Once you have decided between panniers and a trailer, you can turn your attention to the bicycle itself. The main difference between a road bike and a touring bike is that a touring bike has fittings to accommodate front and rear racks for panniers. Also, the chain stays are longer so your heels won’t hit the rear panniers. A touring bike is also generally heavier and more sturdily constructed to accommodate the extra weight of all the gear.
A high quality, steel touring bicycle with nice Shimano components costs about $1,500. Surly, Salsa, Trek, and Specialized all make great touring bicycles.
High quality road bikes start at about $2,000. Specialized sells their Roubaix road bike, for example, for approximately $2,000. It is a beautiful carbon fiber machine with nice Shimano components.
Your first step is to determine your correct frame size. On a traditional road bike you should be able to straddle the frame with your feet on the ground and have about one inch of clearance between your crotch and the top tube of the bicycle. The frame is measured along the seat tube from the center of the bottom bracket spindle to the top of the top tube where the seat post is inserted. This measurement is usually expressed in centimeters. Here is a guide for determining your correct frame size:
Sizing Guide
50 cm – 5’3” to 5’6”
53 cm – 5’6” to 5’9”
56 cm – 5’9” to 6’
59 cm – 6’ to 6’ 3”
62 cm – 6’3” to 6’6”
When you purchase your bicycle, it is a good idea to acquire all the Park tools necessary to completely disassemble your bicycle. This takes real effort on the part of the bicycle shop’s best mechanic to determine exactly which tools are required. I recommend that you make this part of the deal before laying down your payment.
It is also a good idea to pay close attention to the length of valve stem your new bicycle requires. Many expensive road bikes have high profile rims. These types of rims require tubes with very long valve stems. Walmart only sells presta valve tubes with medium length stems. For this reason, I strongly recommend that you make it a point to make sure that any bicycle you purchase will be able to utilize the Walmart size presta valve tubes. Trust me, bicycle shops where you can purchase a wide variety of bicycle gear are few in number and far apart as you pedal across America!