Job Hunting in Kunming, Yunnan

LoveSasa, you mentioned bicycles in China and that's something I can talk about, although I live in Guangzhou where you can get almost anything. I would suggest against traveling with your bike because it's inconvenient and shipping it is definitely not cost effective.

There's a huge market here for new and used bicycles of the kind that are strong enough for people who weigh 120 lbs. and ride no more than 10 MPH, and these are not the "Chinese beater bikes", which are simply rolling metal grinders with leaky tires.

While in America it's easy to find a reasonably good bike on Craigslist for $100 like you mentioned, I've never been able to find that here, but if I spoke Chinese, maybe I could? I've certainly tried doing it with interpreters, but also the bikes are too small for me, which limits choices more. If you're non-Amazonian, you will have more to choose from, but the appallingly low quality of the components may not be noticed until you start riding or get wet once.

All of the things I'm into, like bicycles, computers, food, and mountaineering cost 20-100% more here for lower quality items, which is a big problem for me when it comes to bicycles.

If you ride hard and fast, and if you think you will ever ride in the rain, and you want a bike that is reliable, the minimum you can spend on a new bike here is 2000 RMB ($300) and that would be right on the threshold of something that would reveal bearing and hub problems under normal American loads and g-forces.

Buying my first bike here was the best thing I ever did, but not getting a new bike (my size made it nearly impossible) has cost me so much money. If I had it to do over again, I would be shopping in the 6,000 - 10,000 RMB area and I would have saved a LOT.

Again, this depends on the physical load and stress you put on the bike. If you're an easier rider and under 130 lbs., you can get away with a 2000 RMB bike and your BB, hubs, wheels, and pedals might last a year.

I have known a couple of bicycle gear heads who build their own bikes here on shoestring budgets and do fine, but I don't know how to do that or have time to comb through stacks of parts in 30 different shops looking for bargains. But it can be done in Guangdong, maybe not in Yunnan.

BICYCLE SAFETY

I get hit by cars and buses on a regular basis, but not very seriously. It's usually when they want to turn right or move over to the bus stop and nudge me over. Because I'm going faster than most bikes, it seems to increase the problem. I don't wear a helmet because it's too hot and I don't believe in them any more.

If I were to ride a bit more timidly, I could avoid 90% of these small collisions. Traffic here is chaotic in a predictable way and car drivers are prepared and accepting of a variety of non-motorized or small-motorized vehicles. Also, the way that collisions are handled here in a legal sense gives car drivers a big incentive to avoid collisions and conflict, which leaves small-motorized vehicles like motorcycles, tuk-tuks, and electric bikes as the most erratic and dangerous to cyclists. These smaller vehicles don't hesitate to make sudden u-turns in traffic and if you aren't looking for that contingency 100% of the time, you will get tangled up with them.

CHINA IS A BICYCLE AND CELL PHONE THIEF SHOPPING CENTER

I've had two bikes stolen, which is pretty good compared to most. I carry a lot of gear on my bike and that's only been stolen three times at my school and apartment, never when out around town. In a city like Guangzhou, if you have a bike that's worth over 2000 RMB and has a nice paint job, you have to be very careful where you leave it. It's not safe unless in some attended parking. I carry two huge locks if I'm going to be in unknown places and I have a flat black, theft-deterrent paint job.

If I were starting again with bikes in China, I would get a 5000 RMB folding bike with good quality gears and brakes so I could go around on public transport between biking destinations, but I would still need a regular bike with a rack and saddle bags (panniers) for my food shopping.

One example of bicycles here. I bought a new Trek 3500 here in Guangzhou in 2010 for about 2000 RMB, which was basically a conversion of the $350 USD price. I hated that bike so much that I was glad when it was stolen. It was obvious after riding about a week that it was a total piece of junk, although in spite of it rusting in many places, nothing actually failed during the five months I had it before it was swiped. However, I still had my older bike and was riding them both.

I don't know for certain that the quality of a Trek 3500 sold here is different than the one sold in the USA, but I know computer and clothing quality is different, always being worse quality here.

Or maybe I'm just getting old and everything sux.

Wow, thanks for the great info!

I'm 5'2 so I actually have the opposite problem in the US, in that it is very difficult for me to find bikes that are small enough for me. (My Giant is an XS frame bike, one of the two my bike shop had in stock - my aunt bought the other one.) I am really wanting to get back into cycling because I gained a lot of weight during my senior year of college and haven't been exercising, and I HIGHLY doubt I'll find a CrossFit gym (or like, a gym) anywhere in China, let alone Yunnan.

If I'm really going to have to spend $600-1000 (I'm assuming based on the 6000yuan number) to get a decent bike, it almost seems worth it to me to ship my beater bike over and just sell it when I leave. It can't possibly cost $600 to do that, if I just buy an old bike case and pay the extra luggage fee? The bike prices seem comparable to the US (a $350 Trek is going to be absolute bottom of the line here, too), so it's just not worth buying a new bike I'm only going to ride for a year.

Regarding bike thieves: I have a heavy duty chain lock (abt 2 inches wide, each chain segment is 1/2" thick) that would take pretty hard core bolt cutters to get through. So far that seems to have done the trick in Colorado (my college campus had a really high bike theft rate). Would something like this be enough? I could also swap out my seat and rear hub for non-quick-release skewers, but all that really does is require the thief to have a wrench.

Also, I think you mentioned having panniers to do your grocery shopping. Were you able to find those in GZ, or is that something you had to special order from the States?

This is something I'm going to have to think about a lot... I really love cycling and though I do mostly road riding, I do bike in the rain and hop curbs and that sort of thing. Thanks for all the advice!

When it comes to bike size, you'll be in good shape here. I think my height intimidates people here when I'm walking, but they are super friendly to me when I'm riding. Except for taxi and bus drivers, no one in a vehicle has ever intentionally tried to hit me or mess with me. Although drivers here are clueless, they are not aggressive (except for taxis and buses in Guangzhou) and  they are not at all looking for trouble, unlike the SUV drivers back home.

I think if the bike is packed properly, then a cardboard box will work for shipping, so you won't need to buy a case, which would weigh more than the bike and double the shipping cost. The best bike shop in Guangzhou does bike shows around China and the USA (Las Vegas) and ships their expensive bikes in cardboard, but I'm sure they probably take care of all sensitive places: rear derailleur hanger, front forks end point to prevent lateral compression, and ??  I'll ask the store manager if he has any suggestions or cost estimates.

One possible cost-saving option is to transport the bike in a box on the airplane on which you fly. The potential difficulty is on the Chinese side when you are 1) being picked up at the airport by a school representative or 2) making your own way from the airport to the next place. If the school representative is not prepared to transport a large box, that will create a problem. The taxis in Guangzhou literally can not transport two people and two large suitcases in the same trip.

The way you described your bike lock chain, it would be something that I would consider a very strong deterrent to theft. If it's long enough to go through the frame and rear wheel, then around something stationary like a railing, it would be enough for an hour or two of shopping because the thieves are not prepared for that. Most of them use cable cutters, not bolt cutters, and they are not advanced with LoX or transport vehicles.

But as you mentioned, you've got your wheels and seat post still vulnerable. My seat post, saddle and tool bag were swiped once at my apartment, probably by a bicycle courier delivery man (don't really know), so it's only bike enthusiasts that would go for something like that. Those people will be found at universities and places where they live. When I go shopping in places without attended bike parking, I have a 20mm cable lock through the rear wheel and frame, 16mm cable lock through the front wheel and around a railing or something else, and I take my seat post, tools, and pump with me in one of my saddlebags. The only thing about my bike that would attract attention would be my other saddlebag, but I have it between the bike and the railing for less visibility.

I wouldn't change my seat post clamp and skewer(s) for non quick release. You just have to be super careful where you leave your bike. School is the most vulnerable place. I have to carry mine upstairs into the teacher's office. When I go out shopping, I leave the bike in an attended area and then walk or take public transport however far is necessary.

Panniers have been an ongoing quest. After three plus years of buying the junk that was available in shops, I finally found a shop that had a random variety of panniers, each one 150 RMB and I gradually went through five of them in order to find four good ones, one of which got trashed when an SUV hit me Friday night as he decided to make a right turn as I was still going straight in the bike lane. I really wish I spoke enough Chinese to talk to these drivers when they hit me, but as it is I just have to blow it off, which might be better anyway.

Using taobao.com for shopping could probably solve the pannier problem, but there is no way to know from an online picture about the quality. If you found local people who had experience to share their knowledge of what to buy from whom, this would probably make pannier buying in China a good value. There are cycling clubs and friendly locals in the bike shops in Guangzhou who would probably make this doable for a foreigner. Probably true as well in Kunming.

For whatever reason, I have to repeat every simple thing I say to people here 3 - 5 times just to get initial understanding, never mind getting into grades of quality, so I gave up some time back in 2009 trying to use Taobao for finding good quality panniers, although trial and error has not been cost-efficient. I have a room full of 3rd tier panniers 

It's like being in a restaurant, sitting at a table and having to repeat to the waitress three, four, or five times that I want a bowl of rice. What did she think I was asking for, world peace? Some taxi drivers don't believe foreigners can speak Chinese, so they can not understand you.

Besides panniers, there are two other items that I have not been able to find here that are of good quality. Back in the USA, I was buying bikes and accessories around 1998-2003. Topeak was one of the brands I considered good quality, but here in 2008 - 2010, everything I bought from them: bike tool, pump, seat bag, etc., was very expensive junk. It was all about 20% higher than full US retail, and all of it, except for the adjustable water bottle cages, failed quickly. After trying several portable bike pumps over a four year period, I finally bought a Topeak pump back in the USA for $25 that works very well and exactly as expected. The equivalent amount of RMB here will get you a pump that only Hercules can operate, doesn't fit a lot of valve depths, gets more difficult to use over time, etc.

The bike floor pumps here come in three varieties:
1) readily available, junky but usable for 50- 80 RMB, no gauge
2) difficult to find, cost-effective and long lasting for 90 - 180 RMB, gauge inaccurate, hose *just* long enough
3) in the higher end shops, 20-50% higher than same item in the USA, with good gauge, long hose, 250 - 400 RMB

The other thing I can not find in physical bike shops is a kickstand that is strong enough for whatever phenomenon I expose kickstands to that degrades them in a few days or a couple of weeks. I can not count how many kickstands of every possible variety I have bought and thrown away, certainly more than 20 over five years. I finally gave up and don't have one now. Makes grocery shopping very interesting.

Good bike tires are expensive in the USA, but in Guangzhou add 30-50% of full US retail cost and very little selection in the stores. Online, maybe better? I don't know. I do mostly road riding, so I finally settled for some relatively smooth tires, 1.5" wide, no knobs, and a solid center section that is reinforced in the carcass to prevent flats. They are Maxxis brand. Cost me about $30 USD each here (200 RMB). I was so happy when I finally found a shop that carried them. I have been on the trails with them and they provided enough traction for dry mountain biking.

Bicycle tubes are a little bit cheaper here than in the USA, but the prices have risen to 18 RMB for Cheng Shin or other Chinese brands. A lot of cheap, but effective bicycle lights are available here. Saddles are available, but a little more expensive than the USA. Hand grips are no good here. Gloves and other clothing accessories are expensive and low quality. Hydration packs, shoes, etc. are not a good value here. Pretty much anything except for cheap lights and tubes are a better deal in the USA.

Maintenance cost is very low and often free, but quality is a real problem here. The level of competence is much lower and the level of give a damn is much, much lower. Add in a language barrier and you can get extremely poor results.

One guy spent 6 hours doing a 30 minute job putting on some expensive fenders (300 RMB), and he was obviously putting in sincere effort to a certain point, but as I rode home stuff started falling off. Lots of stuff.

*EVERYTHING* that he touched on the bike he left finger tight. Everything. Seriously, everything he touched, which turned out to be almost everything on the bike except maybe the gear shifts/brake levers. And although this was the worst case, it has actually been the norm for my experience. They leave lots of stuff finger tight or simply loose. There is only one mechanic in Guangzhou that always does a good job for me, and I've tried all the better shops.

Later I had to replace the fenders entirely because of an accident and I found some almost as good and also very lightweight for only 35 RMB. That mechanic only left a few things finger tight so there is hope, but I consider good bike mechanics here more valuable than good doctors, and like doctors, the less often I go, the less time and money I waste on the bike.

All of this being said, you could very well step off the airplane in Kunming and meet a foreigner going back home who wants to sell you his China bike and gear for a song. My experiences tend toward the extreme, but I think that's because I'm persistent...or sth. else.

I think if the bike is packed properly, then a cardboard box will work for shipping, so you won't need to buy a case, which would weigh more than the bike and double the shipping cost.

...One possible cost-saving option is to transport the bike in a box on the airplane on which you fly.

Yeah a box is a good idea. When I worked at a bike shop we had tons of them, and people occasionally would come in to ask for one. I guess I'm so used to the idea of a bike case that I forgot! (My ex boyfriend was a semi-pro cyclist, so he always traveled with a case). I'll see if I can't snap one up from my old shop, and maybe bribe/pay them to pack it for me. I could probably just pay for an extra checked item and bring it that way.

The potential difficulty is on the Chinese side when you are 1) being picked up at the airport by a school representative or 2) making your own way from the airport to the next place. If the school representative is not prepared to transport a large box, that will create a problem. The taxis in Guangzhou literally can not transport two people and two large suitcases in the same trip.

Hmmm good to know. I guess this is something I'll have to discuss with the school rep. I'm still not sure how much I'll be bringing with me overall. I would like to convince myself that I'm packing light, but bringing a bike and my backpacking gear isn't "light" at all. D:

The way you described your bike lock chain, it would be something that I would consider a very strong deterrent to theft. If it's long enough to go through the frame and rear wheel, then around something stationary like a railing, it would be enough for an hour or two of shopping because the thieves are not prepared for that. Most of them use cable cutters, not bolt cutters, and they are not advanced with LoX or transport vehicles.

But as you mentioned, you've got your wheels and seat post still vulnerable. My seat post, saddle and tool bag were swiped once at my apartment, probably by a bicycle courier delivery man (don't really know), so it's only bike enthusiasts that would go for something like that. Those people will be found at universities and places where they live. When I go shopping in places without attended bike parking, I have a 20mm cable lock through the rear wheel and frame, 16mm cable lock through the front wheel and around a railing or something else, and I take my seat post, tools, and pump with me in one of my saddlebags. The only thing about my bike that would attract attention would be my other saddlebag, but I have it between the bike and the railing for less visibility.

Good to know. I think my beater bike is old/roughed up enough to not be worth stealing the seat off of, but that might just be my standards. Then again, I didn't think my previous beater bike was worth stealing either. The chain I have is definitely long enough to loop through the frame and rear wheel. I always lock at least the frame and the front wheel (the rear is harder to get off because of the derailleur), but I guess I could pick up an extra cable to hold it on. :/ It is good to hear that there are some attended bike "parking" areas.

Panniers have been an ongoing quest. After three plus years of buying the junk that was available in shops, I finally found a shop that had a random variety of panniers, each one 150 RMB and I gradually went through five of them in order to find four good ones.

Using taobao.com for shopping could probably solve the pannier problem, but there is no way to know from an online picture about the quality. If you found local people who had experience to share their knowledge of what to buy from whom, this would probably make pannier buying in China a good value. There are cycling clubs and friendly locals in the bike shops in Guangzhou who would probably make this doable for a foreigner. Probably true as well in Kunming.

150RMB is SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper than anything I've been able to find in the US (I think the cheapest ones I've been able to find have been US$40 each, and I may be making those up), so it may still be worth to go through trying to find good ones there, even with the trial and error cost. A cycling club sounds like a great way to meet people anyway, so I'll have to look into that.

I can't remember the last time I owned a bike with a kickstand, so I'm not too concerned about that.

Sounds like I should bring a pump, a spare set of tires, and a pair of cycling shorts. My beater currently has toe clips rather than clipless pedals (I really just rode it to class and work) so I might stick with that instead of risking my cycling shoes to China. It took me freaking forever to find a pair that fit me (I wear size 5.5-6 US women's) and I'm really not THAT serious anymore. I have a JoeBlow floor pump and honestly only carry a CO2 pump with me... when I remember to swap it from my road bike to my beater. I guess I could get away with only bringing a travel pump?

Good bike tires are expensive in the USA, but in Guangzhou add 30-50% of full US retail cost and very little selection in the stores. Online, maybe better? I don't know. I do mostly road riding, so I finally settled for some relatively smooth tires, 1.5" wide, no knobs, and a solid center section that is reinforced in the carcass to prevent flats. They are Maxxis brand. Cost me about $30 USD each here (200 RMB). I was so happy when I finally found a shop that carried them. I have been on the trails with them and they provided enough traction for dry mountain biking.

That sounds reasonable for decent tires. My current ones are semi-knobby and not new by any means, but they're not cracking so I might just leave it be.

Maintenance cost is very low and often free, but quality is a real problem here.

Ugh. I'll get a tune up before I leave, and hope for the best, I guess. I don't know how to do a whole lot (the owner of the shop I worked at was sexist as hell, so he wouldn't let the mechanics teach me anything), but I at least know enough to look up what to do. It just sucks that so many specialized tools are necessary for anything beyond basic adjustments.

All of this being said, you could very well step off the airplane in Kunming and meet a foreigner going back home who wants to sell you his China bike and gear for a song. My experiences tend toward the extreme, but I think that's because I'm persistent...or sth. else.

Oh man I can only pray! I guess it couldn't hurt to post an ad in the GoKunming classifieds before I go through the hassle of dealing with all this. I'm just nervous about quality now that I've read your stories! My Trek may be old and ugly, but it's solid.

http://www.bikesshanghai.com/shop/anti-theft-chain-lock-50cm/

This looks really similar to the lock I have. Of course mine is Kryptonite and I'm pretty sure cost US$50 instead of 73rmb... So one thing is cheaper in China?

Hmmm good to know. I guess this is something I'll have to discuss with the school rep.

You can "discuss" it until the cows come home (Here's a koan: What is the sound of one person discussing?), but unless your school representative is (1) a very exceptional person and actually listens (less than 1% chance) or (2) has her own personal experience of the thing you are talking about (less than 1% chance, anything from kickstands to shower drains), talking about it in advance will not result in anything being done in advance.

Only when the situation is unavoidably in front of the person's face will anything happen, and then it will be dealt with haphazardly. The person in the email probably won't be the one physically there to pick you up, so they can't be bothered talking about something like that particular future.

This is China. (TIC or TIFC). The future only exists about one second away. Planning for what will or might happen beyond that one second (a generous time estimate) is not common.

Good to know. I think my beater bike is old/roughed up enough to not be worth stealing the seat off of. It is good to hear that there are some attended bike "parking" areas.

Easy to buy good value cable locks here (40 - 100 RMB), but they are also much easier to cut than chains. My primary cable lock is 20mm and apparently too large for the typical cutters people carry in their badminton bags. It's more difficult to buy a strong bike chain lock, but some shops in GZ have mediocre qualities of chain locks.

If you bring your existing chain and buy another cable lock here, I think you'll be presenting a very strong deterrent. I used to use a U-lock that are popular with motorcycles, which is an excellent deterrent and only 40-65 RMB, but difficult to carry around. The bicycle shop U-locks in this price range, such as Giant, are junk if they are bicycle brand. Some shops carry the same U-locks as the motorcycle shops. I have also seen some expensive and exotic locking devices people bought on taobao.com for 3-400 RMB, and they are compact and lightweight, fitting conveniently onto a frame mount.

I don't think money bike thieves here go for seats and seat posts, but maybe nice wheels. However, bike enthusiasts go for that stuff, and lights, which I've lost multiple times, but never out in public areas, only in schools and apartments.

In Guangzhou, there are always attended bike parking areas that cost 1 or 2 RMB for the day. I consider these to be totally safe for low profile bikes, especially if the use is random. If I had a flashy, expensive bike and used the same one every day at the same time, there would be a risk. These attended bike parking spots are excluded from posh parts of Guangzhou and sometimes obscure in the older parts, but I can always find them if I look around for 5 - 10 minutes, park my bike, and then walk to my destination. You need almost zero Mandarin to take care of this.

I can say for certain in Guangzhou that the police will do absolutely nothing about petty theft, including bicycles. Only if you had all the correct papers to prove a bicycle was worth a great deal of money, and only if you really pushed the issue, could you get any response from the police for something like that. I would be shocked if any of them took the complaint seriously no matter what you did, unless you were physically attacked by the thief.

A friend's wife had her purse stolen in a clothing shop, but they caught the college-aged girl who did it,  called the cops, and they all went to the police station. The cops kept the girl for about an hour, let her go, nothing done to her, and they kept my my friend and wife for a total of five hours. They were obviously punishing the victims for bothering the cops with such a petty case.

I've even heard of the same treatment in more serious cases like ATM robbery. When my bike was stolen on campus and I complained, the security had a fun time watching the video. The security cameras are merely for entertainment when it comes to petty theft.

150RMB is SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper than anything I've been able to find in the US (I think the cheapest ones I've been able to find have been US$40 each, and I may be making those up).

Yes, I consider this to be a very good value. I've also used motorcycle top boxes on my bike here, which cost 40 - 70 RMB here for very durable models available in three sizes.

I've been using these panniers for almost a year and they are good quality, totally waterproof (been tested in five minute rainstorms), have carried fifteen pounds on short, fast rides on bumpy paved roads, so for about $25 they are good. Only thing I haven't done is go for some kind of maximum capacity traveling cross country with them and tested hours of soaking rain, but I would expect them to handle it. They really appear to be quite durable.

There's also a variety of smaller bags here of varying quality, most of it very poor, but usable. I'm talking about small bags that sit under the top tube behind the headset, seat bags, and bags in the middle of and under the top tube. These are not good values compared to the 150 RMB panniers. For example, the perfect sized seat bag only cost me 18 RMB, but it only lasts for about three to four months before the zipper fails, so I buy three at a time. Seat bags costing 70 RMB only last about twice as long.

Other things like backpacks and hydration packs here have been very difficult for me to buy. The authentic stuff is at least 30% higher than the USA, and you never know if it's authentic. There is some fake mountaineernig stuff here, like fleece jackets, that are a good value, but for backpacks, hydration packs, and waist/lumbar packs, I can't find it. Laptop bags are good values here.

I will take some pictures of my panniers this week to give you an idea of what to look for. If you can find someone to help you on taobao.com, I bet you can find them there, which is likely where my bike shop got theirs for resale. It will be very easy to find locals who will be willing to help you shop on taobao.com if you want to give it a whirl.

Sounds like I should bring a pump,... I have a JoeBlow floor pump and honestly only carry a CO2 pump with me... when I remember to swap it from my road bike to my beater. I guess I could get away with only bringing a travel pump?

I suggest not bringing the floor pump because of weight and size. There is a very simple Giant pump readily available in GZ for 90 RMB that has a gauge that reads 10-15 psi low (makes over-inflating easy), but otherwise works fine for schrader valves. If you prefer presta valves, you could bring an adapater, not fun, or bring the floor pump if you don't want to pay 2-300 RMB for a floor pump here with presta.

You could look online on taobao.com for better options and plan to buy that here in order to avoid the hassle of bringing the floor pump. You could certainly live without the convenience of a floor pump if your mini pump is very easy to use. I also brought a $3 USD car tire gauge from the USA that works fine on schrader valve bike tires.

I would strongly recommend bringing a mini pump because I haven't been able to buy one in the shops that worked properly, and the Topeaks and other Western brands here are at least 30% over US retail and are questionable quality. Have not actually tried a Western brand of mini pump bought in China since all the other Topeak and other Western brands stuff was bad.

I have the Topeak Mini Dual DX ($15 - 25 online), which automatically works with either schrader or presta, but takes a little getting used to (China also has their own valve type). The DXG model has a built in gauge. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xswNN8dcerY



The pump is small, light, and I can easily get 80psi, which is more than my tube/tire can handle. Only the higher end bike shops and very, very few gas stations or truck stops have air hoses that will give you more than 30-35 psi (enough for most bikes), and you'd need schrader valves or a presta adapater. Both kinds of tubes are readily available in all the better shops in Guangzhou. China also has its own valve type for the local standard.

It will be difficult to find C02 in the physical stores, buy maybe online. I used C02 back in the USA, especially for racing, but it doesn't seem practical to me now considering the cost since air is free, LOL. I have seen a couple of local guys in Guangzhou with C02 over the years.

Finding normal US quality, glueless tube patches in the physical stores in GZ is almost impossible. I prefer to just change the tube, but I carry patches in case of more than one flat during a ride, which happens. Bringing this kind of thing with you to China is like bringing your favorite shampoo. Once it runs out, you'll probably accept the local brand, which is inferior but usable.

...and a pair of cycling shorts.

When I first started riding a good bike in '98, I blew into the bike shop with a wad of cash and bought everything the salesman suggested, and it was all necessary stuff, except the cycling shorts and jerseys. I sold all my biking stuff before coming to China, thinking I'd never ride again because of some injuries, but now I get by wonderfully without all those flashy clothes.

One consideration is also that, as a woman, especially a foreign woman in China, you will attract a LOT of attention here just standing around. Big Chinese cities are very safe places for women compared to other developing countries (not to imply that smaller cities here are unsafe), but I respectfully suggest you consider if it's possible to be perfectly comfortable riding a bicycle in near-knee-length short pants that are not made of lycra, but are more like hiking shorts made of synthetics like nylon and/or polyester. That's what I use and I am *more* comfortable than back when I wore stuff like I was pretending to be Lance Armstrong.

I do not think there are measurable physical risks from the extra attention of walking into a store or public place in a city in China wearing flashy lyrca cycling clothes, but for a lot of women (and men, too) the unexpected amount of attention is often a psychological problem for the foreigner. Most get used to it, but some can not handle it and are miserable.

Want to know how a mountain gorilla in a zoo being stared at all day feels like?

Even though tight-fitting cycling jerseys are nice because of the pockets, otherwise they offer no practical advantage compared to a synthetic t-shirt, and flashy lycra is an attention multiplier.

I think this might be a good time to mention something unfortunate. Worst case scenario of casual contact with a local turning bad was recently related to me by a foreign woman in Guangzhou saying she was stalked by a well-spoken, bilingual trainer in a gym. Was this lycra related? No, but...

Also, I was phone-stalked by a weirdo Chinese man after a brief conversation in a restaurant. There are a LOT of neurotics here and best not to attract their attention, but not always easy to distinguish normal from abnormal. I've adjusted a lot of my habits to prevent problems, but stalkers here are different than the USA, IMO.

I'd say here the threshold for triggering the stalker is lower and they are much more confident of social acceptance to their behavior. Mebbe like 1950's wife beaters? Hard to explain. In this culture, you can give someone face, such as being friendly, exchanging phone numbers, meeting for coffee, etc., but you can not abruptly take face away or cut off the contact, without causing insult.

In a hierarchical social system, for many people all they have is their face. Losing it because of someone who is not an acknowledged superior is unacceptable. Of course a foreign woman would never be acknowledged as superior by the type of man I'm talking about.

Back to cycling clothing. I wear simple, Patagonia silk weight t-shirts for cool, warm or hot weather, which are extremely lightweight, water-wicking, durable, quick-drying, etc. I only need one such shirt because it can be washed in 2 minutes in a sink and dries in an  hour. Patagonia has a mail order outlet that ships quick, can get 40-50% off. Huge differences in polyester in the market, so be sure to compare apples to apples.

In hot weather I also wear the thinnest t-shirts made of mostly cotton, but also partly lyrca and modal, the more modal the better. Modal is made from wood pulp and seems to have all the advantages of polyester, without the enhanced body odor, which is the biggest problem with polyester and nylon. If I could find 90% modal and 10% lycra t-shirts, I would consider those perfect for warm/hot weather sports, especially cycling. I get them loose fitting in conservative colors.

...a spare set of tires...That sounds reasonable for decent tires. My current ones are semi-knobby and not new by any means, but they're not cracking so I might just leave it be.

I suggest you consider the weight and space penalty of bringing an extra set of tires. Might be better to get two new ones to avoid selection problems here. Just trying to help you travel light.

I don't keep track of mileage very well here, no computer, but the tires I have that cost about $20-30 USD each in the USA Maxxis Overdrive Maxxprotect have been so good under all riding conditions and are showing very minimal wear on the rear tire, looks like new on the front. Last year I was doing at least 15 miles a day round trip to work, and that would be about five months on these tires in 2012, less mileage this year, but that's still over 2000 miles.

My beater currently has toe clips rather than clipless pedals

Personally, I don't like toe clips and I don't find clipless to be practical for me here with just city riding. If I had some nice clipless shoes, the kind you can walk around in because the studs are recessed, I might do it for a second bike.

However, I wear sandals more than half the year, it rains here a lot and I actually wear galoshes (made in China, not available here in my size and quality, bought in the USA) when riding during the rainy winter, so clipless is not good for my situation. If I were going on a China biking trek, I probably still wouldn't go clipless. Not sure. It creates a single point of failure if the shoes are lost, damaged, stolen, etc. Of course there's downhilling in Guangzhou and nobody uses clipless for that.

Ugh. I'll get a tune up before I leave, and hope for the best, I guess.

Of course there are good mechanics here, but you have to find them and then have a good relationship with them, which is tough if you don't speak their language. Since you already speak some Mandarin, it might be better for you. The fact you're a petite woman will probably be a plus. All the bike mechanics in the higher end shops seem like really decent guys, who inexplicably leave most fasteners finger tight.

One thing I learned pretty quick was not to let the road-side flat tire changers or the low-end bike shop guys touch my bike.  Typical scenario was I had a flat, but didn't have a tube with me, or my pump wasn't working, etc., so I would go to one of the many, many inexpensive road-side flat tire changers.

Some of them really didn't know about bikes with gears, but really they were just overall clueless. They would replace the rear wheel incorrectly and then the brakes would drag, so they would re-adjust the brakes to the point they were worthless, but then the derailleur was out of alignment, so then they would start scewing with it helter skelter, blah, blah, all while I'm standing there pointing to the obviously non-lateral position of the rear axle/skewer. Drives me mad.

I'm prepared to change a flat and I carry one tube, a pump, tire tools, smallest bicycle multi-tool that can do the job, medical gloves to keep my hands clean, and at least one plastic bag so I can grab the rear deraileur to remove the wheel without getting my hands greasy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?&v=SrSuQ1le7iY

Also, local men *love* to walk up to a foreigner's bike and jump on it with all their weight, extra points if it has front suspension, carefully avoiding placing their hands on the sturdy hand grips, instead seeking for weaker items like switches and levers mounted on the handlebars. I kid you not, this has happened to me and my friends constantly. I lost a 200 RMB air horn to one of these charming fellows.

One of the best things I ever bought here was an air horn for 200 RMB, which is close to the US price. Delta Airzound Bike Horn. The design is great and it was so much fun honking it at oblivious drivers that want to force me to turn right, but the handlebar clamp/hanger is not strong and the local who jumped on my bike broke it instantly. Bought another one and the hose broke after a few months. Wish they made it with stronger materials.

Oh man I can only pray! I guess it couldn't hurt to post an ad in the GoKunming classifieds before I go through the hassle of dealing with all this.

If you ask 'em a bunch of questions about the bike's reliability and maintenance history  you'll get a feel. All the bikes I've seen in GZ that were bought for under 3-4000 RMB have the weakest bottom bracket, hubs, headsets, and chains imaginable. If a foreigner applies power to the cranks, the BB will begin to squeak and need to be re-tightened constantly. The caustic particulates in the air in China accelerate rusting and degradation of everything, including bike components.

I've taken two friends to have their BB's replaced and the mechanic offered a BB for 30 RMB (less than $5 USD). This is actually my biggest problem riding bikes in China: they want to sell me the cheapest parts even when I try to buy more expensive components. The next higher priced BB was 80 RMB, and the next one was 110 RMB. However, it is like pulling hens teeth to get the clerks to tell you the prices of the various quality levels. It is a problem I've never been able to solve. Blows my mind. I am constantly replacing the same parts over and over again because I can not get the shops to sell me the better stuff, which certainly exists. TIC

http://www.bikesshanghai.com/shop/anti-theft-chain-lock-50cm/

This looks really similar to the lock I have. Of course mine is Kryptonite and I'm pretty sure cost US$50 instead of 73rmb... So one thing is cheaper in China?

What's cheaper here are things that everybody has, are low quality, and the profit margin has been cut down to 1%. Other stuff that's cheap are export quality items that ended up having to be dumped domestically, and knock-offs of reasonable quality.

Anything that has a limited market, like higher end biking stuff, mountaineering/backpacking stuff, it is disproportionately expensive because of import duties (on Chinese manufactured foreign brands, thanks WTO) and high prices for "boutique" or "specialty" items.

The lock that goes with that chain will possibly rust very badly, but I'm not certain. If you put a little bike chain oil in the key hole once in a while, it might be okay. I have seen that item for sale i shops in Guangzhou and almost bought one.

If you haven't yet...check out:

www.gokunming.com

Lots of great info on Kunming.

Good luck!