Club Tour 4, Euro touring setup

[Far-Oeuf]

Finally been out testing my fast-touring/light-camping setup, for autumn type weather in Europe.   Heading towards the Alps (round the German/Luxembourg/Austria side) towards Slovenia, leaving this week.   Hoping that the relatively mild weather continues, up in the mountains.

[Danneaux]

Oh Anto...take a look at this one! 

Very very nice, Doug.

Best,

Dan.

[jags]

class for sure but how you guys do it is a mystery to me
anto.

[Slammin Sammy]

Ummm...

Doug, where do you... put stuff?

I mean, I've heard of travelling light, but surely that's not all you're taking?

 

[Far-Oeuf]

yes indeed, this is it.

I've spent a while working on the 'sleeping system', about 2 years trying out various ways of staying dry, lightweight and comfortable (within reason).   I'm now carrying a tent outer (Hilleberg Akto, urgghh, but another story), a 100% waterproof bivvy bag (Snugpak SF, about the size of a bag of sugar), and a sleeping bag (cheap Decathlon 7-degrees plus).   Tent under the bars, bivvy bag in the bar-bag, sleeping bag in the tail pack.   Mostly I'll bivvy, but on the wet nights (or if I end up in a campsite) I'll use the tent with the bivvy bag inside.   Essentially the bivvy bag replaces the tent inner, and is more versatile as well as being smaller/lighter.  I also carry a half-size 'sock like' mozzie net which slips over the top half of the sleeping bag.   I try to do three nights wild-camping and one night in a hotel/hostel.

Under the saddle is a tool pack, plus a rear light attached.   NBT2, chain links, chain tool, spoke wrench, punture repair kit, inner tube, multi-tool.

In the rear pack, along with the sleeping bag, are non-cycling shorts, thermal top, 2 x socks.

In the bar-bag, along with the bivvy-bag, are passport and credit cards, 'purse' for cash, 5" smartphone for GPS logging and digital needs, mini-tripod, head torch which doubles as bike front light, pen and notebook, knife, mozzie-net, and toothbrush/paste.   A bunch of paper maps in the map-case.   Also some space in the bar-bag for daily food (additional food storage in rear pocket of cycling jersey).

@jags, well..  Last trip to Norway, through the night, I had to get up every couple of hours and walk about to get feeling back in my feet.   It was quite a bit below zero, and I was in the bivvy bag with a zero-plus sleeping bag.   I wasn't sleeping because of the pain shooting through the feet, so no need for an alarm clock    An extreme example possibly, but 'going light' is probably just an exercise in pushing the boundaries of what you are able to tolerate.  

The big draw, for me, is climbing mountains at 'normal' pace, descending fast without under/over steering because of luggage, sitting drinking a coffee and looking at how little I need to survive/thrive on the mountain roads after riding thousands of kms to get there.   But above all, maybe, the sheer distance a bicycle will allow you to cover, 100km per day, 200km, 300km?   It's a bit like being able to do an Audax ride, taking in the Stelvio pass.   And then the following day another one taking in the St Bernard.  On a bike that feels responsive, that you can sprint with, that's basically the bike you wheel out your front door for a day-ride.

It's also quite possible that I am simply not good at remembering stuff, and taking so few things means I am less likely to leave stuff behind

EDIT: ooh, and a lock wrapped around the bar-bag mount.

cheers,
Doug

[Bill C]

really nice bike, but no stove or mug ? one question TEA? what do you do?
I can't even comprehend no cooking kit and no hot drinks 
vargo triad weighs an ounce and Ti mug not much more
how do you cope with so little water and no steralisation methods to pick up more ?
My hat's off i doubt i could do/last an overnighter on that kit

 

[jags]

if you added a third bottle under the down tube you could carry a cooking system of sorts well nough to make coffee or tea soup.
DOUG your mental but in a super hero way,
there plenty of big mile eaters here on the forum but i don't think there's one that does the ultralight thing.Fair play man i guess im way past even trying something like that.
when i do eventually get my tent sorted my set up will be good i'll have all i need to keep me warm and dry and fed
wow seriously dont know how you do it Respect Doug but yeah i reckon your a crazy man for sure.


Anto.

[Far-Oeuf]

cookers are a bug-bear of mine.   you take a cooker and you also need to take some water (if wild-camping), you also need to take a cup, or a pan.  and you're then into, "oh, I could cook a meal."   so you have to carry food, and then spices and oils to make it taste remotely edible.   and then you have to wash all that stuff up, and you need soap.

I look in on the world of the camp-cooking-folk, and I just see a world of pain  ;-)

[Donerol]

No sleeping mat   ... no change of clothes    . !

What do you do if you arrive soaked? Do you still have any friends after a week?? 

 I'm impressed, but it's too spartan for me.

[triaesthete]

 Truly, bivvying within tent. Fantastic left field thinking and experiment. I love it when people challenge the tyranny of commercial solutions. Chapeau!

For my 2p worth I reckon you could get all of that stuff in a Carradice camper longflap, leave the steering  completely unencumbered, slightly reduce total bag weight, make packing easier and have a little bit of room for food.

Igor here http://ultralightcycling.blogspot.co.uk/ is the master of minimalism.

Keep up the original work
Ian

[Far-Oeuf]

I have an array of Carradice bags, all tried and tested.   I used the Nelson long flap (not on this bike), but found that at high speed (down Glenshee) the wind caused the bag to, sort of, wobble, which in turn caused the bike to start weaving.   Quite scary at the time.   Because the bag is only really secured in the centre, it leaves a lot of weight out at the sides that catches the wind.

I'd have used the Junior, but the Team Pro saddle has no bag loops.  I'm aware you can buy after-market bag loops, and I might well try those out.   But the roll-bag is by far the most secure (and waterproof) bag I've tried so far.  By some margin.

I've also become utterly convinced that balancing the weight fore and aft is the way to go.   I started playing around with the under-bar space years ago, and have even gone light-touring trips without anything on the rear and just the tent and bar-bag up front.  I've no science or engineering evidence to give, but in terms of how the bike feels it's much better lightly loaded at the front (rather than lightly/fully loaded at the back).

Yes, I'm actually really pleased to have worked out that the Akto tent becomes pretty good once you remove the inner.   Less than half the weight, and pack size.   A decent privacy shelter (in campsites, for example), a decent rain cover, you can reach the vents (!), and I now have double the space inside.  Quite a few people use a tarp with a bivvy bag, but they are less good than a tent outer.  Particularly so if you're away for weeks at a time, a tarp really is an emergency type shelter (my opinion) that works in only a few weather conditions.

@Donerol, yes change of clothes is spare shorts and another top.   so I do actually wash my cycling gear

@Bill C, bear in mind this is for Europe travel, so water sterilisation isn't an issue.   In Hungary this summer I was going through a lot of water, in near forty degrees.  So if I was going somewhere hot I'd add a third bottle (under the downtube).   But there's normally civilisation of some sort with 50km, or 100km at worst.  I fill up with water at pretty much every opportunity.

I've found that skipping the odd meal isn't really a problem, so long as overall my diet is good.   Probably the least hospitable place to cycle, when you need constantly pick up food/water, is the Scottish Highlands on a Sunday!

[triaesthete]

  Garnish with luggage and season to taste 

I find even the lightest loaded barbag spoils the steering for me on any of my Thorns. Far more so than direct mounted front panniers 

Have you tried putting extra buckle holes in the Carradice mount straps so you can cinch the dowel right up close and tight to the saddle? Greatly reduces bag swing, as does using a large reusable tie wrap around the seat post in addition to or in place of the lower strap.

No loops on a Brooks! Sacrelige

Enjoy the ride, I even think the blue/red paint is ok. But it's only matt black for me.
Ian

[Slammin Sammy]

...so you have to carry food...
<snip>
I look in on the world of the camp-cooking-folk, and I just see a world of pain  ;-)

Well Doug, I really admire your resourcefulness, but most of us need food to survive.  

Maybe I'm too old and set in my ways, but I want enough comfort on tour to want to stay touring and enjoy myself. Yours is a particularly European-enabled way of touring, I grant you that!

Have a safe and enjoyable journey, and if you don't freeze to death, perhaps you can post some photos?  

[Far-Oeuf]

I'm not really looking to use Carradice stuff, the roll-bag is way better (for this purpose).  though perhaps the roll-bag inside the Carradice bag...

just to be clear, I'm not on a sight-seeing tour, I'm testing out what it's like to rack up some big miles on consecutive days.   the intention is to work up to a couple of 300km days, back to back, trying to understand if ultra-distance racing is something I really want to get into.   comfort isn't a high priority, though I suspect a few beers when I get to Slovenia might be :-)

I discovered a brilliant book yesterday-ish called Mountain Higher.   It's a book of climbs in Europe, with a little human history, cycling history, and all the technical stats on the climb.  Inspired by early cycling pioneers, and the high passes that have featured in various bike races (TdF, Giro, etc), it's a great source for route planning; if mountains are your thing.   Worth a look, if you're planning a trip next summer and want something a little off the beaten track (compared with the likes of the Stelvio).

cheers,
Doug

[Slammin Sammy]

just to be clear, I'm not on a sight-seeing tour, I'm testing out what it's like to rack up some big miles on consecutive days.   the intention is to work up to a couple of 300km days, back to back,

Wow! Respect!!