GO Outdoors staff give you a run down of their personal top 5′s 
We’ve been asking staff from around GO Outdoors’ head office and stores to recommend their top 5 products in certain areas. This week we hear from Stu, one of our tech guys at GO Outdoors Swansea, as he gives us his rundown of the top 5 products he’d recommend to people who enjoy cycle touring.
Top 5 Cycle Touring accessories by Stu, Swansea Store Staff.
Cycle touring is bliss. You get to spend your holiday with the thing closest to your heart
(your bike), explore and discover at a pace that lets you see more than any other form of transport – and you get to eat loads and loads and loads without putting any weight on.
However, you’ll be carrying your clothes, spares, tools and perhaps even your accommodation
with you, and if you intend touring in foreign climes (which I’d recommend!) flying your bike can present a whole raft of problems. So here are five picks which can make your life easier.
1) Top Peak Alien II Bike Tool
Stu Says: “When you fly with a bike you will have to dismantle it. The pedals have to be removed, one or both wheels have to be removed, handlebars have to be loosened etc. At GO Outdoors I have 2 huge tool chests, and even at home I have quite an extensive range of tools to satisfy my fettling needs, the problem is, it’s not practical to carry these around the cobbles of Bohemia.
The Alien II is like a mini tool box. It has a 15mm spanner for putting the pedals on, a full
set of hex keys, chain tools, torx keys, a groovy little bag to store it in and a bottle opener.
When it comes to assembling bikes on an Estonian balcony, there is nothing better!
Here’s a free tip for you: put a piece of electrical tape around your seat post to mark your usual saddle height – it makes it easier to get right. And grease up the threads on the cranks before leaving home.””
Retail Price: £36.99
Discount Card Price: £32.29
http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/alien-2-p154940
2) Top Peak Race Rocket Mini Pump
Stu says: “When it comes to cycling I consider myself a roadie, although I do mountain bike I find a lot of the faff annoying. The stupid baggy shorts, the peaked helmet, the dude-lingo etc.
The problem with being a roadie is that my arms are like string, so pumping up flat tyres after flying with a bike can be a chore. A track pump is not practical to tour with, so you’ll need a mini pump. The Race Rocket is as good as it gets. 120 psi is possible, 100 is more realistic. It has a twin headed connector and it’s screw on. Perfect.”
Retail Price: £24.99
Discount Card Price: £19.99
http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/topeak-race-rocket-mini-pump-p207415
3) Silva Simi Front/Rear Bike Light
Stu says: “A light to be seen. Obviously if you’re riding at night you need something a little better than this, but during the day you can just put these on flash and make yourself easier to see. I took a set with me last year, two weeks of constant use and they still keep working. Can’t say more than that – a really simple idea and sometimes the simple ones are the best.”
Retail Price: £9.99
Discount Card Price: £7.49
Front Light – http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/silva-simi-front-bike-light-p216691
Rear Light – http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/silva-simi-rear-bike-light-p216686
4) Buff
Stu says: “OK I admit it, I have a thing for Buffs. I have a drawer specifically for my collection. When touring they have many, many uses: scarf, hat, sunglasses cloth, protection from the sun but my favourite is they hide my helmet hair at lunch time.
Yes I am that vain, but in my defence I do have nice hair.”
Prices: Vary
http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/product-search/buff
5) Slime Self Healing Inner Tube
Stu says: “psssssstt! – I really really hate that noise. Punctures are the bane of any cyclist’s life and are even worse when touring. You can guarantee your spare tube will be at the bottom of your panniers and you will have to unpack the rack to put the bike upside down. With these, in the last 4 years and couple of thousand miles I’ve only ever had one puncture and that was caused by a particularly aggressive Hungarian horse chestnut shell. These tubes work as you ride. If you get a puncture, they fling green gunge in the hole which sets instantly. It’s a sort of blood clotting for wheels. Just make sure you don’t pinch the tubes when fitting. Green slime is not a good look.”
Retail Price: £9.99
Discount Card Price: £7.99
http://www.gooutdoors.co.uk/cycling/bike-parts/slime
So there we have it – my 5 choices. Add in some cable ties and a sense of adventure and you’re all set. Go out and enjoy the open road!
– Stu, GO Outdoors Swansea
