Originally Posted by
Walter S
I recently took a three week trip loaded with 80 lbs. of gear. I had a few long 7% grade climbs where I found first gear and I hugged the lower limit of my speed (3.5 mph). There were some steeper but shorter climbs where I walked. I got by with about 300 yards of walking during 1200 miles of touring. I probably could have avoided walking at all if my load had been half as much. But the trip was very practical to me - I don't mind walking that short distance to have the benefit I received from covering contingencies and/or personally enjoyable items.
And that works for you ... and obviously you've come up with a way to justify carrying all the things you do.
But for me, if I rode with 120 lbs (bicycle + gear), I could hardly move the bicycle on any surface more than about 0.5% grade.
A few other things ...
What about gears? How do they factor into the formulas? I've finally got a gear setup that allows me to get what little I bring up small hills. But with some of my earlier gearing combinations, I've been off and walking while others are happily spinning away?
Also, what about fitness? When I was at the peak of my fitness, I could tackle some fairly decent hills. But now, I can barely tackle a gradual incline with my lightest bicycles.
And on the topic of fitness and strength ... Rowan is a much better hill climber than I am. If you were to load the two of us up with the same load, he would arrive at the top of a hill long before I would.
Do the mathematical calculations take all that into consideration?
Incidentally, one of the "formulas" I've read in the past is that a cycletourist should be able to lift their bicycle, complete with gear, and walk 20 or 30 metres carrying it. I believe the idea was that if a cycletourist could carry their bicycle (and gear) a short distance, they could handle pushing it up hills, lifting it over things if necessary, and also hauling it through airports and train stations.
That piece of advice helped me settle on the half my body weight limitation. I can lift and carry half my body weight over a short distance ... more than that is difficult for me.
But for me, there's a whole lot more that goes into my packing decisions than just a mathematical calculation indicating whether or not I should be able to ride with a load of a particular weight.