Schwalbe Marathon XR

I forgot to mention the Marathon XR tires in the previous post. I bought them for my upcoming trip with a fourth or third on gravel roads. Nice tire. Very comfortable ride but more sticky on pavement than my usual Specialized Nimbus. On my commute ride, the side threads feel funny when cornering.

Montreal > Quebec in a single day is a roadie's challenge. In my quest to break slownesness records, I'll be riding from Quebec City to Montreal in 17 days. From september 21st to october 7th, I'll join the two cities via the Laurentian hills. I call it the "Fall Color Tour". Three more nights at work and I'm off! Woohoo!

Saguenay by bike, Big Agnes and Nalgene

I did a 5 day trip in the Saguenay region of Quebec last week. The route takes two highways, one of each side of the Saguenay river. Unfortunately, the roads are rarely close to the river itself. Quite understandable since the Saguenay is a huge river with high cliffs one either sides, forming a fjord. There are whales in it, at least at the mouth where it meets with the even bigger St-Lawrence river.

Photos are posted here: Saguenay tour photos

The route is nice. Some locals want to make an official bike route that would gather to hills enthusiasts. I wish them luck. Most of the route doesn't have shoulders but the traffic is light. Shoulders are well placed though. Most serious climbs have them, as do the inside of curves, as well as some long stretches on the north side.

There are several roads leading to small communities on the Saguenay shore. Every one of these villages is a spectacular site. On the south shore, a road lead to the Saguenay park. There's hiking to do, as well as kayaking.



Haven't bike much this year. I broke the 1000km mark during the trip. Very little considering the 7000km I did last year. I'm in bad shape and it showed on the hills. I carried hiking shoes and a daypack, hoping to do some hiking in the Saguenay. For a while in the first two days, I thought I wouldn't make it to the park in time and I'd have to stick to the road. Well, I made it so I didn't carry that stuff for nothing. The park is great. I will to od the long trail someday.

I tried a couple new things on my trip. First, a Big Agnes Air-Core insulated matress. It's 2½ inch thick, yet it packs smaller and weighs the same (a little less?) than the smallest Therm-a-Rest. It feels a bit like a pool matress when it's not fully inflated. It's not self-infating but it only takes a minute or two to inflate. I'm never going back to a Therm-a-Rest!

The other product is a Nalgene OTG bottle. I tried it after a recommendation made by a bikeforums.net member. No need to add much as the description on the Nalgene site is quite accurate. One thing I liked is its ability to withstand high temperature, meaning you can pour boiling water in it and it won't melt. I wish they made a tall 1-liter and a small 500ml with a tight small handle that would fit under the downtube. (most bottles rub on the fender). The handle would turn it into a cup.