How much weight is too much?
 

I looked on the forum and didn't find the answer to this question. I have a Trek 520, front and rear panniers, handlebar bag, not carrying anything out of the ordinary, just stuff to camp with; I seem to have about 55 pounds of gear not counting food and water. Loaded, my bike is around 100 pounds. I ran into a guy named Larry who's been touring a great deal for the last 20 years who had only front panniers and some stuff stacked on his rear rack who camps and tours for about $5 a day. As he road off at a relatively breakneck speed, it made me reevaluate my load; right now I feel like a moose, a really slow one.

I could maybe loose some clothing, send my cookset home (but how would I drink my tea?), but the rest of my stuff I use constantly.

Any input would be helpful.

-Erica.

I think it's a personal question. Some people indeed hardly cary anything, but then it's about comfort of wearing fresh clothes or washing them every other day... Just whatever you prefer. I am taking off for a tour in about a month and am definitelly not taking any cooking equipment.
50 lbs sounds light. I heard people carry up to 90 lbs of gear.
As far as bicycle, it should be able to carry at least twice that much. Especially if you think about some people weights, approaching 250 lbs or more...

All depends on the type of touring you want to do. There are a few things to remember.

1. Light weight (as in materials) usually costs money.

2. To overcome No 1 to some extent, make as much as of what you carry can do double duty (or just ditch most of it and use your credit card for accommodation and meals).

3. Do you r-e-a-l-l-y need everything you take? You need to be ruthless, and be prepared to be a little "uncomfortable" occasionally.

I've gone the heavy way... panniers front and rear, plus handlebar bag. I had the comforts of camp (including folding tripod chair), but couldn't really enjoy them because I was knackered at the end of the day from pedalling it all around!! Clothes were the problematic area, and still are here where winter can come in summer. It's also the reason for carrying cooking gear, since a hot meal is better than cold when it's cold and wet outside.

Since getting into unsupported randonnees, I have really assessed what I need and don't. For those rides, I am down to the small panniers originally on the front, a one-person bivvy-type tent, and a handlebar bag. The panniers have a lightweight or moderate-weight sleeping bag and 3/4 inflatable mat, a custom-made Trangia outfit to cook with, and clothing.

I tend to carry too much foodstuffs with me, and I am still trying to leave some tools at home (but not succeeding very well). Even so, the last longish ride I did (645km in three days, and not a randonnee), I had 11kg of load on the bike (including alcohol for the Trangia burner). Add 2.5 litres of water, and the total came to 13.5kg. In going to Europe in August, I won't be much over that. The one real concession will be a roomier tent. I pack moisture sensitive stuff (sleeping bag, clothes, etc) in dry bags.

Another few things to think about... the more gear you have, the more things you have to account for when breaking camp; the more things you have to clean; and the more things you have to pack away. If I can't break camp and be on the road within 20 minutes, I'm carrying too much ;)

FWIW

R

Like others said it is a personal choice as you are the one that has to pedal the bike and some people like the challenge of a heavy load while others tend to be ultralightweighters.However there seems to be a lot of middle range between your load and that of Larry.Like was said make sure everything is multifunctional .Maybe if you listed some of the things you are using to camp with as well as clothing etc. maybe people can give you some feedback on what you may be able to eliminate.It is not unusual in fact it is the norm that people start out with way to much gear and eventually learn what they can live without.

Check out some of the ultra-light camping pages. They have an interesting way of losing weight.

http://www.monmouth.com/~mconnick/index.html

There are some ways of reducing your tool set, eg switching from threaded to threadless headset, you can discard headset wrenches. Use QR allen key crankset bolts, find a Pamir hyber cracker (good luck finding one).

i think i can do without my stove. i already hate that it takes longer to break camp when i use it, and usually i am not so hungry in the evening, anyway. maybe if i am still out there when it gets cold i can get it back:)

Hi I was actually in the middle of reading your journal.Were you not able to get it set up on Bikeforums?Anyway I also prefer to remote/stealth camp and don't carry a stove.It was usually dusk when I stopped and I was so tired I would force myself to eat something and fall right asleep and have at most a small meal before I left and stopping soon after for a larger meal.I also prefered to sleep under the stars as much as possible both for the experience and the ease of breaking camp .If you need food ideas you might check some backpacking sites for this also as their gear/food requirements are very similar to cycletouring.P.S. make sure you don't skip meals or go to light on calories though as this can cause real problems with your energy and motivation.

I think 55 pounds before food is a lot! My winter backpack is just shy of 35 pounds, including 4 days of food but not water. I carry more clothing for bike touring, but a lighter sleeping bag. I always carry a stove (MSR Dragonfly), one pot, a cup and a lexan spoon. Sometimes I carry a small frying pan. If you really want to cut weight, you need to rethink the size of your tent, sleeping bag and pad, and perhaps the amount of clothes, especially if you're carrying a lot of non-riding clothing.

A lot depends on the comfort level you want... and also on the number of hotels and restaurants you want to patronize.

Back during my first tour in 1975, one of the guys had a very light pack, probably 3 times lighter than mine. But he didn't mind wearing cut-off jeans and T-shirts all the time, whether it was 10 C or 30 C. I also vividly remember a solo tour I did 2 years later with clothing good for 8-10 C; I was wet and frozen for 8 days because I hadn't brought enough warm clothes.

Riding from Arizona to Canada means a definite change in weather patterns, especially if you arrive in Manitoba in late August early September, which could be very hot (+30 C) or very cold (0 C). One way to deal with weather changes like that is to either mail ahead stuff to "General Delivery", or to expect to buy warm clothes along the way.

As for cooking equipment, I bought a stove before a 1-month long tour in 1981 and never used it. I used it once in a subsequent trip and decided a few years later that I didn't need it. When it's warm, I enjoy cold food anyways and could live all Summer on tomato sandwitches. And when it's cold, I prefer to get a hot coffee in a warm doughnot shop.

Regarding weight per se, I don't see it as a problem. Try to balance it more or less evenly between right and left (essential in the front, not so in the rear), and try also to balance fore and aft weight. On the latter, there are many theories, with a 60%-40% split in favour of the rear or front panniers (put tools and other dense stuff in front to get more weight in these small panniers). Let's say that more weight on the rear makes the bike less stable, while more weight on the front stabilises it... sometimes to the point of having the bike very hard to steer.

Hi there,

Thanks for the comments. I think I am going to ditch the stove. One of my favorite parts of my tour is to pick out a stealthy campspot, throw up my tent and chill in the fading light. I have been working on a little bit of a calorie debt, eating oatmeal in the morning and fruit and peanut butter as I ride. Dinner is a toughie. What has many calories, but requires no cooking. Hmmm...

As for the travelogue, I am trying to get it on this site, but kinda need guidance as I am technologically challenged:) :crash:

Keep in mind you don't necessarily have to eat three traditional meals.The approach I take is to snack or graze all day long on smaller calorie meals with an occassional stop at an all you can eat buffet such as at Pizza Hut's(alright actually fairly often lol).At camp I would usually have a mixture of protein powder/oatmeal/granola/dried coconut and close to camp I would pick up some fruit and cream(or coconut milk) to add along with water.I would vary the fruits to add variety.Cheese and dried meats are foods you can use.Also yogurt or kefir along with some fruit or granola make tasty meals/snacks aqnd last long enough for an evening meal and then breakfast.In a pinch many hikers use items such as poptarts/pudding mixes or just add regular water to dried noodle/soup mixes and eat unheated but all these aren't the healthiest ingredients.They also frequently add olive oil to various meals to add calories.Another idea I really like to add carbs and calories is to pick up a loaf of pumpernickel bread along with some butter and feast on it through the day.
As for getting the journal set up just ask Joe the forum janitor(ie owner) your questions either on the forum or by email as he is very knowledgably on such technology matters .

rwtd,

UR the bomb! thanks for all of the suggestions; i feel a lot more comfortable about leaving my stove behind. I hope those all you can eat places aren't too enticing. I'll talk to Joe and see what I can do.

-erica.

p.s. what is kefir?

Kefir is a fermented milk product like yogurt with probiotics but more between milk and yogurt in consistency so it works well to add to oatmeal/granola etc. in place of milk .I like milk to in camp at night but during the day the other two don't seem to drag me down as much as too much milk can.As far as the AYCE I only use then on long bike rides to avoid losing weight when my carb muscles stores are running low which given my fast metabolism is often the case.

Foodwise, it's important to get variety into what you eat. It can become very boring relying on the old staples of oatmeal, granola, powders and stuff.

RWTD's idea of pizza places is great. I find pizzas of any sort are great energy restorers (I have at last one a week!). If you don't mind meat, the Italian-style sausage they use gives you protein to rebuild muscles overnight, and a bit of fat for energy storage as well. A central point in Tasmania is Ross, and on long randonees, That Place in Ross has become a favourite haunt for me with their chicken pizza, but it is expensive. Pizzas do reign on tour, though!

If budget is not a problem and distances between townships are not great, and those towns have reasonable services, ditching the stove is fine.

Here in Tasmania, I wouldn't think of going without a Trangia. My custom-made one is less than 500g and a half-litre of alcohol will last me four or five days.

It's easy to pick up fresh vegetables here in the quantity you need (ie, small amounts), along with diced beef, for instance, to cook up a stew that's warming, hearty and tasty. Tea/coffe and porridge in the morning make a good start to the day.

FWIW

R

This is too much, but it does have it's appeal.
http://www.tassoitalia.it/web/Pagine/english/index.htm

Yeah Jean I'm with you. That's utterly rediculous. An R.V. bicycle. Those frame set ups are great for vendors though. You know, Ice cream, hot dogs and the like.