Laugh at the roaide time...

[WalksOn2Wheels]

Well, I'm not really a roadie. I just have a fancy carbon bike...

I found this place a while back when I was planning a small tour. That didn't go as well, but things are looking up now. Here are some cell phone pics of the first rough setup:







In the front is a 35 deg down bag and a sleeping pad. In the rear is my Eureka Spitfire tent in a size XS REI compression stuff sack. The tent is in a "water resistant" bag, but the sleeping bag is not. My trip window of 3 weeks for a 3 day jaunt in Texas gives me a wide window of predictable weather, but if push comes to shove, I can probably throw my sleep system into my backpack which I have a raincover for.

So the front bit weighs about 3 pounds and the tent in back is about 2.5 pounds. The poles will go in a side pocket on the backpack. I have a Talon 22 I've been commuting with for about half a year or so now. I haven't really put the backpack together yet, but I'm shooting for around 10 pounds with a full hydration bladder. It will just be food, clothes, kitchen, and toiletries. I'll probably be eating lunch in town, so I won't have to carry all of my food, but enough to not have to leave camp.

Anyhow, just wanted to share my info with the board that has helped inspire my approach to touring.

[tonymason]

Great set up for the road.
You could lighten your backpack by putting more on your frame.
One easy/inexpensive way is to carry 1.5 liter water bottles in your cages. Arrowhead brand bottled water fits well.
Also looks like you have space for a Jandd or Relevate frame bag.
Where are you headed? Growing up I did some fun touring in the Hill Country.
Enjoy,
Tony

[WalksOn2Wheels]

Tony,

I'm just making a run down to Dublin, Tx from Grand Prairie, Tx. Looking at basically a 3 day, 2 night trip.

The rest of the story, copy and pasted from a post on another board because I'm lazy:

Ok, well I took to the task of sorting out the rest of the gear and food for the trip. Here is the list along with some illustrations:

All weights are in grams unless noted:


For the above pictured bike:

On bike:

Front bag:
straps (2) 57
stuff sack 52
35 deg bag 1031
sleeping pad 464

Front total 1604

Rear Bag:
tent 574
fly 456
stuff sack 56

Rear Total: 1086

On bike total: 2690

Or about 5.93 pounds.



Backpack:

hydration bladder 94
pack 790

Clothes:
shorts 300
merino shirt 156
socks 59

Kitchen:
pot 35
stove 19
bottle of fuel 284
container 63
box matches 6
fire starters (5) 7
spork 9

Toiletries:
bag 11
soap/shampoo 131
deodorant 50
toothbrush 12
toothpaste 18
hand/dish soap 12
shower wipes 87
wet wipes 41
sunscreen 109
lip balm 9
towel 53

Tent:
poles 250
stakes 40

Misc:
bandanna 31
batteries 78
headphones 17
headlamp 28
ID/debit 8
keys 15
phone 134
knife: 79
phone charger 44
U lock 630
pack cover 60
camera 178


Tool kit:

bag 7
pump 58
tube 85
patch kit 3
multi tool 67


Pack total: 4167

Or about 9.19 pounds before food

Total base before food: 6857 grams or about 15.12 pounds. Pretty happy with that as it cuts about 7 pounds off from my last attempt.

Food:

dinner (2) 482
Oatmeal (6) 228
cocoa (3) 91
bar/gels 200
powder (9) 63

Total: 1064
Total w/o water 7921

Or about 17.46 pounds.

Loaded pack, tent poles in side pocket:



Energy gels in strap pockets:



Items loaded into top pocket for ease of access:



Total weight of the pack before water is 5231 grams or about 11.53 pounds. And as I type this, I realized also I planned on bringing a paperback, so there's that as well. Putting on the pack and adjusting the straps, it really feels like nothing. With water, it will definitely put on some weight, probably another 4 pounds with a full hydration bladder. So no more than 16.5 pounds tops. I'm sure I've done more than that on any given commute. I'll fill up the bladder and put some miles on the whole setup tomorrow on my commute. I may do it and decide I'd rather skip the hydration bladder and just run the bottles alone. But running out of water is kind of a terrible thing.

[tonymason]

I think your set up is good. A base weight of 15 pounds is what most folks shoot for in light weight touring. My only thoughts would be how to distribute that weight. Having done lot of touring with a backpack I know I enjoy the ride more the less it weighs. You might not notice it on your commute but a 16 pound pack gets old when you are in the saddle all day.  I would try to attach your U-lock to your frame. Also, your cook set looks like it may fit nicely in a water bottle cage on your frame. I agree. Water, especially in a Texas summer, is crucial so bring your bladder but some large bottles on the frame will help with weight distribution too.
Have a great tour,
Tony

[surlydave]

I'd drop the deodorant and pack a second spare tube in its place, but that's just me.  Also it looks like you have enough soap and shampoo for a week AND shower wipes.  I guess I'm not the most hygienic cyclist on tour  I'm just sayin' roadie tires loaded with an extra 20 pounds may flat more then you are used to.  Enjoy!

[WalksOn2Wheels]

Tony,

Good points. I lost the hardware to mount my U-lock to the frame, but with the "aero" carbon top and downtube, there isn't a lot of space to put it anyway. I did manage to pick up one of those small "gas tank" type bags to put my tools and energy gels and such in there. That put about a pound off of my back and onto my bike.

Dave,

For sure. I've been agonizing over the toiletries kit. I figure I want a good shower when I can get it at the Dinosaur Valley State Park which is my midpoint, but kind of want the shower wipes as a backup if I can't make the full 90 miles to dublin and back on day 2 and have to stealth camp or something like that. The soap bottles aren't even half full anyway. I sweat a lot and don't much cherish the idea of sleeping without something resembling a good shower.

As far as flats go, I'm running the same tires in 25c on my steel commuter and I've put 8 months on them with zero flats. And that's on rough roads with the occasional glass here and there, so I have a lot of faith in the tires. However, you're not the first person to tell me to pack a second tube, so I'll definitely consider it.

I put some miles on the setup today and discovered the stuff sack mounted on the rear liked to relax it self and would need adjusting. For a full day, I'll probably cinch them and tie the loose ends together to prevent slippage.