Originally Posted by
Bekologist
I was just sorting out ultralight gear for the summer season.
Boy, it seems like choosing how ultralite to ultralite involves significant volume considerations that come into play when choosing "how ultralite to ultralite" it.
This is my light weight bikepacking setup. It's far from the point where it is at its most ultra.
I have a selection of gear in my garage to choose from and I just do the best with what I have. I would like a smaller lighter tent for example, but I can't really justify it when my existing one is pretty small and pretty light. Of course I know that the more I use my current tent the sooner I'll wear it out and have a reason to buy a new one....
What works for me is having a limited amount of bag space to fit things into. That way I can't overpack and it forces me to be ruthless about what I take on a ride. Each ride I get a bit better at packing efficiently and taking a more optimized selection of gear.
When the time comes to buy a new sleeping pad for example I'll have a really good idea what practical difference the options I am looking at. Having used my current one a ton and knowing exactly what sort of space I have to put it into.
I don't spend a ton of time thinking about the gear end of things. I spend more time planning rides and actually riding. I'll throw my gear together the night before a trip adjusting based on the last trip's experience.
As a rule of thumb I don't try and improve areas that didn't matter to me last trip. I'm not out to have the absolute lightest/most minimal touring setup. I'm out to have fun on my bike. So I just iteratively work on improving areas that I wasn't 100% satisfied with on previous trips.
For example I had 1 extra water bottle that I really didn't need last trip and I wished I had a running T-shirt when the day turned hotter than expected. So I'll replace the water bottle with a t-shirt for my next trip in the same part of Vancouver Island. I also found my 3 season sleeping bag wasn't needed so I'll be switching to my summer bag. That will lighten my load and make me more comfortable.
Of course come the fall my priorities will shift back towards warmth and rain protection.
I could spend energy on ultra-fying my tools/spares, but they really didn't come up on my radar the last few rides so I'll save that effort for the future.
I guess if I was in the position of buying a whole new touring setup from scratch it would be quite a job. Tackling it a couple items at a time it's not a big deal.