Exotic Bicycle Adventurers

Exotic Bicycles:They evolved over the years to meet our changing needs.

Leaving Netherlands along the Amelo-Nordhorn Canal and entering Germany on the paved bicycle path known as the “Grenz route” or border route we enjoy the friendly open borders of the Euro-zone.

We have been bicycling for over forty years in North America and Europe.

We have the most pleasure exploring quiet paved roads; the slower we go the more fun we have.

Our collection of cycles has filled our needs for amusement, entertainment, excursions, travel, and shopping.

After all these years we still roll along on our oldest machines that we refer to as our exotic bicycles.

For the past twelve years we have not owned any motor vehicles. All of our travels have been by bicycle or on public transport with our folding bikes.

Not being racers or speed freaks, modifications began to evolve.

For comfort Jane got new handle bars and a comfortable springy seat. For shopping and touring, carrier racks were installed. Then alloy crank, wheels, and shifters became upgrades. Before our Rhine River trip up to Switzerland, new mountain compatible sprockets were installed. After our cross Europe trip through East Germany and into Poland, where we broke twenty spokes on the cobble stoned streets, I exchanged all of our spokes for heavy duty Mexican replacements…fixed!

A computer, drink holders, and front rack for straddle bags were added to make cross-country touring even better for serious cross-country. The innovations made our bikes into little pack mules. A map holder and my personally designed “save my ass” bike seat came next. I designed the seat to save my sex life and protect my kidneys using light duty springs and special cut high density padding. A compass and two drink holders completed the upgrades.

Our exotic bicycles are robust but roll extremely well.

My bike modifications made me think back to a story my grandfather told me:

One day when I was in his shop he held up a well worn little hammer, and he exclaimed, “This hammer has been in the family a long time, it has had seven handles and two new heads.” That sounds a lot like our exotic bicycles.

Ten years ago I was 62 years old and many times made 120 kilometer days.

Now I am 72 years old and 40-50 kilometer days are enough…it must be the global warming?

History of our exotic bicycles: They were purchased second hand in Florida when we lived there. We loaded the bikes on our camper and traveled across the U.S. from Florida to the Pacific Northwest and California to Maine. In Canada we biked the islands of British Columbia and across to the Maritime Provinces in Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. We had a home at Brownsville, Texas, and biked the area there, and then settled in Mérida, Yucatan, Mexico.

Eighteen years ago we loaded the bikes on a freighter with our camper bound for Rotterdam, Netherlands. In Europe we have bicycled with our exotic bicycles from Norway and Sweden to Spain and Portugal and from Western Europe to Poland plus every centimeter of the Rhine River from the North Sea all the way up to Konstanz in Switzerland at the Bodensee, headwaters of the Rhine. 

Biking the rural canal region near Emsbüren, Germany: We are still rolling on our exotic bicycles, and they don’t owe us much.

Click here to read more about our life long dedication to adventures.