In the previous page we were trying to find a place on the bikes for all the necessary but inconvenient items that come with flying with bikes, and with having so many kinds of electronics and batteries that need to go in carry-on on on the plane. 

In this page we ask, sort of for morbid curiosity, whether it all weighs too much, and we also do a quick check on how the loads are balanced front to back and side to side.

The "internet" seems very scattered on the question of how much a touring bike setup should weigh. For example the web site "cycletraveloverload.com" which we have only casually looked at, suggests that 55 to 110 pounds is the range. That is a huge range! And that weight is for bike plus load. For starters, our unloaded bikes weigh 52 pounds. So if we pack three chocolate bars and a handkerchief we are already at that bottom weight! OK, clearly that author has not yet heard of ebikes, which can easily weigh over 60 pounds unloaded!

On the other hand, our actual gear weighs in (excluding water or food) at about 12 pounds in the rear for Dodie, 12 in the front, and 4 for the handlebar bag. That 28 pounds of gear for her to carry, putting  her whole bike at about 80 pounds. The equivalent numbers for me are 21 rear, 17 front, 4 handlebar bag (before being stuffed with snacks!) for 42 pounds of gear and a total bike weight of about 95 pounds.  That is still under the top weight that the web site mentioned. On the other hand, 95 pounds is no fun if you are hoisting it up three steps onto a train. But then again, according to livestrong.com an average untrained male should be able to bench press 135 pounds. That makes my bike 40 pounds underweight, assuming I want to bench press rather than ride it!