cycle touring

feck sake lads

lennymc wrote: »

but i dont want to go to athlone!! only messsing. anywhere will be good.

so, as a tourer newbie, I'm going to have to pick some brains and get as many tips as possible.

good stuff lenny glad you were serious about doing a bit of touring should be a good craic btw i don't mind you planning a route;)

blorg

feck sake lads wrote: »

just had a quick look fantastic stuff thanks,
i was seriously thinking of buying one of those bike last year you seem to travel fairly light but i suppose you have it down to a fine art by now.

I try to keep it fairly light, I have a lighter tent now and my baggage weighed 10-11kg leaving Istanbul. That includes a laptop and lots of electronics (iPod, phone, eBook reader, camera, solar charger, auxiliary batteries, and so on.) I also had two spare tyres, a spare chain and 1kg of miscellaneous parts and bike tools!

feck sake lads

blorg didn't get a chance to read your blog as yet.but tell me do you do all your tour's solo.reason i'm asking do you thing it would be an idea to try and get a cycle camping club of some kind going here on boards.
i did try to get something going with the club i'm with in England( fellclub) but no joy.
anyway maybe it would make more sense to get something going here .

thebouldwhacker

Well that went well. This is the final route I took. Total up: 6484 meters.




Managed to get all the Munster counties, broke 100km each day but did change the route as I wnt. As day 2 came in at 216 km (and included the highest, longest climb (but not the hardest)) I cut some West Cork hills from day 3 and I finished on an imperial century today so I'm very happy.
No accidents but did manage to bend a tooth in the middle ring today so the last 80km were done riding only the small and big rings which was a pain in the ass. However I finished quite strong and finished todays section 1 hour less riding time and 1 hour less rest time than planned. A good start to 2011.
The bike was a true joy to ride, she held the load without effort and though she's not fast (61kmph max over the 5 days) she flew up hills and was comfortable to ride in all terrains, bone shaking mountain descents included. I would have no problem recommending it as a tourer! As comfey as she is I am looking forward to getting back on the road bike for a wee bit of speed though!
Perfect weather for the bike too and am looking forward to getting her out again soon.

feck sake lads

well done sounds like you had a great time.don't suppose you have any pic's of your bike and set up.i'm a nosy bugger:D:D

thebouldwhacker

No bother, I'll try a pic and post the set up tomorrow but now I sleepzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Planet X

Lads (hard core tourers), reckon two Ortlieb 40L rear panniers are sufficient for a week or twos tour? I reckon it would but haven't taken the plunge yet. Tent on rack, but I'm swinging towards a tarp or bivy bag to cut down. Maybe not cooking but eating cold food as a lot of guys on CTC seem to get away with. Obviously the odd restaurant meal.

Have a Primus Multi fuel, tarp etc and have done alot of camping over the years anyway so wouldn't be alien to the outdoors. Have lakeside camped (non campsite) in France for two weeks at a time Carp angling.

So, two rear panniers I reckon would be fine?

TinyExplosions

Planet X wrote: »

Lads (hard core tourers), reckon two Ortlieb 40L rear panniers are sufficient for a week or twos tour? I reckon it would but haven't taken the plunge yet. Tent on rack, but I'm swinging towards a tarp or bivy bag to cut down. Maybe not cooking but eating cold food as a lot of guys on CTC seem to get away with. Obviously the odd restaurant meal.

Have a Primus Multi fuel, tarp etc and have done alot of camping over the years anyway so wouldn't be alien to the outdoors. Have lakeside camped (non campsite) in France for two weeks at a time Carp angling.

So, two rear panniers I reckon would be fine?

I reckon it would be -afaik Blorg doesn't even have 40L and he's made it to Nepal

Maybe a handlebar bag as well would be handy, and fairly cheap

feck sake lads

if your going light then you wont have any problems.
i take two rear ortlieb bikepacker plus and barbag .
i don't scrimp on comfort to be honest.
i bought two ortlieb front panniers to try and balance the bike,
haven't tried them as yet this year hopefully;)
btw save yourself some bucks and do your own cooking.

thebouldwhacker

For me the two things are warmth and safety, will I be warm and do I have the kit to fix what breaks. Get them in the bag first.
I prefer to bring cooking equipment as the ritual of cooking (even brewing your own coffee in the mornings) as well as the warm food does make a difference.
For me touring is all about the journey, you should be putting up your tent comfortable and happy with what you have done that day and taking it down in the morning looking forward to the day ahead, in between do whatever floats your boat.
Imo 80 liters is more than enough, that said I would urge you strongly to head off for two nights on a short trip somewhere as a test. Bring EVERYTHING you think you could possibly need, when you reach the first hill after your legs get tired you will start thinking about the kit you don't need, by the top of the hill you will know what to leave behind for your big trip.
After the two nights you will have three days touring behind you and will have your required kit list. Touring is very personal, people bring or leave all kinds of things so really the only person who knows what you need is you. The most important thing is to forget about road biking, its as distant to touring as mtb is, your speed, ride style, normal averages... everything will be different.
In a nut shell go do a short tour and suss it out, its a great way to spend a weekend and you'll be much more confident heading on your big tour. Dont forget to check out www.crazyguyonabike.com
I hope this helps.

event

so gonna do this myself this year.

ive bought a 2nd hand bike, giant crs 3.0. did a massive order on wiggle and crc, have ordered a bar bag, two rear ortlieb panniers, a tent, small sleeping bag, all other equipment. now i dont even cycle at the minute, so ill be doing a small enough route, its around 340k arcoss denmark, will take 2 weeks though. ive a lot of time for sightseeing and ill be spending 3 days in aarhus, 3 days in copenhagen. hotels in those cities, camping everywhere else.

have most of it planned in my head, but not booked yet though. waiting for all my gear to come in and then ill book it. looking forward to it though.
there is a lot of cycling gear in aldi next thursday is anyone needs stuff, t shirts, fleeces and underwear

blorg

2 rear panniers is more than enough although a QR barbag is very handy - put all valuables in the bar bag and just snap of off whenever you want to go into a shop/cafe etc.

I don't find front are necessary for balance. I actually prefer the handling without them, the bike is more manoeuvreable- if you need to make a quick course correction around a pothole for example. Front make pushing a bike up a rough mountain track easier as there is no tendency for the front wheel to rise up, but not better riding IMO.

If you need the extra carrying capacity they are also a good idea but not if going light. Even just the rack and two empty bags is a substantial extra weight. I would only use them if I was trying to carry all the baggage for a slower companion- in that case they make more sense than overloading the back. Low-riders are the only design worth considering if you do.

Going on a weekend as suggested is a very good idea, you only get a feel for what you need by doing.

You can get very light tents these days; my own is <1kg and takes me and all my luggage comfortably. Not as comfortably as a 3kg tent but a lot more so than a bivvy.

Personally I never bring cooking equipment, a lot of extra unnecessary weight/bulk which will be added further to by the fuel, the food you bring to cook and in many situations the water to cook it in. With many camping stoves, it then takes *forever* to produce something not particularly palatable. After which you need to clean everything (this can be a problem wild camping unless you are carrying lots of excess water.) I'd prefer some good cheese, bread, honey, ham, salami.

@fsl- no, I don't do all my tours solo. The feeling of freedom is nice solo but it is also nice to share the trip with someone else and reassuring if something goes wrong and there are two of you.

At the end of the day touring is entirely personal and different people have different priorities.

TinyExplosions

blorg wrote: »

You can get very light tents these days; my own is <1kg and takes me and all my luggage comfortably. Not as comfortably as a 3kg tent but a lot more so than a bivvy.

What tent do you have?

Vélo

I've a question about camping. I'm cycling Wales in August and was wondering if I should pre-book campsites or just go with the flow. The fact that it's August they could be fully booked but then if something goes wrong some day I may not make the campsite.

Does anyone know if they get fully booked often?

blorg

TinyExplosions wrote: »

What tent do you have?

Coleman Rigel X2. For the weight and price I like it a lot.

@velo- I wouldn't bother prebooking. That locks you to a schedule and you can always camp wild if you can't get a site (or for that matter anyway.)

mo_bhicycle

Vélo wrote: »

I've a question about camping. I'm cycling Wales in August and was wondering if I should pre-book campsites or just go with the flow. The fact that it's August they could be fully booked but then if something goes wrong some day I may not make the campsite.

Does anyone know if they get fully booked often?

I cycled from Swansea to Holyhead last summer. Stayed in campsites most nights, never booked in advance and didn't have a problem.
I wouldn't like to book in advance because it really restricts you. You may feel great one day and want to cycle further, or you may want to stop a few places along the route and hence cycle less on a particular day.

feck sake lads

i do like to be comfy on a tour and although i'm a crap cook i'm also a tea/coffee addict:D so i really need the cooking gear.
as i said i'm not fond of solo touring if you get the right person to tour with theres nothing better.

Planet X

I'm a coffee fiend also, but camp coffee V decent coffee machine..........no comparison. Don't worry, spent years fishing / camping (December/January also) making my own coffee, get's you there but not too nice.



(Eh, Starbucks not even on the scale of decent coffee)

blorg

If you like it, I think Turkish/Arabic coffee is probably going to turn out best, and you can make it albeit not optimally without a dedicated pot. Disclaimer: I have never tried to do this on a camp stove.

I am deep in the land of milky tea and instant coffee now, I am starting to miss it...

Planet X

10 years in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, drank alot of Arabic / Turkish coffee. Like it. Brought home a couple of "Dallahs" which I still use occasionally, they're those coffee pots, Arabic, with the fancy spout. Cardamon pods in the Arabic coffee give it a nice twist. Drank alot of sweet mint tea aswell, lovely stuff. Trad. North African / Middle East drink.
It's then, when you go for the Instant Coffee jar..........that you start to cry.

thebouldwhacker

I don't get it, whats the problem with coffee made while camping? Has no one see one of these before?



Honestly, listen to ye with yer coffee making machines, next thing ye'll be talking about air beds in tents and the lack of rub down facilities in camp sites......:rolleyes:

Planet X

Bialetti, have one in the kitchen and use it frequenrly.

Know my coffee.

Can't be carryting excess?

Planet X

If you hanker for Arabic or Turkish coffee.....................

....................knock me up.

Hail 2 Da Thief

Planet X wrote: »

If you hanker for Arabic or Turkish coffee.....................

....................knock me up.

That's a bit much to ask for a cup of coffee! :pac:

dewindygap

I was afraid to ask this question for fear of hijacking the thread but as it appears to have been hijacked anyway I will proceed. Blorg, I too have used the same tent for the past 4 years. The first year I was alone and it sufficed but since my better half has joined me these past 3 summers I have found it to be inadequate despite being described as a 2 person tent. The amount of condensation in the morning has beeen unreal and storage space inside is quite restricted with 2 persons gear. It is hard to beat, weight-wise, at less than 1kg and easy to erect and despite many searches the next weights come in at 2.5 to 3kg. So my question is, can anybody recommend a 2-layer (?) tent that weighs less than 2 kg. I think that a 2-layer (not sure of the correct terminology) might produce less condensation. I do not exaggerate how wet the interior of this tent becomes come morning despite leaving the flaps open.

blobbie

For coffee

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AeroPress

TinyExplosions

dewindygap wrote: »

I was afraid to ask this question for fear of hijacking the thread but as it appears to have been hijacked anyway I will proceed. Blorg, I too have used the same tent for the past 4 years. The first year I was alone and it sufficed but since my better half has joined me these past 3 summers I have found it to be inadequate despite being described as a 2 person tent. The amount of condensation in the morning has beeen unreal and storage space inside is quite restricted with 2 persons gear. It is hard to beat, weight-wise, at less than 1kg and easy to erect and despite many searches the next weights come in at 2.5 to 3kg. So my question is, can anybody recommend a 2-layer (?) tent that weighs less than 2 kg. I think that a 2-layer (not sure of the correct terminology) might produce less condensation. I do not exaggerate how wet the interior of this tent becomes come morning despite leaving the flaps open.

The MSR Hubba Hubba seems to be the one that gets the thumbs up from what I've read (and I've read a lot about it!) and is just under the 2kg mark, and about 250 quid or so

Vélo

I got one of these. I managed to get it on discount but was still expensive. I like the idea of being able to bring your gear and front wheel in at night.

blorg

The Rigel X2 is unquestionably a good option only if you are 1 person. 2 can fit in an emergency but without luggage, sleeping mats and feet overlap and it is far from comfortable.

For 2, we use a Vaude Hogan Ultralite. Dual skin, very quick to erect, free standing and more weather proof. I don't know how much it weighs, I read they lie about it. But apart from that it is a very good tent in use. Much more room and comfort (although getting 6 panniers in with 2 people isn't really possible.)

feck sake lads

hilleberg nallo 2 probable the best tent in the world;)