How the Genesis Croix De Fer should have been built
Having returned from a 245 day tour taking me from London to Perth (actually Singapore, then flying on to Perth) my bike was in need of a rebuild. Given I had a 50/34T compact chainset and 11-28T cassette the gears had been worked hard when climbing steep hills. Towards the end of the trip the teeth were starting to “shark fin” and I was getting chain-slip. The chain was also, upon measuring, stretched way beyond the recommended length. The bar tape was sliding all over the place and STI shifters had taken quite a few knocks. When I was in Thailand over 3 months ago, I got an urge to shop so bought all of the parts for rebuilding the bike while I was still touring. It was mainly to have them sat and waiting rather than buy them out of the left over budget (of which there wasn’t any!). I also got them during a ChainReactionCycles voucher offer, so saved a fair amount too. I wrote a quick post detailing the changes I would make to my Croix De Fer. Since then I have returned home and my bike is sat contently having been completely rebuilt. Here’s what I did…
Cycling to Gdog’s – Australia
I finally arrived in Australia, something I had been longing to do for quite a few weeks. Upon arriving though I had mixed emotions. Firstly the relief of completing my trip and being amazed at how far I had come. Also relief in seeing a good and familiar friend once again (in the form of Gdog). But with the relief came a kind of sadness. The realisation that my trip was nearly over. Also the loss of many memories when I think back. The cycling was a rich and draining experience, so by constantly absorbing new things it has meant earlier memories have already been archived deep away (that my brain decides to serve up at random).
Cycling to Gdog’s – Cycling Closes To An End
I finally began to run low on funds and in doing so decided to book a flight to Perth to see my good friend Gdog (Gareth). I could easily stay on in Asia (given the expense of going to Australia), but the trip was all about cycling to see my buddy prior to his wedding in 2012. I didn’t quite achieve the 13,000km I set out to do finishing short at around 9,300km (I may add another 500km in Australia). The missing 3,700km is due to me not going to India. While, by my original plans, I had enough money to go to India, I of course changed my plans along the way. The three weeks in Japan were not planned (it was expensive), nor was the one month in Vietnam to see my brother during Christmas and the New Year. Both of those effectively burned my budget for India. In a way though I’m sort of glad…
Cycling to Gdog’s – One Last Time In Shenzhen
Having spent Christmas and the New Year with my brother in Vietnam, I flew back to Hong Kong and crossed into Shenzhen to be reunited with my bicycle for my final visit to China. I had a week before flying to Australia, so made the most of my time in Shenzhen (pronounced Shen-jen). Originally, I thought little of Shenzhen (it has a similar population to London) but now regard it as one of my favourite places in China and definitely somewhere I could see myself living. It represents the best in modern, fast-paced Chinese development while still retaining some heart and Chinese culture.
Further Genesis Croix De Fer Modifications
*I have made these modifications already in my post How The Croix De Fer should have been built.
Having cycled part of the way to Australia and done many miles prior to the trip, my Genesis Croix De Fer 2011 (converted to a tourer) has clocked up over 10,000km now without me replacing any parts. In fairness all of the components and the bike itself as stood up very well to all the abuse sent its way. Quite a few of the components (Tiagra shifters, Tiagra chainset, 105 rear mech, Tiagra front mech) still have plenty of life in them and don’t really need replacing just yet (although they are a bit battle-worn). I plan on re-using those parts on other bikes I own. There are still a few parts that do need replacing. The chain, cassette, chainrings, and bar tape, so I took it as an opportunity to correct some of the aggravations I have with the Croix De Fer set-up and build it the way Genesis should have in the first place.
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