Month: August 2012
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Writer’s Blog: If You Were A Fly On The Wall
If you were a fly on the wall, you’d be forgiven for thinking me insane. There are three empty bedrooms in the house, but every night I lay down to sleep in the back garden. There are two good showers here, too, but I hang a bag of water up outside and wash beneath it. […] Continue reading →
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Schwalbe Marathon Supreme Touring Tyre Review
Full disclosure: Schwalbe gave me a pair of Marathon Supremes for my 2012 U.S. West Coast trip, asking for feedback and an honest write-up of the tyre in return. From the ashes of the much loved Schwalbe Marathon XR expedition tyre arose a phoenix. Or, more correctly, a number of phoenixes. Or perhaps phoeni. Anyway. […] Continue reading →
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About The Major Change Of Plan This Summer
For some months I’ve been hinting at another major journey I was planning for later this year. I haven’t cancelled the trip, but I have put it on hold for a while. I’ll explain why, as the reasons deserve some discussion. Continue reading →
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Cycle Tour Sponsorship: The Good, The Bad & The Ugly
Imagine the following entirely hypothetical situation. Several months into your round-the-world cycle tour, you are still glowing with what you see as a victory over the whole of capitalism — when something goes wrong. A piece of equipment isn’t doing its job properly, and you need one particular sponsor’s help to replace it. So you […] Continue reading →
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Kona Sutra 2013 Touring Bike: First Look
Kona have just announced their bike line-up for the 2013 season. While I don’t usually post on product launches, Kona have supported my adventures for half a decade, and last week they reminded me why I’m glad to be working with them (aside from getting to ride their bikes for free). I wrote a detailed review […] Continue reading →
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Uncertainty vs So-Called Predictability: Which Would You Choose?
Entirely unbeknownst to me, a friend of a friend snapped this fantastic image in early 2008. To me, it represents a fascinating collision between the concerns of a wandering cycle-traveller, consulting a street-map to find the right road out of the city, and a grim moment in a nation’s history — the aftermath of an anti-government […] Continue reading →
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Vaude Hogan Ultralight Review – 1–2P Tent for Cycle Touring
This review was extensively rewritten in August 2012 with more photos and additional information on long-term performance over four years of real-world use. My Vaude Hogan Ultralight 2‑man tent has performed almost flawlessly for four years of regular touring use between 2007 and 2011. The design is well suited to a solo cycle tourer or […] Continue reading →
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Philosophy Of Travel & The Making Of ‘Janapar’: An Interview With The Sprocket Podcast
Podcasts are to radio stations what blogs are to newspapers, and — as with all things online and unfiltered — good content bubbles to the surface through persistence and collective appreciation. These varied and portable programmes are one of my favourite things to listen to (with one ear, naturally) during long bike rides. I’ve started […] Continue reading →