Touring - Trucker is loaded for my first mini tour

I'm heading out in the morning from Suffolk Va. heading to Rodathe Nc. on the outer banks, the returning thru Manteo and back to Suffolk, about 250 miles in 4 days, we will be camping along the way, i wish it wasn't a holiday weekend but it's the only time i get enough time off.

This will be my first self supported ride, and the first loaded ride on the new disk trucker.

Have a great time. It looks like nice weather for a tour.

I like your mirror setup. It looks like you're using one of those bar extenders (is that what they're called?) but is it attached to the steer tube? And are the ends threaded for the mirror bolt? A close-up picture would be nice if you have the time. Have a great tour!

I'll try to get a closeup pic, the mirror is a mirrycle mirror it has an expanding plug that holds it in the bar end, for the accessory bar i just used a piece of 1" alluminium tubing.
The ride went great, but i would not recomend the inland route out of nags head hatteras area, after leaving Manteo on nc 64 there is nothing for over 30 miles, no food no water no camping, and the road is like ridding on a 2 lane autobahn with no shoulders, we nicknamed it the death road.
We did 65 miles day 1 and 2 and 91 miles on the 3rd day and got home a day early,

The trucker did really well, i rode with travel contacs 26 x 1.75 no flats no problems, total weight about 60-65 lbs ( 3 bags 9 lbs per bag and a handlebar bag 6 lbs )
total trip average speed was 12.1 mph, i'll posta few pics when i get home.

Bike is a beautiful color.

How exactly did you hook that mirror up? Could you explain a little more about how and what it is attached to?

Here is a couple of better pics of the double stem and accessory bar

That second stem for the mirror, gadgets and handlebar bag mount is a great idea. I feel crowded with a lot of stuff on my bars, but that setup would solve that problem. Thanks for the pics.

Post a ride report and photos when you're done. I imagine the traffic was heavy on certain roads over Memorial Day weekend.

WOW!!!!

RickD that's an amazing trip. Please do a more detailed write-up. As a newb (and a clydesdale looking to one day move up to a Surly LHT Disc) i sure would love to learn more about how well the riding went.

I LOVE YER BIKE!!!!!!

WOW!!!!

looking to one day move up to a Surly LHT Disc

I LOVE YER BIKE!!!!!!

Me too! Nice.

Is that a brooks flyer saddle? If so how did you like it?

Here is a few pics, it wont let me do more than 5 for some reason

Turns out a lot of my pics are to big i'll try to shrink them down, these are mostly phone pics......
MM718 that is a Brooks flyer i worked out reallly well pretty comfy

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here are a few more

I would have advised you against taking US 64 if I had know you were planning that route. It's the main artery to the Outer Banks and gets a lot of traffic, with long stretches between towns because it's mostly swamps. A better option would be to take US 264 to the south (which is much longer) or go north of the Albemarle Sound through Elizabeth City. There are a lot of nice, lightly traveled back roads between Elizabeth City and Edenton.

Absolutely awesome pics and updates. I really like the bike set up. The double stem is an excellent idea! Thank for posting the before and after shots.

MM718 that is a Brooks flyer i worked out reallly well pretty comfy

Does it dampen road vibration or just the big bumps? Is it worth the 10 oz weight penalty? I am trying to decide between a b-17 and a flyer. Thanks.

The flyer dampens the road vibration really well, but the springs are really stiff, you are not bouncing up and down when you are riding, its hard to tell the springs are there until you need them.
as for weight i figured with a 28-29 lb bike 32+ lbs of gear and my big butt,,, 10oz didn't make a lot of difference.

One thing i tried that worked out really well , i purchased 2 Hydro Flask water bottles, these are stainless steel vacuum bottles, they actually held ice for over 24 hrs
with ambient temps over 90 degf , having that cold water to drink all day was nice.

Thanks for the review, Rick. I am going to give the flyer a try and you've piqued my interest in the Hydro Flasks too. Looks they got a 5 star review over 84 reviews at Amazon...

AWESOME writeup and pics RickD - thanks!!! Looks like a great trip and the LHT served you well. Its good to see pics of a fully loaded, on-tour bike and reading about it's performance.

This will be my first self supported ride, and the first loaded ride on the new disk trucker.

A question for you, what is your LHT weighing in at, naked and/or with racks?

I see all the roads are very smooth even with light traffic. It make a tour very pleasant and suitable for this type of bike.

Hey Rick, is that a Tubus Logo on the rear? Any issues mounting it with the disc brake? I just ordered a disc trucker and am trying to pick a rear rack...

Hey Rick, is that a Tubus Logo on the rear? Any issues mounting it with the disc brake? I just ordered a disc trucker and am trying to pick a rear rack...

No problem at all, almost like they were built just for this bike.

A question for you, what is your LHT weighing in at, naked and/or with racks?

I have not weighted it yet, but I'm guessing fully rigged but no panniers or gear, about 33-35 lbs