Colorado trail, 2 questions-- lights and shoes?

[Couloirman]

What are you guys using for lights on the CO trail this year? Headlamp? Handlebar mounted light? One light that does both? Im currently debating many options for bright as heck vs long lasting battery life and more. Lots of options on the market now, just wondering if anyone on here had strong opinions on one vs the rest of the pack. Im currently on the fence for some type of Niterider, or the Gemini Olympia but the latter seems super heavy.

Also, on a totally unrelated question, what type of shoes did you find best for the CTR? I imagine Ill probably be walking somewhere around 1/3-1/2 of the trail so it almost seems more reasonable to me to just wear a good pair of hiking shoes and deal with them as being not the best on the bike. But then again, I havent done a ride this big before so Im not really sure. Oh yeah, and I use flat pedals (Point One Podiums).

Thanks

[riverfever]

Check out Fenix lights. They have a big selection and have a lot going for them. I am borrowing a PD32 from a friend because my car got broken into and my lights were stolen recently. The PD32 uses CR123 batteries that I fear might be harder to find than AA's but even carrying multiple sets won't be an issue. Check out the LD22. All of their lights are lightweight, pretty small (LD22 is a bit long but not crazy), and get long burn times. You may have to get creative with mounting it to the helmet. They have a bar mount but I've heard it's a bit bulky. Personally, if I gotta have 1 light it's gonna be on my helmet.

Check out Pearl Izumis shoes (like the X-Alp). They are not as stiff as a traditional MTB shoe so they flex good when hiking but still allow you to be clipped in. They have a good selection of shoes. I know some also use Mavic but I'm a PI guy. Hope this helps. Have fun.

[Flounder]

I use a Black Diamond Storm headlamp. It's 100 lumens, can be easily adjusted for the desired amount of light required and only takes 4 AAA batteries. I'm a huge fan of mega lumens for lots of things, but for bikepacking in the remote mountains, speed and darkness are not a great combo. So, I'm usually going slow enough that 100 lumens is ample light.

Regarding shoes, I've tried tons of different options ranging from bike/hikers like Pearl Transalps and others to full blown race shoes. I'll be doing the CTR in my Giro Code shoes. They're pretty high performance racing shoes however - They feel great on my feet. That's the key. What ever you take, they have to be comfortable on and off the bike. I'm aware they'll be properly trashed at the end, but sore feet cannot be left to chance.

My complaint with many of the hike-appropriate shoes is they often feel like mush while riding. I have relegated my Transalps to commuter duty for that reason, but everyone is different.

[anth]

First time racer this year but here's what I'll be running:

Lights: I've got a Black Diamond Storm and a Fenix LD22. I found that by removing the head strap from the storm, I can use some big zip ties and strap it to the faceplate on my stem. The headlamp mount rests perfectly over the hex bolts size-wise and helps keep it in place while pointing forward and down the trail. I'm running the Fenix on my helmet with the cheap rubber mount from TwoFish. This give me 2 waterproof lights with 150+ lumens and long run times or I can use the Fenix to boost to almost 300 lumens if needed. In reality, both lamps have 4 brightness settings if you want to adjust to save power and the storm has red light (to preserve night vision if that's useful) too. Plus, both are waterproof and take easy to find AAA/AAs. I've been taking this down some pretty tech trails at speed and nothing seems to come loose. Plus, having the Fenix on a quick detachable mount makes for a convient light when setting up camp at night.

Shoes: I'll be running the PI X-Alp Elites. They are the most comfortable shoes I've found to hike in and stiff enough for this type of riding (I'm also only 140lbs so might be too flexy for someone heavier). I went up about 1/2-1 size so I can wear thicker socks and have room for my feet to swell a bit. I think they hike almost as well as normal hikers but you still have the benefit of clipping in.

Cheers
anthony

ps sorry about the gigantic photos, not quite sure how to make them smaller....

[Couloirman]

Thanks for the replies. The advice on lights sounds good. I picked up a pair of the Pearl Izumi X alp Elites and, honestly, am not too impressed with their grip on platform pedals. The shoe is real stiff, and the sole quite rockered so it only contacts my platforms in maybe two places and gets virtually no grip. Very comfy, but I feel like Im going to slip off the pedals at any second. I might just try to give the CT a go in five ten impacts, or maybe just some new balance hiking shoes if I cant find anything more bike specific. Anyone running the X Alp elites on platform pedals with success?

[bartspedden]

I've been riding the XAlps for about 5 years with CB Candy's and love them, but would never consider using them with flats.  Like you discovered, they aren't designed for that.  For flats I used 5-10.  For lights I use 2 princeton tec Eos's.

[Blammo]

I prefer my cleat to be positioned well behind the ball of the foot --as close to one would ride if one was not using cleats at all.  How much fore/aft adjustment do the X-Alp Elite or X-Alp Enduro IIIs have?  Also, how does the width compare to the SIDIs?  In the SIDIs I wear a Mega size which is wider than the standard Dominators or Dragons.

[pro_out]

 I wear SIDI megas and the X-Alps Enduros fit me fine.

[bartspedden]

X-alps are Shimano Pedal Dynamics (SPD) compatible and I believe the specification require 20mm of fore/aft positioning. As for width I couldn't find any specifics on the pearl izumi web site, but from personal experience, my feet are not wide and the shoes fit well.  So, I'm guessing they wouldn't fit extra wide feet well, but I would just try them on.  I've never worn SIDIs, so I can't really compare.