90's

Here is an option:

https://www.amazon.com/Dom-Gorilla-Cage-Packing-Adventure/dp/B01HD79VIE/ref=pd_bxgy_468_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&refRID=0H7MNMWRZBYVMPDE3ES8&th=1

seatclamp and rack attachment all in one. https://www.bikebagshop.com/sunlite-rack-mount-seat-post-clamp-p-1146.html

Did a custom bag for my wife with the Porcelain Rocket idea as a starting point. Instead of a holster, this is a rolltop bag with a pocket on the bottom to slip the support in. Support is 6061 aluminum tubing I bent with a pipe bender, custom filed some cantilever brake pad washers for the bolt on portion. Used a Salsa seat post clamp for her set up, used the Post-lock version when I installed on my bike which has way more seatpost showing. Will be making a new bag for myself using this set up, it is solid. Aluminum tubing was purchased from McMaster.com

Awesome!

What is your experience of the eyelet clips?

At first glance, I am not convinced by that restrap holster.  The forward part looks like it was designed by someone who is into bondage!

Clips work well. Some are sturdier than others. Since they are small and lightweight I would just take a couple extra with you as well as extra bolts and nuts to fix if it should break.  If they fit a little loosely then use some old inner tube to shim them tight.

You know some people are into bondage!

stumbled across this one: https://www.bikebagshop.com/restrap-carryeverything-saddlebag-holster-p-4215.html

 Like the vote of confidence!   Annoyingly, my carbon frame foes not have eyelets and I have had to go with a rack that utilises the skewer.  Not ideal, as if you get a flat you have to pretty much unload the rear rack and then pull the skewer right out of the wheel before the wheel can be removed.  If this was not the case I think I would have already made my mind up to go the rack and dry bag option.
 

Well my Stache doesn't have any eyelets either so I used the clamp on adaptors for the bottom of the rack on the seatstays and a seatpost clamp on rack thingy for the other attachment points but I am going to get the salsa seatpost eyelet thingy that someone mentioned here to firm it up more. I will just take some extra clamps for the seatstay mounts cause they are pretty small and light.
I had an old man mountain rack and it was solid but the axel thing was a PITA in my opinion. Making the rear wheel more difficult to remove and replace for flats or repairs wasn't what I was looking for.

I finally did it kicking and screaming but it works great. I started out bikepacking in the late 80's using racks and panniers then in the last 4 years I got caught up in the slim lightweight minimalist craze which never seemed to work out without putting a ton of shit on my back. Taller people can get away with it cause their frame bags can hold so much more and their seat bags are much bigger and not rubbing on their tires. I love to ride without anything on my back and I don't want to forgo bringing something with me cause I don't have room.
Right now the 2 person tent goes on the rack and I use an ancient Jannd pannier on one side. My sleep kit goes up front in the bedrock roll (which works sooooo much better than the sweetroll that I have with it's sticky interior). Frame bag holds my 100 ounce bladder and I have two bedrock tapeat bags off the bar. I can easily add cages to the front for more capacity and a right side pannier as well.
Flats, hiking boots, racks, and wool are cooooooool again! Sometimes in the rush to change things for the better you lose sight of what has worked well in the past.

You can get a clamp on seat post rack and hack away at it then use what is left to wrap a strap around the seatbag to the rack to eliminate sway.

Something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Bicycle-Alloy-Seatpost-Mount-Carrier/dp/B011NJ5S3U/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1480702496&sr=8-7&keywords=bicycle+seatpost+rack

My dream would be to have a combination fender rack setup that would clamp to the seatpost, follow the curve of the tire and connect to the rear axel or seatstay with struts. The fender top would be flat and fairly wide and would have lash on attachments so you could lash a few dry bags onto it. This would allow you to use a dropper post as well. I am not a big fan of seat bags because of my size, don't like how they load and unload, don't like the sway and how they get in the way of mounting and dismounting.

I have two new in box BOB ibex trailers. Suspended version with room for 29 inch tires, includes flag and dry sack bag.
This retails for $449.
Great for commuting, shopping, touring and trail work. Suspension works great off road. Helps on reducing car trips.
I bought several for a project and have these two left over. Continental US only
I take paypal.


Info here:
http://www.bobgear.com/bike-trailers/ibex

If you have a new bike with through axles you can buy axles here: https://robertaxleproject.com/bob-trailers/

Great Condition. New one is $285 plus shipping and seam sealing which I have done.
Free ship to continental US only.
I take paypal.

Info here: http://www.tarptent.com/notch.html

Bikes Direct 29er Titanium Frame with Rockshox Reba Fork. Awesome combo and dead reliable after over 25,000 miles of use and adventure. No attachment braze ons but with modern bikepacking gear you don't need it. Frame is beautiful and just gets better with age. I know of 2 others with tons of miles on theirs including lots of bikepacking. I recently set it up as a time trial bike with a carbon fork and it worked great. Now I am setting it up as a gravel grinder.

Ergon grips.

Swept back handlebars. (Something like a Mary)

XT hydraulic disc brakes Freaking awesome!

Triple front chainring setup! No gearing compromises either high or low and no ridiculous prices!

XT rear shifter and derailleur.

Thumb shifter for the front derailleur.

Thudbuster LT

Bedrock tapeat bags.

Frame bag with a bladder

Tubeless

Flat pedals (still searching for the perfect flat pedal shoe)

Wool gloves, socks, top layer and wool knickers.

Blow up pillow

Blow up doll

Dyno hub and Luxos U light with USB port

Showers Pass Jacket.

Mirrycle rear view mirror.

Brooks B-17

REI basic bivy on sale (tent for more dodgy weather and I haven't found the perfect tent nor do I want to go broke trying!)

It is not uncommon for trail riders to have their bars higher than their seat. Enduro and downhill riders like higher front ends but then bike performance suffers on the uphills. Bar height is always going to be a compromise as well as the geometry of a bike particularly the front end head angle. The new "modern" trail bike geometry is not for everyone.  You sacrifice uphill climbing and riding efficiency on the flats or rollers. Slack head tube angles, short stems and wide bars are great for the baggie wearing gravity crowd who may put in 15 to 20 miles at most before they hit the pub but for bikepacking and long distance riding it probably isn't the way to go.

I think Jone's bars are OK but as much as I like a swept back bar I think they are a little too radical and may interfere with your legs in sharp turns and they put you pretty upright as well which might not be so good for seat comfort in the long haul. He even offers a single long tube that comes off the front of the bar to make you more aero but it you want aero and comfort I would go with a standard aero bar with elbow pads that many TD riders use. Can't believe it would be very comfortable for the long haul.

My go to trail bike (which is great for technical bikepacking as well) is a Trek Stache. Climbs well and descends great particularly in the rubble. Head angle is not too slack, the short stays make it nimble for a 29 plus. Bought it rigid but it really screams for a front suspension fork which I added and makes it much more capable. Dropper post is a real game changer too when it gets fast and or technical on the downhills. My bars are also slightly above the seat due to my advanced age! My friend has a 27.5 plus bike with a slacker head angle (Norco Torrent) and he complains that it doesn't climb as well as his 29er hardtail with a steeper head angle. He rips the downhills though but I think my Stache is faster on the downhills and climbs more accurately on the uphills. He has put on a longer lower stem on his Torrent to make it climb a little better.

Funny how some people would never do it again and others keep coming back time after time. I guess it all depends upon what you are looking for in a ride. My favorite ride ever? Probably not but certainly one of my most memorable due to it's length, changing scenery and people you meet along the way.

If I were to do it again and had a ton of money to throw at it I would go custom Titanium frame, lauf fork (disclaimer haven't ridden one yet but I like the concept) swept back bars, aero bars, leather saddle, thudbuster seatpost, triple crank, 10 speed rear cassette, XT hydraulic brakes, dyno hub, dyno light and recharge options off the hub. I too would go with as big of frame opening as I could. Riding a small bike with a severely sloping downtube really eats into the frame space. I would have a custom fender rack built up that would eliminate the seat bag and all my issues with a seat bag (bag tire interference, difficult mounting and dismounting, swaying and limited storage space. I don't much like sweet rolls or harnesses up front either so I could consider a custom front rack to hold gear as well. The holy grail would be to eliminate any pack on the back without having to compromise on gear.

I guess I don't understand rigid for such a long ride with tons of washboard. You are going to get a lot of suspension losses from having the bike bounce up and down all the time. You want a system that will as smoothly as possible move you forward. Bicycle quarterly has done extensive research on tires, suspension losses and wider tires on road bikes that would definitely apply to TD riding.

The final factor would be to find a reliable tire that has a super supple casing for lower rolling resistance and to run lower tire pressures to smooth out the ride. Also running tubeless will reduce your rolling resistance vs. running tubes. A rigid bike with pumped up tires may feel faster but that is because you are being bounced around more and that feels faster. Any jarring to your body will fatigue it. Lots of testing has been done on this.

Trek Stache 5.


Ran it rigid for quite a while and really liked it that way. But since this is my everyday trail bike it screamed for a front fork and dropper post.
Did half of the Colorado trail with it and a couple of Julian Bikepack Challenges. Gets used 100 percent of the time for my MTB rides.
Had to change the rear gearing from 11-36 to 11-42  I am not fond of the limited range of one by setups so I put on a deore double front crank with  22 and 32 tooth chainrings. I switch by hand which is easy. Gives me plenty of low (yes sometimes I bail out to the 22-42) but the huge 29 plus tires need lower gearing. I still miss the high gear of a triple.
Big problem for me is lack of storage space. The small frame I have doesn't give much frame bag space but the one I had made holds 3 liters of water but little else.
I don't like handlebar rolls so I stuff 3 or 4 Bedrock bags off both sides of the bars for food electronics and other stuff. This leaves me hauling around a too big of backpack on trips that require a sleep kit, extra food, clothing etc.
I had a friend weld up a seatpost clamp on rack that will clear the rear tire. I can put on a small drybag and the small seatbag holds tools, tube and lube. I can still lower my dropper post several inches which make it much better on downhills. Not the best solution but on my last trip it allowed me to ride without anything on my back.
Sort of thinking of having a custom fender rack built that would follow the contour of the rear wheel. You could strap bags on it and even small panniers and still not interfere with the dropper post.
Bike is a hoot to ride and blasting down rubble strewn trail is quite the experience. The control you have over the bike is superb and when you get lazy and sloppy and tired it will generally save your behind.
Highish bottom bracket is nice for avoiding pedal strikes. The bike is not quite as precise of climber with the front shock as when it was rigid. I would probably prefer a slightly steeper head angle. I have moved the seat forward and put on a longer stem.
It certainly is not the ideal bikepacking setup bike from a storage standpoint but if I can resolve that issue with a rack or two I will be happy enough.

I used a thudbuster on the TD and it was great. Takes the sting out. With all the washboard on the TD I think front suspension and a thudbuster are very beneficial.

I am not against group starts, but as events grow I think that spreading out the crowd is a good idea.
Some of my best times were when I was alone. You have a lot more flexibility that way and you get to meet people along the way.
The "spirit" of the race is to "do it yourself dammit" so doing it alone might be the goal of some.
Also to me the spirit of bikepacking is to not being part of a huge crowd.

That said some of my favorite people are the ones I met on these events.

How about doing a start window from Wednesday to whenever? This would help spread out the riders and give them other preferred start dates.
I like how your trackleader's system gives people the option as to start times and resets if things don't pan out initially. People could also have the option initially of waiting out a hot or stormy spell.

You need a gps to follow the track. Even with it I got lost more than once both times I did it! Of course I always get lost!

The lauf fork with 29 would be a lot more forgiving.
Try a Jones bar with ergon grips. I like a swept back bar for comfort. With aero bars, a swept back bar and ergons I think that would give you the best chance to avoid hand issues.