My Dream Touring Bike: Inside My Custom Co-Motion Cycles Build

After years of traveling the world by bike, I finally invested in a custom-built touring bicycle from Co-Motion Cycles—a brand known for crafting some of the most durable and thoughtfully designed touring bikes on the planet. Built specifically for long-distance travel, heavy loads, and reliability in remote environments, this bike represents the culmination of everything I’ve learned about bicycle touring. In this article, I’ll give you a detailed look at my new Co-Motion touring bike, explain why I chose this setup, and break down the components, features, and real-world performance so you can decide if a custom touring bike like this is right for your own adventures.

In 2012 I got a brand new touring bicycle (a Co-Motion Pangea) and proceeded to spend the following four years riding that bike across 40+ different countries in Africa, Asia, Europe and North America.

The bike survived extreme desert heat, freezing-cold winter weather, and a whole host of varied and difficult circumstances. After 4+ years of heavy use and abuse, the bike was starting to look pretty beat up. The paint was chipping, there were rub marks where either my body or other parts of the bike had been bumping up against the frame repeatedly over the years, and the bike in general was getting pretty worn down. But I love my Co-Motion Pangea… and I wanted to use it on my upcoming bike trip in Portugal, Spain, France, Andorra and Norway. So, rather than buy a whole new bike, I decided to send the frame of my trusty Pangea back to Co-Motion Cycles and have them re-paint it for me.

Watch the video above and you’ll see the old while Co-Motion Pangea transformed into a nearly new-looking black bike of the very same type.

To learn more about the Co-Motion Pangea, why I picked this bike out of all the other possible touring bicycles, and to learn how the Pangea is capable of being folded up into a suitcase for easy means of travel, be sure to check out the links below:

• My review of the Co-Motion Pangea touring bicycle.
• Why I chose the Co-Motion Pangea.
• The Co-Motion Co-Pilot Travel Case.
• My Interview with the owner of Co-Motion Cycles.
• Find your ideal ride with “The Touring Bicycle Buyer’s Guide.”