Mountain Biking - Feeding and carrying when riding.

Might be an OT so sorry if it is. I took the plunge and opted for the Cannondale Gemini 1000. I should have noticed that the frame can't accomodate bottles so it looks like something on the lines of a CamelBak is called for. There is room for a small under seat bag but how do you guys shunt your, food, water, spares, waterproofs, tools, etc around when riding? If I sling everything around my upper body, then isn't the centre of gravity really messed up? I know this problem has been worked out by others but I'd appreciate some advice. Thanks.

Originally posted by Bokkie
Might be an OT so sorry if it is. I took the plunge and opted for the Cannondale Gemini 1000. I should have noticed that the frame can't accomodate bottles so it looks like something on the lines of a CamelBak is called for. There is room for a small under seat bag but how do you guys shunt your, food, water, spares, waterproofs, tools, etc around when riding? If I sling everything around my upper body, then isn't the centre of gravity really messed up? I know this problem has been worked out by others but I'd appreciate some advice. Thanks.

Everyday I see a whole bunch of commuters on the local bike path headed off to work.

Every single one of them has a backpack on.

I often wear a backpack with absolutely no problems.

Also, JanDD makes a quite large underseat bag which will hold a lot of stuff - I do not know if it will fit.

ALso, there are seatpost rear racks which attach to the seat post.

What does Cannondale say?

Under seat seems to be OK and there is a good range of bags to look at. My main concern was how comfortable a back pack is. I use one when walking, but that's a different thing compared to being hunched over the bars. Then again, the weight of my gut (not so big) will compensate, eh?

On full-sus MTBs, Carradice saddle bags work very well.
They keep the weight closer to the centre than seatpost racks, but take a lot more weight and volume than under-seat packs.

A Camelback (I recommend the MULE model) works great and won't throw off your balance. Room for 100 oz. of water for the epic rides, organization for your tools, etc. A waist strap and sternum strap keeps everything in place. External bungee lets you strap extra clothing to it when you need to peel layers. Plus, you don't hear tools rattling around like a seat pack. Another good thing is, I just fill it with water and go, no matter which bike I'm taking, I've got all of my tools.

A Camelback (I recommend the MULE model) works great

Is that a specific US model? I can't find it listed in the UK.

I would think it's available where ever Camelbacks are sold. Here's the model (http://www.camelback.com/rec/cb_prod.cfm?catid=6&product_id=145) on their website. You might try contacting them for a dealer in the UK who carries them.

Thanks, pal. I've contacted the french distributor to see who sells it in the UK. It looks like a cool piece of kit.