Michael again.
Michael’s Raleigh Sojourn 1
The semester is chugging along, and summer just keeps getting closer and closer. As Quinn said in the previous post, I went ahead and purchased my touring bike: a Raleigh Sojourn (although he failed to mention the numerous bike shops I visited and the day-after-day research I spent before making my decision). She’s a beautiful bike, and this $1277.99 investment signifies my point-of-no-return.
Michael’s Raleigh Sojourn 2
I chose the Raleigh Sojourn because, unlike Quinn, my mechanical knowledge of building, upgrading, and repairing bicycles is significantly limited (if anything, I’m proof that the average 20-year-old can hop on a bicycle and go 3,000 miles). For me, the biggest benefit of the Sojourn was that it seemed to be the best all-around, relatively cheap touring bicycle that fit my specifications (all steel, capable of carrying a ton of weight, and good online reviews by people who–unlike myself–actually specialize in bicycles). With the exception of the front rack, this baby was ready to ride. It even came with a Brooks B17 Aged Saddle–which, according to my research, is the _only_ way to tour.
Michael’s Raleigh Sojourn 3
I’m counting down the months until Summer. I can’t wait to get out on the road with nothing but the cool breeze in my face, the sun on my back, and a few thousand miles of pavement ahead of me. I’ve got my bike, and I’m ready to ride.
Stay tuned for more updates as we continue to prepare for our cross-country bicycle trip. If you haven’t already, subscribe to our RSS feed and become a Registered User.
EDIT:
This page still gets a ton of traffic from people googling “raleigh sojourn,” but this post doesn’t do the bike any justice as a review. Now that I’ve completed two cross-country tours, now that I’ve spent >8,000 miles of cranking with this baby, and now that I’ve acquired some bicycle mechanical understanding, I can confidently say that this bike will get you where you want to go without giving much trouble. I recommend this bike to anyone considering a long tour.
Here’s a video of the bike I took part-way into my first cross-country bicycle trip
The Raleigh Sojourn is on the heavy side–there’s no doubt about that. However, if you don’t mind sacrificing a few pounds, this bicycle will take you countless miles. And the Vittoria Randonneur Cross tires that come with the bike are no joke; I traveled from Savannah, GA all the way to just ~8 miles from the Pacific Ocean with only 1 flat!
That said, it’s also worthwhile to checkout the Surly Long Haul Trucker. I ran into countless people on the trail with the LHT, and never met an unsatisfied rider.
Bottom Line: if you’re considering an economy touring bicycle that still has the durability and quality required for a self-supported tour, go out to your local Bike Shops and test ride both the Raleigh Sojourn and the Surly Long Haul Trucker. Buy whichever “feels” best to you. They’re both great bikes and you can’t go wrong either way.
hi michael, after reading your lines I am going to buy a sojourn too. it´s about 1000 euro here in germany, a really good price…..
hope you will have lots of fun with this bike.
This page still gets a ton of traffic from people googling “raleigh sojourn,” but this post doesn’t do the bike any justice as a review. Now that I’ve completed my first cross-country tour, now that I’ve spent >4,000 miles of cranking with this baby, and now that I’ve acquired some bicycle mechanical understanding, I can confidently say that this bike will get you where you want to go without giving much trouble. I recommend this bike to anyone considering a long tour.
The Raleigh Sojourn is on the heavy side–there’s no doubt about that. However, if you don’t mind sacrificing a few pounds, this bicycle will take you countless miles. And the Vittoria Randonneur Cross tires that come with the bike are no joke; I traveled from Savannah, GA all the way to just ~8 miles from the Pacific Ocean with only 1 flat!
That said, it’s also worthwhile to checkout the Surly Long Haul Trucker. I ran into countless people on the trail with the LHT, and never met an unsatisfied rider.
Bottom Line: if you’re considering an economy touring bicycle that still has the durability and quality required for a self-supported tour, go out to your local Bike Shops and test ride both the Raleigh Sojourn and the Surly Long Haul Trucker. Buy whichever “feels” best to you. They’re both great bikes and you can’t go wrong either way.