Some new bike shoes from Teva, with an ion waterproof coating may be of interest.

http://www.outdoorsmagic.com/gear-blog/tevas-first-bike-shoe-debuts/8277.html

So I got my new tent delivered yesterday, tarptent scarp 1. It a good kilo lighter than my old tent, but I made a bit of a cock up, and its pack size is somewhat longer than I was expecting. I used to strap my old tent to the handlebars in an alpkit airlock drybag.



Does anyone have any suggestions for the same sort of thing, but longer and slimmer?

I don't really want to get a sling from revelation, as that then starts to eat into the weight saving made from buying a new tent.

Have you looked at some of the other five ten offerings, like the chase, freerunner or daescent, or event the camp 4, which is a bit more hiking oriented but some use for biking as well. All come with stealth rubber soles.

I used to smoke, but now only light up after sex.

I am currently getting through two packets a day

Has anyone found a satisfactory way of fitting a headlamp onto a helmet?

I have seen some petzl helmet clips, but it's hard to see how effective they would be, http://www.completeoutdoors.co.uk/Petzl-E04405-Wide-Brim-Helmet-Lamp-Clips

there is also the petzl adapta system which looks like it has a stick on patch for the front of the helmet, but there isn't much to stick it to on the front of my helmet.

I was looking at buying a petzl tikka xp2, but that's not set in stone, do any other manufacturers have better systems for cycle helmet or handlebar mounting?

cheers
Matt

after looking at those inov8 recolite 180's earlier I have just gone and ordered a pair. Damn internet shopping and credit cards 

Vibram five fingers, although they can be a pain to put on when you want to get up in the middle of the night. Merrell Barefoot is coming out soon which has the same sort of vibram sole but without the separate toe units which might be more user friendly.
Inov8 also do some pretty lightweight footwear, but I am not sure on the international availability.

edit: just looked on the inov8 website the recolite 180 looks a good option, 180g each (Hence the 180 in the name, 360g pair) for a uk size 8.

There was a race along the route recently, http://www.transpyr.com/en/01.html it looks a good route, I am planning on doing it next year (at a more leisurely pace). It is based on a Spanish route called the the transpirenaica or the two seas traverse.

I have been told that some places may need permission from the local town hall to access the route (I think its a standard tourist tax type setup, nothing dodgy) which shouldn't be a problem.

Its only a recent idea so I haven"t gathered much information as yet if I find any more I will post an update.

The man who cycled the americas now also on available

http://www.uknova.com/wsgi/torrent/view/101200

It doesn't look like it will be, "the man who cycled the world" never was even though it was rumoured to be, it  is listed for download here though http://www.uknova.com/wsgi/torrent/view/101151 (probably will only be available for a couple of weeks) and "the man who cycled the americas" can be found as torrents if you search around.

The MTB 6-days from Trondheim to Oslo, looks a good option.
Was that a stage race?

Has anyone done any bikepacking in norway? looking for information on possible routes and ideas for a trip, probably next year so very much just at the drawing board at the moment.
Are there any established long distance routes? it looks like it has scenery crying out exploring off road by bike.

I use a travel tap, from these guys http://www.drinksafe-systems.co.uk/products.php
when i know there will be plenty of streams i just refill when needed, if water is less sparodic I use it to fill a bladder. they also do an inline filter to attatch to a bladder, but I haven't tried it as I like to drop an electrolyte tab into my bladder.

I prefer flat pedals for everything bar racing, some shimano mx30 or dmr v8 pedals with a pair of five ten camp four aproach shoes are a great combination for bickepacking.

The problem with panniers is getting you kit weight down (and bike width) to enjoy some nice singletrack. It all depends on the length of your trip, if your going for a week or more then panniers are a good option, but I would stick to front/lowrider panniers on the back. With decent modern equipment you still should be able to carry quite enough to keep going indefinitely.
If you set up with rear and front panniers, there is a tempteation to fill all the available space.

The sarn helen trail goes from the north coast to the south coast of wales, I put the GPS route on this site http://www.mtbtrailfinder.co.uk/html/routes/special/special_main.htm

There are some guide packs available here http://www.mbruk.co.uk/mbruk_guides.htm which cover multi day routes, I am hoping to do the scotish trail in the summer.

I considered getting one last year, but decided if I was lying at the bottom of a rocky slope with broken arms, legs and back I probably wouldn't be able to push the button anyway, so decided it was wiser to spend the money on beer.