BEFORE TOURING EUROPE
Author and cyclist Andrew P Sykes shares his advice
FIT SCHWALBE 1 MARATHON PLUS TYRES
“In three trips across Europe cycling over 15,000km, I have suffered from one deflated tyre, even then I wasn’t convinced it was the fault of the tyre.”
BOOK A BIKE DROP 2
“I was happy for a courier company (Luggage Mule,
luggagemule.co.uk) to pick up Reggie the Ridgeback Panorama from my door in Britain and deposit him in southern Spain.”
SOURCE LOCAL CYCLE SHOPS 3
“The chap at Yep Bikes in San Pedro donated a bright orange t-shirt when I told him I was cycling along the N-340 ‘road of death’. It saved, perhaps, my life, and had me advertising the name of his company all the way to Nordkapp in Norway.”
CHECK THE LAW 4
“The French love of priority to the right can catch you out. In Spain, unless it’s a very hot day or you are a pro, the law is to wear your helmet in the countryside.”
LEARN THE LINGO 5
“You need some basic phrases to break the ice – ‘hello’, ‘thanks’, ‘can I have a beer?’ Pointing at your rattling bottom bracket with a quizzical look on your face will do the rest.” Andrew is the author of Spain to Norway On A Bike Called Reggie, Summersdale, £9.99