Hey all :)

First of all i wanna say hello to everyone im new to these forums My name is Cameron and i am 20 years old.

I am planning in 2009 to travel around Australia & New Zealand on a mountain bike and i have a few questions for those who have done this before

What sorta bike would u guys recommend?
How much did it cost u roughly
How long did it take (And how far did u travel)


Im look for maybe going an avanti bike for this trip.


Thanks guys

Any particular reason you want a mountain bike?

Because for that sort of distance, a specifically set-up touring bike (or modified flat bar road bike) might be better suited.

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Im a complete noob when it comes to long-distance bike riding. So im not sure what would be the best

Im just thinking cause of the terrain that it may require a mountain bike

New Zealand has some of the best roads around, so if you're planning to stick to roads as opposed to off-road trails, you won't need a mountain bike. What you will need, for loaded touring, is very low gearing to climb some of the hills they have over there and that's a simple matter of replacing chainrings and cassettes on a triple.

BTW, when you say you want to ride around Australia, do you mean all the way around? It's about 16000km by road depending on route, so it could take you a while.

A MTB for touring is not a bad idea as it can make maintenance easier and cheaper.

Check out Cycle Life Online which is the blog of a couple that toured South Amercia from South to North on MTBs. Silas rode the same bike round South East Asia a couple of years earlier as well.

Well this is my planned idea

www.blogs.inthemix.com.au/djnoobinator

Couldn't find that one, 'm afraid. Typo?