Gulf2Gulf goes full length
G2G DVD Cover
After almost a year the final cut of the Gulf2Gulf DVD came hot off the mac production line last night. If anyone is thinking of doing this trip (I know there a few) then let me know and I’d be happy to pop a copy in the post.
The DVD is split into two parts, which in turn are divided into chapters. I runs for just over an hour and the stills section contained all the best photos in about 4 minutes!
New Adventures for 2010?
There’s heaps of news to come on the site very soon. A new Bike Adventure is install for May 2010 – can’t wait to post some stuff up very soon, let’s just say I’m riding my bike to a land protected by demonesses, giant fire breathing snakes and winged lions! A land shrouded in mist and buried in the deepest of Himalayan valleys.
More to come very soon!
Hey there:
i stumbled across the youtube footage of Gulf2Gulf and was amazed by the footage.
I’d LOVE a copy of the DVD.
What do I need to give you?
Money? – first born child?
Wayne.
Hi Wayne,
Thanks for the kind words, I’ll email you so I can get a copy over to you at Dirtworks. Loving the Dirtworks products this year btw!
Cheers,
Dave
Dear Dave,
The DVD and pictures of your gulf to gulf trip are great and I also enjoyed the piece in Australian Photography (or was it Digital Photography?). A friend and I are about to do a similar trip in July and I was wondering if you could send me a copy of the full version of the DVD you refer to on your site.
Also, I have a couple of technical questions>
1. What kind of wheels did you use
2. WHat kind of tyres did you use
3. Do you think it is possible to do the trip without using a bob trailer by using front and rear panniers?
Regards
Rob L
Hey Rob,
Thanks for the comments.
1. We used regular sized 26″ mtb wheels, we wanted to do the trip without specialist equipment to keep the price down and to be honest they worked just great! A note on rims though. I have Sun DS2-XC rims which are awesome for XC shredding on the weekend but not so good for Gulf2Gulf type trips. They can be a very difficult rim to work with when removing tyres, the beading is just so tight on the rim that it takes 2 bent levers and a litre of precious sweat to get the things off!
So, I rang up Favourite Cycles in Manly and got some advice from Leyton, he knows the kind of cycling I do and suggested a Mavic 317 would be a better choice. Removing the tyre should be pain free with these puppies. It sounds daft, but removing a tyre can be a relatively pain free or heart breaking exercise in 40 degree heat with no shade – rim choice is super important. I’m still learning all this on the job!
2. As for tyres, I used Hutchinson Scorpions which I found to be just the ticket, great for the hard pack we came across in the Strzelecki Desert and not bad at all when hitting deeper sand at 9 pm in the dark! Again, stock standard 26″ mountain bike stuff, nothing fancy here. We took a couple of spares as the rocks in the Sturt Stoney desert can be very sharp, I had to change my tyre once.
3. As for the Bob trailer. I see where you’re going on this one. Tim and I mulled over this question many times before making the best decision of the trip.
Water carrying capacity
I would say we could not have done the trip unsupported without the Bob. In fact, the first thing Tim said when we reached the end of the trip in Karumba was “Well done Bob“. We were carrying about 60 litres of water at one stage, 40 of which was in the Bob! The chances are you may well see traffic and the people of the outback are super friendly and will always offer water. But, you can’t count on it and I would advise planning for the worst. To give you an idea, we rolled in to Birdsville with about 5 litres of water spare each.
Taking the weight off the wheels
I realised the benefit of a trailer in Mongolia, when i didn’t have one! I loaded the bike up and it was so heavy I could hardly lift the back wheel, but I pressed on nonetheless. Two days later my spokes began to ping, see this video for what can go wrong with an overloaded back wheel. The pannier rack was fine, super strong Old Man Mountain Sherpas are pretty bomb proof but the wheel just couldn’t handle it. I’d go the Bob each time now. Adventure Cycling is a bit more demanding on the bike than Touring. Often we need to take all our own tools, spares, food, water to see us through many days if not weeks on our own. We therefore carry lots more and although panniers are great for sleeping bags, tents and clothing, the Bob is perfect for your heavier gear.
Something to bare in mind though. Depending on your frame, you may not be able to fit the Bob and Old Man Mountain racks as they both use a rear skewer system to connect to the bike.
I’ll email you so I can grab your postal address for the DVD, this will give you a better idea of the trailer use for sure.
Hope this helps Rob,
Dave
Hi David,
I would really like to see the full video and how our sport drinks helped you guys survived the adventure…
Just kidding, you know I dream about giving it a go myself and want to get as much info as possible.
thanks for sharing
Alex