I chose a trike for this ride for a few reasons.

Firstly, the position. Many years of cycling conventional bikes means that I get neck and shoulder issues if I ride day after day. With the trike, I am seated (albeit in a very cool custom carbon tub of a seat).

Secondly, the aero benefits. This is a long ride and what may not mean a lot for the occasional ride means a huge amount day after day for 4 months. Trikes mean you have significantly lower frontal area and, as drag increases at the square of the speed, the lower the profile the better. Additionally, once you have done what you can to optimise the profile, it is far easier to keep it that way.

I didn't go for their touring version because it is essentially the same underpinnings, but I wanted every advantage possible afforded by the sportier model.

Tech Specs - for the initial specs check out the page at ICE here. However, with the help of Patrick at ICE I have added a few tweaks:

• Rohloff 14 speed rear hub - this is a very low maintenance option as there is no rear or front gear mechanism required. Plus, it has a few absurdly low gears for hard climbs with luggage.
• Shimano Ultegra 8000 crankset with a 4iiii power meter.
• I only need a single 40-tooth front chain ring, so I am using a Rotor Q ring.
• Tires - I have written to Continental UK (they have always been my brand of choice for my bikes) about supplying a single 700Cx32 folding GP5000 for the rear (yes, I know I'll have to replace it half way, but it is light, fast, and working out to be very durable from reports). Marginal gains! Additionally, on the 20-inch front wheels I intend to use Continental Contact Speeds.
• Tubes - early on in the planning, I wrote to tubolito about the durability of their tubes as they offer significant reduction in weight and size. They replied by offering to supply tubes for the ride, so I'll be running the iconic orange tubolito tubes on all my wheels.
• I have ditched the BB7 disc brakes on the front and ICE has replaced them with small but powerful Sturmey Archer drum brakes (I loathe BB7s and have had endless nightmares with them in the past - I am going for low maintenance).
• There is a standard added rear disc set up purely as a parking brake. I have ditched that altogether and gone for the old school Velcro wraps on the front brake levers!
• I am speculating about a Windwrap-style fairing as the weather reports for the last 3 years suggest it could be quite rainy. The fairing isn't so much for aero gains but gives a good deal more weather protection. TBC