Maintenance & TyreTips for Bike Travel
Even if you are not a bike mechanic, some maintenance skills and practices will go a long way.
Bike Cleaning
A clean bike is a happy bike, clean bikes live longer. This makes for a happy rider. Grit and dirt impact chain and drivetrain, diminishes your paintwork and makes you look sloppy. Regular cleaning also reveals any faults or repairs that should be done.
It is also worth to regularly check the tires for damage as well as cleaning the break dirt away. You can achieve peak performance when your bike is in peak condition. Good cleaning products are Muc Off or Weldtite Citrus Degreaser. Use soft brushes and a low pressure hose - no high pressure please!
Maintenance
Top 10 Maintenance tips: Learn more here how to maintain your bike
Tools & Lubricants: While expensive, a torq wrench is very useful for all those bolts that can only be tightened to a certain level, especially when carbon is involved. Also use carbon fibre assembly gel to tighten bolts against carbon or carbon against carbon, e.g. handle bars. Use anti seize or lube for most bolts and loosen the pedals regularly to ensure they don't seize up .
Getting started: Here are some tips to start with from Bike Radar on essential maintenance.
In London, Bike Works offers maintenance courses for beginners and intermediates. Sigma Sports also offers bike mechanics courses, but only in the off season.
There a a number of maintenance videos on the web, GCN has a nice video library. This video gets you started while this goes a bit more into detail. Particularly gears and breaks require some experience and product specific knowledge.
Tyre choices: Tyre choice will affect your ride quality, the longevity of your tyres, and how often you have to deal with punctures. So which brands offer good cycling tyres? Leading brands include Continental, Pirelli, Vittoria, Michelin and Schwalbe. Between these five manufacturers, virtually all of your tyre needs should be covered.
Key factors to consider when choosing a tyre include the type of roads you will be riding on, the style of riding you plan to do, and how willing you are to deal with punctures. In simple terms, the greater the puncture protection, the higher the rolling resistance and the greater the potential loss of performance.
Quality tyres are expensive, and there may be a temptation to choose a cheaper option. In my opinion, however, this is false economy. It is best to discuss tyre options with your bike shop to determine which tyre is most suitable for your riding style and the roads you typically ride.
Performance
I love the Continental Grand Prix performance road tyres. They are probably among the best road bike tyres available, and I have been using them for years. At the top end of the market, all the brands mentioned above offer excellent tyres with great road feedback and low rolling resistance.
The price for this performance advantage is that these tyres are built to be lightweight, and the rubber compound can be more susceptible to punctures. They are designed for fast roads, fast rides, and clean, well-maintained surfaces.
I have used these tyres on many rides without a single puncture in Germany, Italy, Austria, and even Hong Kong, whereas in the UK they puncture much more frequently. Road quality is therefore a key factor when using these tyres.
Endurance / Puncture protection
A step down from performance tyres are models that offer greater puncture protection without a significant reduction in handling or a large increase in rolling resistance. These tyres are well suited to rougher roads with potholes and debris, and for routes where you may occasionally encounter short gravel sections that need to be negotiated. Winter conditions can also present challenges for tyres, as rain often washes dirt, stones, and other debris onto the road.
Tyres such as the Pirelli Cinturato are good choices in this category, and Michelin also offers several strong options in this range.
These tyres are particularly well suited to multi-day rides thanks to their improved puncture protection, while still minimising the loss of performance. The key in this category is to strike the right balance between road performance and durability.
Robust / Commute
A further step towards greater longevity and robustness is the category of four-season tyres. The Continental Grand Prix 4 Seasons and the Schwalbe Pro One Allroad are excellent options.
These tyres are more durable and designed to cope with a wide range of conditions, from urban streets to country roads and in all kinds of weather. If your riding regularly includes a mix of these environments, a four-season tyre may be the right choice for you.
To Tubeless or not to Tubeless
Punctures are, unfortunately, part of cycling, and a tubeless setup offers the advantage of continuing a ride without major disruption in the event of a small puncture. A tubeless system requires tubeless-ready wheels and tyres, along with sealant injected into the tyre instead of an inner tube. The sealant automatically seals minor holes during the ride. When a puncture occurs, the sealant is forced into the hole; although some may spray out initially, it usually seals the puncture within a few minutes. The tyre can then continue to be used without needing replacement. In this situation, tubeless is clearly advantageous.
However, a tubeless setup is more expensive than using inner tubes, and the sealant needs to be topped up roughly every three months. Problems arise when the hole in the tyre is too large to be sealed effectively. If this happens far from assistance, your options can be limited. Additionally, when a puncture occurs, sealant can spray over the bike and should be cleaned off quickly before it dries and sticks to the frame. In case of a larger puncture, you will therefore have to replace the tire and it is advisable to carry a spare inner tube.
In summary, tubeless systems work very well for small punctures and when you are close to home or services. However, when riding in remote areas, inner tubes offer greater certainty by simply replacing the tube.
Derailleur
You wonder why I call out the hanger plate for special attention? The derailleur hanger is probably the most delicate item on your drive train and is designed to bend when knocked in transit, in a crash or when the bike falls over. All this can happen on a trip.
It can be bent back, but that reduces its stiffness and will lead to failure in time. It is always good to have a spare hanger plate which has to be specific for your bike and best bought from the store you purchased your bike or directly from the manufacturer.
When the bike is in transit, is is also a good idea to detach the derailleur from the hanger which can easily be refitted at your destination.
Bikepacking has a very different dynamic from day rides even if you ride on holiday and in new places. More immersed, more intense, more adventure, more freedom.
