lil brown bat

Hey all,

I'm a bicycle commuter, also do some road stuff on the weekends -- I have a Trek 7.5 FX commuter and a Trek 5000 carbon fiber that I just acquired and am still in the process of dialing in. By way of background, I've also done a fair amount of backpacking and have plenty of "find a patch of ground and sleep on it" experience.

I'm thinking it would be fun to do a little touring, and I'd like some opinions about doing it in a fairly minimalist way...which means (wait for it) without a rack. If the answer is, "Can't be done, for all practical purposes," then I accept that. I'm just curious if anyone has tried the ultralight approach sans rack and made it work.

i86o

why sans rack? do you really want to be sore from having weight on your back?

how much does a rack weight? how much does a messenger bag or backpack weight in comparison?

you do the math

Bacciagalupe

I wouldn't use a rack on a full carbon bike. However, you could use the commuter bike for touring -- there's a fair amount of overlap between the optimal setups for touring & commuting bikes.

If you are credit card touring (i.e. staying at hotels rather than camping) and traveling light, you'd be fine with a big Carradice bag and whatever handlebar bag will fit.

However, if you're camping you really will need a rack or some way to carry a fair amount of weight and bulk.

lil brown bat

Thanks for the info. I'm looking to see if anyone does a bike touring equivalent of ultralight hiking. Sounds like most people figure they can just load it on the bike, so why not take everything but the kitchen sink. Not sure that's what I want to do, which is why I asked.

valygrl

There were some discussions of ultralight touring last month or earlier, I think, and someone's packing list. My friend and I did a 4 day credit card tour last summer, I used a Tubus Fly rack on my road bike, and she used a Detours Tailrieder EXP UL and a camelback. She hated the camelback by day 2, even though it only had clothes in it. I was very happy with my setup. The rack weighs about 1/2 pound, and my Lone Peak P99 panniers (normally front) are super light.

Neil_B

I've done an overnight 'credit card' tour with a lightweight backpack riding my Trek 7.5 fx. I could have stretched it to two or three nights by choosing clothes carefully. As long as you don't have to lug a tent around, then I think it's feasible.

BTW, welcome to the Touring Forum, llb.

mtnroads

Take a look at this thread:

https://www.bikeforums.net/touring/432290-multi-day-trip-w-o-much-extra-gear.html

Robert_in_ca

I picked up some 6'' by 15'' compression bags for 16 dollars each at Sport Chalet. They have 4 buckles and also two D Rings attached. I was able to mount one under the handlebar and one mounted behind/under the saddle. They look like they are going to work very well.

There are a few specialty companies that make custom frame bags and handlebar/saddle bags. Check out carousel design works.

Im going to make my own frame bags, but the compression bags you can find at rei or sport chalet will work fine for under the bars and saddle.

I think it makes perfect sense to tour with these types of bags for carrying stuff. Its definitely more aerodynamic than having bags sticking off to the side. It works out very well for technical MTB touring too, the bike is more stable when you have the weight evenly distributed front to rear and centered.

gregw

It seems to me that the goal of ultralite backpacking is to have as little weight on your back as possible, it makes the hiking much more enjoyable.

On a bike tour you have no weight on your back, it's on the bike, breeze in your face, very enjoyable. Load 15lbs or load 25lbs just doesn't make that much difference cycling, but much nicer at camp. So even ultralite hikers turned cyclist will take that thicker sleeping pad, the freestanding tent instead of a tarp, I-pod, book, journal, full sized camera instead of mini, etc., etc., etc.

And if your not in any hurry, take it all! Just gear down, smell the roses, take a camp chair and cooler of beer. Try that on the AT.

chipcom 

You could always get one of the larger Carradice saddle bags, which would allow you to pack a decent kit, but would still be best with a bag support of some type (the bagman for example). For light touring I've used both a big saddle bag and a rack with trunk bag/panniers...and I've also used both. Given my druthers these days, I like the rack. Just because I have a rack doesn't mean I need to load down the bike with everything but the kitchen sink. I could just use the trunk bag, or just my small panniers, or just my large panniers, or trunk bag and small panniers, or trunk bag and large pannier, or saddle bag by itself, or saddle bag and panniers, or slap on the front rack and use them all. YOU are the one doing the packing...if you can't resist the little voices coming from your bags saying "load me", I don't know what I can tell you.

I don't know what kind of a load you want to take, so I really can't tell you what would work best for you to haul it...I just wanted to say that having a rack doesn't commit you to loading the kitchen sink, it just gives you options, what you do with those options is up to you.

Bacciagalupe

https://www.adventurecycling.org/features/ultralight.cfm

lil brown bat

Wow...that's a ton of great material! Thanks, all -- I'm going to peruse all the assembled words o' wisdom at leisure, put together a trial outing, and let y'all know how it went. Thanks for getting me started!

Neil_B

Please keep contributing. And, if you like, provide details of your planned tour. Folks here love to discuss the planning.

mandovoodoo

My daughter and I overnight backpack in the summer carrying 32 lbs total in packs including 1 day of water. That's 16 lbs a person. Looks like we're day hiking. I could easily get this load in a big saddle bag. Period.

Light bag with no insulation on bottom, just pad sleeve. Bivy sack. Jet boil. Freeze dried. Zip off pants legs. Light jacket. Light fleece. Light insulating hat.

Very free to go with little.

I don't have room for a rear rack on my current commuter - will get a Nelson longflap eventually for tours. Fitted a small front rack with P clips. I am perfectly confident that with a saddle bag, small panniers, and a handlebar bag that I could tour indefinitely. I used to tour with 25 lbs of gear in a steady state manner - and that was with old heavy gear!

I look at most folks camping on bikes and see too much stuff to keep up with. Real freedom is having almost nothing. Nothing to keep up with, few decisions to make, just the wind and the road, a nice cup of tea at an overlook, a quick dinner before the twilight, and then a dash into the woods for a nice rest under the stars. Repeat.

Erick L

Some good tips on ultralight touring: https://www2.arnes.si/~ikovse/weight.htm

I've done light hiking and biking and can't agree. I have more freedom with a heavy bike. It all depends what you want to do. Shaving weight is always about a better ride but for me, bike touring isn't about riding, it's about traveling on a bike. I don't want to be tied to the road. On one trip, I stayed 5 days in a park with no resupply possibilities, in the fall (cold, wet, short daylight hours). I like to do some serious dayhiking too so I carry hiking shoes (riding with hiking shoes instead of SPD has been a debate with myself). Next trip I'll go backpacking for three days so I'll need a backpack. On one trip, I had 9 pounds of photo gear because... well, I like to photograph! I bought a lighter tripod just so I can bring an extra lens. As gregw said, more weight on the bike doesn't hurt, it just makes you slower. I can live with that.

chipcom 

If you're in a hurry to get it over with, it must not be fun.