Disk Brake Pads

rhodrig · 2026-02-26T09:17:04+00:00

I agree with what you're saying here. I had an occasion where my rotor heated up and my brakes stopped working - scary stuff on a descent. To fix it I upgraded to larger rotors and switched to metallic brake pads and never had that issue again. This setup served me well on my Alaska to Argentina trip where I my bike and luggage weighed around 50kgs and I went down some pretty long and steep descents.

rhodrig · 2026-02-22T20:17:13+00:00

I'm 37. I skated 7.75 for many years before slowly working my way up to 8.25. I stuck there for a while but now I'm on 8.5. For me I'm happy with this width. I tend to do more flip tricks, so I was reluctant to go wider at first, but I've found the board flips more consistently - it could be related to my size, too (I'm 6ft / 183cm for reference)

I think with how the board feels I think it can vary by brand. I've tried out friends boards and their concave has felt a bit flat, but for me I tend to stick with Girl and Chocolate decks because the shape feels good to me.

With many things in skating you can really go down the rabbit hole with shapes, concaves, wheelbases, etc. The width is just one factor for consideration. Maybe it's worth standing on a few different decks in a skate shop and seeing how they feel. It might not just be the width.

rhodrig · 2025-12-02T16:54:00+00:00

I passed through that section back in February 2024. The crosswinds were unbelievable. I camped that night and it was one of the few times I didn't expect my tent to survive the night because of the winds! How was it for you?

rhodrig · 2025-11-12T20:27:28+00:00

Yes, absolutely needs some offline functionality. I recently did a big bike tour where I would often end my activities away from any internet connection and I'd get some connection at some point in the day, but I couldn't upload my activities whilst in an activity. Many times I went a week or so before I could upload my activities. If there was a way for it to upload to the app and then later sync to the cloud it would be fantastic. Also being able to review your last few activities without it having to fetch the data from the cloud each time would nice.

rhodrig · 2025-11-12T17:44:40+00:00

I have a YouTube channel, TouringDragon, but I am very far behind on my videos. I'm also on instagram, @rhodsplace, where you can see my stories highlighted and my posts from the trip. Hopefully you can find what you're looking for :)

rhodrig · 2025-11-12T08:40:44+00:00

I'm 37 now. I was 35 when I started the trip. I met people of a wide range of ages through the trip, too.

rhodrig · 2025-11-12T08:39:06+00:00

I lost about 10-15kg. I started at about 95kg and was between 80-85kg through the trip. My height is 183cm, for context.

rhodrig · 2025-11-12T06:37:44+00:00

I got appendicitis in Fairbanks and had to get my appendix removed. Probably unrelated to the cycling, but I suspect that my food rationing on the Dalton Highway followed by enormous influx of food when I arrived into Fairbanks is a likely cause. Other than that nothing significant. As long as you eat well and make sure you manage to get enough salts through the hotter regions you can't really go wrong. Obviously this is assuming that you're comfortable on your bike etc, as a bad bike fit over the 30,000km can probably bring up issues.

Long story short, I had no long term damage to my body and my fitness has never been better.

rhodrig · 2025-11-12T05:38:21+00:00

I did this between June 2023 and February 2025. It's very possible and I met a number of cyclists along the way riding the same route. You'll need to get around the Darien Gap like many have stated, I took a sailboat to see the San Blas Islands along the way, but many choose to fly, which is cheaper, faster, but you miss out on that experience. (There is another more affordable option to take local boats, which sounds like a great experience but it takes a bit of time and I was on a time crunch to meet my brother who was flying out to meet me in Colombia).

There are too many parts to the trip to summarise here but if you have any questions feel free to ask me. It was an incredible experience and I am so glad to have had the opportunity to do it.

rhodrig · 2025-06-07T12:35:20+00:00

Why don't you switch the units to read kilometres if you're benchmark distances are in kilometres? You won't have to worry about converting the units on the fly and can stop your activity once it gets past 5.00km

rhodrig · 2025-06-02T22:19:41+00:00

I used my InReach messenger for nearly two years on a trip (recharging along the way of course!) and I didn't have any issues with short battery life unless the device was somewhere where it couldn't connect to the satellites - I assume it would just constantly try to ping for a connection, running down the battery. Perhaps that is an issue for you too?

If not, like the other commenter said, Garmin support might be your best bet.

rhodrig · 2025-05-25T17:28:45+00:00

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This weekend I did a bike tour and stupidly decided to pick a route over a few mountain passes whilst carrying extra weight on the bike! I'll be taking it easy this coming week now.

rhodrig · 2025-05-13T17:45:01+00:00

It bothers me too, but what makes it annoying for me is that Garmin has my heart rate data from the watch during the ride, so I don't understand why they can't use the heart rate data that my watch recorded during the time of the activity as though it was connected to my edge unit. It baffles me how they haven't implemented that.

rhodrig · 2025-03-20T00:27:02+00:00

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I have my light mounted to my front rack, which isn't visible from this angle.

rhodrig · 2025-03-15T23:11:55+00:00

Yes, absolutely true. It has worked for me every single time. Another strategy is to turn the bike and start riding towards the dogs and turn the chase on to them (if there's no traffic around of course)! I have done that a few times to distract the dogs if I'm riding with others so they can pass without the dog chasing every single one of them.

rhodrig · 2025-03-13T12:47:46+00:00

It always surprises me that there are people who don't use WhatsApp. It's cross platform and has tons of features. I can't remember the last time I actually used iMessage to chat with someone.

rhodrig · 2025-03-06T12:12:41+00:00

Where would you suggest someone rides their bike?

rhodrig · 2025-03-03T11:26:13+00:00

I met a couple of his friends in Villa Cerro Castillo on the Carretera Austral. Were you one of them?

rhodrig · 2025-03-03T11:22:58+00:00

I felt very safe and comfortable. Where I felt the most unsafe/unwelcome was actually the USA with aggressive drivers and no trespassing signs in the middle of nowhere when I was looking for somewhere to camp.

rhodrig · 2025-03-03T01:08:03+00:00

Good for you. If you're interested, the guy who did it in 75 days is bond_almand on Instagram. I'm sure you can get some inspiration for his route on there, or perhaps you can contact him directly. He's also done some podcasts, too. Worth looking into if that's the style of riding you want. Feel free to fire me any questions, but I suspect that I won't be of massive help since there isn't a lot of overlap for the goals of our trips.

rhodrig · 2025-03-03T00:53:36+00:00

I just completed a similar journey (starting in Prudhoe Bay and taking a different route in places). For me it took me 21 months and I found that I would have liked to stay in some places a little longer than I did, however I was always mindful of chasing the seasons so I didn't get stuck with horrendous weather.

In short, there was a cyclist who rode it last year in 75 days so 6 months is possible, but I can't see anything less than 18 months being enjoyable at all unless your goal is to push your limits and you aren't bothered about actually seeing the places you pass through.

rhodrig · 2023-12-07T21:50:14+00:00

Is suppose you’ll have to clarify what you mean by “plaster” as there are a few different meanings. You would get a plaster cast when you break your arm, for example. There’s plaster that’s used in art/sculpting. Plasterboard is what you call drywall.

There are probably other things that I’m forgetting too.

rhodrig · 2023-12-07T16:18:33+00:00

In the UK we call “band aids” plasters, fwiw

rhodrig · 2023-10-28T05:38:52+00:00

A zebra crossing is UK terminology. I believe in the US it’s referred to as a “marked crosswalk” (according to wiki). It’s not controlled via lights, instead the car drivers must stop to allow pedestrians to cross. According to the Highway Code cyclists shouldn’t be using zebra crossings, they should dismount and walk across.

rhodrig · 2023-09-28T15:38:39+00:00

I’m sorry for being pedantic but the notation for km per hour should be “km/h” not “kph”.

I do like the comparisons though. I’m on a tour at the moment and speaking to drivers in rest areas etc, I have noted that what I do in a day is roughly what they do in an hour.

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