Touring - Bicycle weight - important for touring?

Hiya - I'm a commuter who will not go to a road bike. They're just not comfortable to me. I've been riding my Giant Rainier with 1.5" tires and I've been really comfortable with it. My question is, what is a good weight for a MTB? I'm going on a 750 mile tour later this year and would really like to have something that doesn't weight a ton, but is not as delicate as a road or even a cyclocross bike. The Giant does not have fork lockouts, something I'd like to have for the trip. The Mongoose Tyax Super has lockouts, but it weighs in at 28 lbs. I have not weighed the Rainier. Any advice? Does weight really matter on trips like this? Thanks in advance.

Hiya - I'm a commuter who will not go to a road bike. They're just not comfortable to me. I've been riding my Giant Rainier with 1.5" tires and I've been really comfortable with it. My question is, what is a good weight for a MTB? I'm going on a 750 mile tour later this year and would really like to have something that doesn't weight a ton, but is not as delicate as a road or even a cyclocross bike. The Giant does not have fork lockouts, something I'd like to have for the trip. The Mongoose Tyax Super has lockouts, but it weighs in at 28 lbs. I have not weighed the Rainier. Any advice? Does weight really matter on trips like this? Thanks in advance.

For a long trip like this why not change out the fork for a rigid one. Assuming your bike has an threadless headset, all you need is a crown race to match the one on your current fork and a 5 mm allen wrench. It's an easy change to make and should take less than an hour. You'll have to swap your brakes onto the new fork or get a set of brakes to match your current set for the new fork. That way you don't have to lug along a suspension fork you won't need. And you can use lowrider racks more easily with a rigid fork.

28 lbs is heavy but remember that you are loading the bike with stuff so it's not that much of the overall weight. Just train well before you go with additional weight on the bike. I use beans and rice for weight.

Good luck.

Thanks Stuart. I have seen rigid forks for around $100, but like the idea of switching back and forth between rigid/suspension as needed. The lockout forks cost as much as the Mongoose I mentioned, which is why I was thinking why not get an entire bike for that price? What are your thoughts on drop bars vs. straight bars (with ends) vs. sweep bars? Is one favored over the other for long (100 mi.) days at a time?

28lbs doesnt seem that bad. my purpose built touring road bike is a bit over 20lbs. the lighter it is the easier obviously but not a huge deal.
as far as handle bars go the more positions the better, but plenty of people tour on mountain bikes with and even without the extenders. it's a personal thing and comes down to whatever is most comforatable to you.
my suggestion would be if your planning to do 100 mile days on your tour is to try a 100 mile on your bike as it is now and see how you feel.

if you havent toured before you may not want to count on doing 100 mile days. there are certainly people who do those kinds of miles on tours, but that can be a long day on a loaded bike, and if your not used to it it can make your tour more about getting to the next destination rather than about enjoying the ride. just some food for thought :)

Both bikes have shortish (16.5) chainstays and that can be a problem if you're planning to carry your own stuff and camping gear in panniers

Thanks all. It is a charity ride, and I've been training for six months already. I've been advised that if you can ride the distance you'd like to ride in a day, in a week, then you're almost there. Commuting to work makes it routine for me, and I will have a shadow vehicle, so I won't be carrying much with me except the bare essentials, hopefully no panniers. This is why I was trying to moderate weight of the bike itself. I appreciate your input. :)

Your current bike is apparently lighter than the 28-lb Mongoose. IMO, you're light enough already. For just 750 miles, why not just ride your bike as-is, and find out what you like/dislike touring with it. You'll avoid buying stuff on spec that may prove to have been unnecessary. 750 miles will be over before you know it, so even if you discover disadvantages, they won't last long, after which you can modify as needed.

Touring bikes are not noted for being light-weight and comfort is much more important. Loaded touring is very different from riding an unloaded bike and I would suggest that 100 mile per day is pushing it a bit. More realistic would be 50 miles, certainly to begin with. The terrain and wind conditions can have a huge effect on your progress and if you push for some pre-determined mileage it can destroy your enjoyment.
Re bars, if you can use drops these will probably give you a position that is comfortable. My own preference is on the hoods but I have recently gone to straight bars on another of my bikes and on that I use bar-ends set almost horizontal with grips and bars padded with foam and taped. I made my bar-ends so that I could have the ends curving upwards so as to duplicate the "on the hoods position" and this is now very comfortable. Best of luck with your tour!

Thanks for the advice. I have driven this particular route over 20 times at all times of the year, so I know what I'm in for. I was hoping someone would tell me that comfort trumps weight. Humbly, the 30 mile commute each day is a lot more fun than work, and on weekends I do 50+/day. The trip from 6,200 ft. to Dallas level (might be sea level?) contains nothing but flatness and a hill here and there. Comfort it is. Now I can go buy that bike I've had my eye on :D

FWIW, my touring bike weighs about 35 pounds. I have done 200km in less than eight hours (total time, unloaded) on that bike. Comfort on, and with, the bike is much more important than shaving of a pound or two.

Thanks Stuart. I have seen rigid forks for around $100, but like the idea of switching back and forth between rigid/suspension as needed. The lockout forks cost as much as the Mongoose I mentioned, which is why I was thinking why not get an entire bike for that price? What are your thoughts on drop bars vs. straight bars (with ends) vs. sweep bars? Is one favored over the other for long (100 mi.) days at a time?

Check around a some local shops and you may be able to find a rigid fork for a lot less. I've pick up a couple of old GT forks for $15 each.

I have toured with straight bars and with road bars. I prefer road bars but I can do mountain bike tours as long as I've got good barends. I did a 400 mile mountain bike tour here in Colorado and had numb hands for about 3 months afterward. I did a 1000 mile road bike tour in the Midwest in 2003 and had numb parts of my hands for about 6 weeks. Drop bars allow for more hand positions but I wouldn't change out a mountain bike bar for drops. It's just too expensive.

If your seat is not already as forward as possible, you may want to try aerobars. It will probably involve you moving your seat forward, which will change which leg muscles you use. I have seen aerobars on flat bar bikes. 100 miles in a day is not hard. 100 miles day after day is not easy. 70-80 miles with a 100 miler every few days is just about right. There are very vew organized trips with mileage at the 100 miles per day especially on a mountain bike. Another reason many people use road bikes besides the lighter weight, is that you can shift around in your seat, and change the weight load to your arms and relieve your tired rear-end. Many mountain bikes and hybrid bikes have wider seats which feel just great up to about 50 miles, then you wish you had a thin seat. Besides commuting, you should be riding 100 mile back to back rides on the weekend.

meanderthal's right, since you don't have to carry too much stuff, it doesn't really matter how the bike is. You can use this ride like a guide as to how your future touring bike should be like.

I have no problem with straight bar, but I put dropbar on my new lht, just want to see if I'll like it and if it's as good as people told me.

100 miles in a day is not hard. 100 miles day after day is not easy. 70-80 miles with a 100 miler every few days is just about right.



Everyone is different. Some people start riding at first light and continue until sunset or later. Others like to sleep in, eat big meals, ride for a few hours, stop to smell the roses, etc.

I have been touring since the 1980s, and I don't think I have ever travelled anywhere near 100 miles in a day. My greatest daily distance was 50 or 60 miles. Maybe 70.

Everyone is different. Some people start riding at first light and continue until sunset or later. Others like to sleep in, eat big meals, ride for a few hours, stop to smell the roses, etc.

This is exactly what I will be doing (the former). Since I've driven this route a couple dozen times, I know every small town and every pitstop/pitfall twixt here and there. There won't be much time for stopping and checking stuff out - all business, which translates into hours of bike riding fun! I may try 100 miles a day, but am realiastically planning 75-90 a day with a couple centuries in there on the really flat days.