seat covers on it, and when I rode long distances I'd wear padded shorts. Chamois butter is your friend! The tire upgrade is a good idea; sounds like you'll be riding pretty light so you may not need to worry about the wheels too much. The one thing I didn't really like about the Escape was that the wheels had too few spokes, which led to trouble on my tour.
Shikoku was not an easy ride, but it was a fantastic experience. I think I only got away with it cause I was in decent shape to begin with, and determined to see it through. I'm in the Nagoya area now, so i'm just riding along the roads here which is... alright I guess. As long as the weather is nice it's nice to be in the saddle.
If you get a chance and want a REALLY nice ride, I highly recommend the Shimanami Kaido, which I used to bike from Honshu to Shikoku: しまなみジャパン - しまなみ体験ナビゲーション / English: GO SHIMANAMI - Bridges, islands, pirates and shimmering seas