buying a touring bike in sevilla

[malingerer]

Does anyone know of a good bike shop that will sell me a reasonably priced tourer? badly need a bike to recommence vdlp as can no longer walk the distances. I do not want a mountain bike as they are too heavy and I will be sticking mainly to roads. i have sussed out a bike here in uk but the hassle of getting it to Gatwick airport plus buying a bike bag plus the extra charge for putting it in the hold etc starts to rocket the price of my ticket plus getting it home again!

thanks in advance and who knows i might write some biking poetry! this is all presupposing i beat the dreaded Menieres disease!


the malingerer

 

[Arn]

Hi, check out this site:
http://www.cycling-rentals.com/faq.html#.WA4SjpMrK0c

Many folks just rent a bike...ride the Camino...and then leave it in Santiago.

Buen Camino

Arn

 

[malingerer]

Hi, check out this site:
http://www.cycling-rentals.com/faq.html#.WA4SjpMrK0c

Many folks just rent a bike...ride the Camino...and then leave it in Santiago.

Buen Camino

Arn

many thanks! promptly rang them and once we had established they were in portugal and not spain we got on fine! I have been all over Portugal including the camino portuguese and lisbon is one of my favourite cities. If i am going to bike it at all I think it will definitely be with this firm because of choice of bikes etc so once again, many thanks and buen camino.

the malingerer.

 

[jony jony]

Hello Malingerer .....i have just got back from the camino del plata . I hired a bike from "Pauline " at Triana Backpackers Hostel in Seville . The bike was a Conor 8500 VTT complete with panniers ,spare inner tube , pump , lock and toolkit and cost 275 euros for 30 days . This bike was not very heavy and was ideal for the camino . As you say you are sticking mainly to roads you maybe be alright with a road bike , but if you do stray on to the camino be aware that a road bike will not be man enough in many many places , especially when loaded .


http://www.trianahostel.com/alquiler-bicicletas-camino-de-santiago

 

[malingerer]

Hello Malingerer .....i have just got back from the camino del plata . I hired a bike from "Pauline " at Triana Backpackers Hostel in Seville . The bike was a Conor 8500 VTT complete with panniers ,spare inner tube , pump , lock and toolkit and cost 275 euros for 30 days . This bike was not very heavy and was ideal for the camino . As you say you are sticking mainly to roads you maybe be alright with a road bike , but if you do stray on to the camino be aware that a road bike will not be man enough in many many places , especially when loaded .


http://www.trianahostel.com/alquiler-bicicletas-camino-de-santiago

Hi and thanks for info!

have checked out their website and still think the conor is heavy. This could be of course an agist remark as i am 78 and will be pushing 79 on next trip it has been many years since i cycle-camped the Ardennes and Britany but I had a beautiful road bike converted to tourer and loved it. I was of course using minor roads. I am trying to finalise the vdlp and finishing up in Astorga. I have booked my flight to Madrid and will train/bus to Caceres and then head north. I avoid albergues like the plague as I am fond of my own company and do not like crowds, crushes etc., hence do not need to be on pure camino trails. Mind u, a few glasses of the vino collapso and i am as garrulous as any other dodderer u are likely to meet! Surely there must be more than me doing this?? Have read there are plenty of second hand bikes to be had in Madrid so that is another option. Have bought a used bike here and fell off after three yards! Oh the indignity!! Pushed it home and up two flights of stairs to my flat where it now sits and glares at me. Altered seat and stem height and as soon as the big winds and rains cease will give it a go.
If u come up with any lateral thinking please contact me!

Yours aye,The Malingerer.

 

[Deleted member 43780]

malingerer, touring bikes are not light weight. Road bikes for fast riding/racing are light weight.
A touring bike is heavy duty to take the day in and day out pounding of the ride and to carry gear on panniers.

Since you are riding off road, good idea for the touring bike.

Jony Jony just completed the Plata. He rented a mountain bike from Triana Backpackers.

 

[malingerer]

malingerer, touring bikes are not light weight. Road bikes for fast riding/racing are light weight.
A touring bike is heavy duty to take the day in and day out pounding of the ride and to carry gear on panniers.

Since you are riding off road, good idea for the touring bike.

Jony Jony just completed the Plata. He rented a mountain bike from Triana Backpackers.

Hi and thanks for input.

At 78 I am not senile nor indeed is my pate addled! I have figured out a touring bike is heavier than a road bike but as I have already pointed out I have converted a road bike to tourer before without any problems. The main problem for me is weight and as I intend to do as little as possible off road, great heavy clumsy mountain bikes dont fit the bill!
Having said that, I have pored over maps, books and photos of the vdlp for some years now and thanks to the photos have come to the conclusion that a lot of what passes for minor roads in, on or near the Camino are little better than tracks. Few if any people mention the base line and that is the nature of the road surface itself! I like long flat endless and lonely roads because i am closer to God in solitude and would never make an adventure racer! That does not prevent me from an honest appraisal of the road/track whereby the surface can tear the soles off my boots and feet Hence the need for great knobbly tyres so yes, if I want to do the vdlp by cycle its either a tourer for the roads or an mtb for the tracks!
Plan B of course is just give up and catch a train to Pamplona and hang a left on to the CF AGAIN!
That does not appeal to my stubborn nature however and am waiting to see a consultant on the Menieres problem on Friday 13th (JAN 2017) before letting the problem resolve itself whenever I get to Spain.

Walk soft and remember, give us elderly pilgrims a little room when you go flying past and much too close

Buen Camino and once again, thanks for input.

The Malingerer

 

[Deleted member 43780]

Great you are doing the Plata!

There are a few bike rental companies in Spain. They may not have a store in Seville but what they do is ship their bike to your location in Spain. A friend of mine dealt with one of these companies. Worked fine.
He got the bike he wanted.
When finished with the bike he had it shipped back to them.

I will try an find a few of the web pages for these companies.
Meanwhile, do a search for bike rental in Spain.
That is of course it you are open to renting instead of buying.

A good light weight touring bike in Seville may be hard to find.

 

[malingerer]

Great you are doing the Plata!

There are a few bike rental companies in Spain. They may not have a store in Seville but what they do is ship their bike to your location in Spain. A friend of mine dealt with one of these companies. Worked fine.
He got the bike he wanted.
When finished with the bike he had it shipped back to them.

I will try an find a few of the web pages for these companies.
Meanwhile, do a search for bike rental in Spain.
That is of course it you are open to renting instead of buying.

A good light weight touring bike in Seville may be hard to find.

Hi and thanks,

as my flite is for Madrid in May, I may as already hinted focus on biking from there but am still undecided. I would go for the Sahagun route. Part of me just wishes to get back on the cf, starting all over again!

Its great being old and indecisive on the surface, that way I can just get off the plane at Bordeaux (wrong runway ) and shrug my shoulders and head for St Jean which is where my feet want to go anyway!

Have a good Christmas and Buen Camino!

Vaya con Dios

The Malingerer.

 

[newfydog]

A few thooughts:

Mountain bikes are not necessarily heavy and can use mtb tyres,ultra light road tyres and anything in between if you wish. They are neither great nor clumsy, have wonderful gear ranges and good brakes.

You don't need a bike bag or case to take a bike on a plane. A box from the recycling bin of any bike shop works fine.

There are some good rental options, but nothing fits like your own bike.

 

[malingerer]

A few thooughts:

Mountain bikes are not necessarily heavy and can use mtb tyres,ultra light road tyres and anything in between if you wish. They are neither great nor clumsy, have wonderful gear ranges and good brakes.

You don't need a bike bag or case to take a bike on a plane. A box from the recycling bin of any bike shop works fine.

There are some good rental options, but nothing fits like your own bike.

Alas, whilst agreeing with most of your comments, especially " nothing fits like your own bike", there is the small matter of cost!
Certainly, mtb's can be light, have huge gear ranges (most of which I wouldnt use). and can take a variety of tyres, the better the gear and the lighter the frame, then up soars what you pay for it! It's a vicious circle! As an mtb would be a camino only experience, that doesnt make sense to me as here in England, for me it's two feet plus public transport. An old age pension doesnt buy much of a bike! Still, it's nearly Christmas, and who knows what Santa might bring!
Have a good one anyway, and thanks for the thoughts!
Yours aye,
The Malingerer.

 

[Albertagirl]

Alas, whilst agreeing with most of your comments, especially " nothing fits like your own bike", there is the small matter of cost!
Certainly, mtb's can be light, have huge gear ranges (most of which I wouldnt use). and can take a variety of tyres, the better the gear and the lighter the frame, then up soars what you pay for it! It's a vicious circle! As an mtb would be a camino only experience, that doesnt make sense to me as here in England, for me it's two feet plus public transport. An old age pension doesnt buy much of a bike! Still, it's nearly Christmas, and who knows what Santa might bring!
Have a good one anyway, and thanks for the thoughts!
Yours aye,
The Malingerer.

Hi, @malingerer
It's great to see you planning for your next camino, although you don't seem much more definite as to what it will be than I am. Hopefully, after your medical appointment you will know your situation better. Good luck and buen camino.

 

[malingerer]

Hi, @malingerer
It's great to see you planning for your next camino, although you don't seem much more definite as to what it will be than I am. Hopefully, after your medical appointment you will know your situation better. Good luck and buen camino.

Thankee Maam!

I am just playing the Universe at the old Game! I will either be in Spain or I wont.
I think that once you have hauled y0ur self over the Pyrenees and got to Roncevalles,had that first glass of red wine, sat down with a smirk and said to yourself "I'm Back!", then listened to the wind whisper "You never leave", it gets kinda hard to be away! Camino will come for me in it's own way and I will simply follow. I am a foot slogger at heart and biking is probably an act of desperation! It means when I am in the dotage I will have to be pushed along in a pram! The CF has the infrastructure and in the end I will be heading for Santiago and not over-worried about how I got there!
Have a good Christmas and keep on truckin!

Vaya con Dios.

The Malingerer.