Thanks for the info, Amy. Happy trails!

forrestG, unless you have other bags you're not telling us about, or plan to use a sizable backpack, and are riding self-supported for a 2-3 week trip, I can't imagine not having both. They're pretty much the mainstay of rackless systems.

Marc, trips less than a week you can usually nail the weather well enough to go ultralight and use just a tiny seat bag (or none). Now your dropper works : ) A sleeping pad/bag and a couple garments/utility items is all you are essentially adding to your trail riding kit. Try to plan a route that hits resupplies every day to keep light. Use water purification (Steripen, etc.) where you have reliable sources. I wear a low-slung pack along with the harness and a couple top tube bags. If you get ruthless with offloading contingency and camping gear, you'll be surprised how minimal your kit can get. On an extended tour where a brief section pops up? Deal with it. Cheers...

Don't tell Masa the Divide is not possible on a road bike... https://twitter.com/hashtag/earthride Desire trumps gear; any bike can be made to work on some variant of the Divide. Agreed, mountain bike tires are nice off the paved sections.

There really is not much mystery about riding the divide. Eat/sleep/ride; common sense rules. I suggest touring it (or a section of it) without the pressure of making any certain time. You will discover how your body reacts to many successive long riding days. That part is a mystery until you're there, but as an ultramarathoner you will have a decided advantage with your knowledge of your own physiological limitations.

Have fun with it!

Thanks for the post, woody.

Thanks for posting the info, AZTim.

+1 on black lab's advice to swap it out with a simple post. Why carry the mechanism if it's not going to be used? The extra weight of a medium-size seat bag is inconsequential. If you do find yourself wanting to use a reverb with a seat bag, the dropper stopper made for it is a handy tool to avert tire rub and also to keep your seat up if the unit were to fail.

https://www.evanscycles.com/rockshox-reverb-enduro-height-collar-EV200454

what is this SoCal Crescent route you speak of?  I've never heard of that name before.

mike

Hey, Mike S., it's a route I devised linking classic SoCal singletracks via forest roads and some paved riding. No aesthetic start or finish point, just the best ST en route. I rode and documented the southern half of it (minus Sawmill Trail) in four days. Here's a map:

http://www.ousleycreative.com/misc/SoCalCrescent_south_4-14.pdf


From the terminus shown on the map it will go through Berdoo Canyon to Joshua Tree NP, Pioneertown, and up FRs to finish up glancing off Big Bear, down Wildhorse Trail and Santa Ana River Trail from South fork to Redlands. I've ridden and driven most of this stuff, but haven't ridden it in a push or made the map of this north section. It could/should extend through the San Gabes, but the 35-mi SART run makes such a spectacular finish. Uncle Howies Pizza or Hangar 24 Brewing in Redlands is the consolation end point.

It's rife with possible side trips (Idyllwild singletrack, Palm Canyon options) and loaded with resupply options. It's one to travel lightly to enhance fun on the ST; doing half of it in several days makes it pretty easy to nail the weather and skip the storm gear, tent, etc.

Some of the highest-el points could have snow in early spring, but they can easily be bypassed on the scenic byway. Some of the forest between Idyllwild and Thomas Mountain I believe has had closures lifted since I made the map – I have to bone up on that.

Cheers...

Mike

Thanks for checking in, Kelly. Happy trails!

I'd be on this if I wasn't a member (nudge, nudge).

It would help to see more of what you've done, but yours appear to be generously sized, which I would have suggested. A guy I rode with briefly found some very inexpensive grab bags that were quite a bit larger than the Mountain Feed Bag. I was envious...

A dedicated outer sleeve for bear spray, full-height outer mesh pockets, hydration hose keeper and one-handed storm-proof closure would be on my wish list.

Have fun widdit... 

On the Divide or thereabout with my geared wheelset on the bike...

Hey, denise1, northern AZ is generally higher elevation that could be quite wintry at that time. So maybe I saved you some training  

https://www.adventurecycling.org/resources/
http://forums.mtbr.com/bikepacking-bike-expedition/

The only way to justify a bike purchase is to ride like there's no f'ing tomorrow. If you're doing that, it doesn't matter whether or not you upgrade – you're winning either way.

Power to you for experimenting with options, Martin.

You still aren't swaying me on a bivy bag with no poles (or stiff wire, a la Bibler/Black Diamond, at a bare minimum). Smitty said "sucking nylon"...that's a pretty good assessment of what happens in a bivy bag when it rains. How do you keep the rain out while letting air in? Usually that's done in a sitting position with one's head overhanging the opening. Laying down, a 2" storm flap simply isn't going to cut it. If you want to live through a storm, good bivy bags rock. If you want a restful night of sleep to continue bagging successive big days, it's the wrong tool for the job.

Weather is most often just too fickle where I bikepack to say with any certainty that it won't rain on a given night, and I'm often disconnected from any forecast for days at a time. I sneak in a tent-less night here and there, but much prefer to set it up preemptively, in part because it's a double-wall which would get wet inside during setup.

Cheers...

I'm with SmithHammer – I'll never depend on a bivy bag for anything beyond keeping me alive.

A small, coffin-style tent with a pole around the shoulders and a bug net is the best combination of stormproofness, bug pro and small footprint. It needs not even be staked or guyed, can be set up in the rain without disaster. This one has worked well for me (might not assuage the gram counters): http://blackdiamondequipment.com/en_US/tents-and-bivys/bipod-bivy-BD810210GRENALL1.html

Shove your helmet down inside the foot to create some loft.

First blush after watching the vid:

A full side-zip rain pant is what your product is. As such, it needs a two-way zipper you can open up at the top for ventilation. It doesn't look like your product does that, and that's a deal breaker for cycle touring applications IMO. Some might be okay with emergency storm gear being as light as possible. I want to be able to ventilate them well so I don't have to continually put on and remove during intermittent poor weather. I'll end up wet from sweating without that ventilation – an uncomfortable scenario, esp when the the weather is foul.

The shoe cover looks to add warmth, but will not be wholly effective for rain and water/mud splashing off the ground or being walked through.

The material looks lightweight and compressible. Does it have any stretch to it?

The product appears to be suited to commuting, and for that application, it probably works satisfactorily.

1. What is your level of experience?
Fairly experienced; about 10 touring rides totaling about 160 days.

2. How long is your average trip?
Three days to 60+, average probably 2-3 weeks long

3. What footwear do you bring on a bike packing trip?
Wear approach-style shoes, possibly bring flipflops for camp.

4. How much time do you spend riding, how much time walking/hiking...on an average day?...at extremes?
Normally 7-12 hours riding, minimal walking or hiking. Some routes (CT, etc.) require a good deal of hike-a-bike.

5. What sort of issues do you have with footwear?
• Trashed ankle makes clipless difficult – I use flat pedals exclusively.
• Plantar fasciitis requires a support wrap on one foot; in general, arch support of factory inserts is not nearly enough. I don't use orthodics or SuperFeet-type inserts for riding.
• Shoe covers are generally made for cycling shoes, so do not fit approach shoes well (they do work, though). I prefer non-stormproof shoes.

This bike is back from the Great Divide and in need of a home. I bought it lightly used and rode it ~10 miles twice as shown in stock config, then swapped out the all the parts on it minus the brake levers/hoses/calipers and headset for the GDMBR. Now back, I just rebuilt it in its stock configuration. Perfect mechanical condition; has cosmetic blemishes as you'd expect.

I replaced the front tire with a 2.4 Speci Purgatory, tires set up tubeless. New chain and recent brake pads. Used Shimano SPD pedals included (the flats shown are not). Also included is a $30 geared Alternator dropout for setting the bike up with a derailleur (or chain tensioner, for whatever wacky reason).

http://salsacycles.com/bikes/archive/2015_el_mariachi_singlespeed


$750 (retails for $1350-$1500)

Add $60 for Revelate-made Cogburn-branded frame bag, used 40 days, in perfect working shape.
Add $15 for Salsa rack adapter kit and Axiom seat collar (with rack attachment points) with stainless steel cap screws. That's about $30 of stuff new; they were used only to test fit my rack.

Shipping at buyers expense from 92688; PayPal including transaction fee.

Contact directly at: oh you ess see are ee at hot mail daught calm.

Thanks for looking...

I prefer no pack when running panniers, and a pack when running modern BP bags.

Capacity is no issue with the rack and panniers, and on the types of rides I'd typically use them on, loading them up is NBD.

When I'm trying to keep my bike light and agile, I prefer a pack to get some weight off the bike. I don't like accessing drybag/compression-type closures during the day if I can help it. A small pack takes my day stuff – layers, hats, food, water and is still light enough to not need be anything other than the most basic stuff-sack of a pack. And I like to prop up my bike somewhere and walk away from it with stuff to take a break.

Edit: Sometimes when going into a multi-day supply-less stretch, the backpack will be stuffed to accommodate the extra provisions. In that case I swap out some light/bulky stuff from my bike to the pack, and put the provisions I don't need that day in the bike.

Nemo Hornet 1P gets a nod from me.

No seam sealing needed; works as advertised. Some inside-fly condensation, but what tent doesn't? Packs incredibly small. Enough room to sit up comfortably. Reasonably quick setup with six stakes and one 3-pronged pole.


For two people, we had great results with the Dash2 tent by REI. No clue why they stopped selling it. In any case, the Nemo Hornet 2P appears to be quite similar. Two doors is a boon.

Get a seat bag? A larger drybag? An extra pocket for use with the rack drybag? A small backpack? Feed bags? A long top tube bag?

I'm not wild about fork baggage, so I would work it out else-wise, but if fork bags are for you it's not too hard to work out a solution like these guys above did. Default to overbuilt and it'll work fine.