Bikepacking

**mtngirl79** · 10-08-2017, 09:11 PM

So my broken leg daydreams have revolved around bikepacking...

I had been planning on getting a kona sutra or maybe a rove that I could commute in town, ride on gravel and bikepack/tour with...

Looking at bike packing options, tho it kinda looks like I might want the stability of a mountain bike so I was thinking maybe I would rather have something like the unit x.

Going down that rabbit hole makes me think maybe I should just get a honzo or big honzo and then get a cheap old 90s bike to ride to work.

I'm tougher than pio, I can pack in, but I don't think I'm tough enough to bike pack on a process.

I'm partial to kona because they give me a discount.

The other option is to do something with the pahoehoe, but it's kinda too small and the drive train sucks so it sucks to pedal.

Help me survive the home stretch of broken leg. What say you?

**reckless toboggan** · 10-08-2017, 09:45 PM

Originally Posted by mtngirl79

So my broken leg daydreams have revolved around bikepacking...

I had been planning on getting a kona sutra or maybe a rove that I could commute in town, ride on gravel and bikepack/tour with...

Looking at bike packing options, tho it kinda looks like I might want the stability of a mountain bike so I was thinking maybe I would rather have something like the unit x.

Going down that rabbit hole makes me think maybe I should just get a honzo or big honzo and then get a cheap old 90s bike to ride to work.

I'm tougher than pio, I can pack in, but I don't think I'm tough enough to bike pack on a process.

I'm partial to kona because they give me a discount.

The other option is to do something with the pahoehoe, but it's kinda too small and the drive train sucks so it sucks to pedal.

Help me survive the home stretch of broken leg. What say you?

I say invite as many if us as possible on this bikepacking trip. Then we'll all have the motivation to make this happen. Like BBI17.75

**mtngirl79** · 10-08-2017, 09:55 PM

That would be fun.

This was today's dream trip at work.

http://www.bikepacking.com/routes/elkhorn-crest-trail/

**mtngirl79** · 10-08-2017, 10:03 PM

There are less technical cool seeming routes but a lot are on dirt roads people can drive on.

**reckless toboggan** · 10-08-2017, 10:38 PM

I have a Fatboy as my camper/long-distance living/commuting rig. It has enough bags, pouches, duffles, panier attachments and extensions,..hell, there's stuff hanging off of places you didn't even know that you could hang stuff off of,... to last me for a very long time, or to last two people, for a somewhat long time.

There are weeks and months, and a lifetime worth, of old mining roads an rails, long since abandoned in and around the East and West Kootneys that could sustain a person for a lifetime. I've met several that are living the dream/challenge over the course of my lifetime. You very quickly get used to sleeping in a class b lean to.

Then locals come out if the woodwork, literally,... nothing goes unnoticed. And you sit with them for a while. Then, once they decide, you get food, warmth, kindness, and generosity like you've never seen. Or... you leave, never knowing what you missed.

**mtngirl79** · 10-08-2017, 10:42 PM

I kinda want a fat bike, actually, I really want a fat bike but mostly because you can't look at one and not smile. I don't think a fat bike is what I need.

**jacob_dbu** · 10-08-2017, 10:57 PM

Let's be straight, you need every bike. We all need every bike. Every bike and then some.

I think a steel 29er with a rigid or small travel fork is the the way to go.

**mtngirl79** · 10-08-2017, 11:09 PM

I want all the bikes, but since I only have two of the bikes, I have to prioritize.

I'm sorta wanting 27.5+ rather than 29er. Was thinking kona unit x. But then, why not honzo, then? Or big honzo. It doesn't have as many things to hook shit to, but it's still doable.

**mtngirl79** · 10-08-2017, 11:10 PM

I don't understand why steel over aluminium.

**jacob_dbu** · 10-08-2017, 11:32 PM

Honestly, it probably doesn't matter, but hydroformed aluminum is just so...bland. In fact aluminum is probably better when it's wet for rust reasons.

I think wheel size comes down to what terrain you're going to be riding, I think a 27.5+ would be badass but if you're mostly gonna be riding fire roads you'll miss a 29er. I'd also watch out for how slack the headtube is. I don't have a great reference to go by, but as it slackens out, climbing is gonna suffer.

**evdog** · 10-08-2017, 11:37 PM

Fatbikes are fun til you have any sustained uphill. Then you quickly realize you're pushing around unnecessarily heavy wheels and all the stuff you were sold on about needing extra traction was a load of shit.

Originally Posted by mtngirl79

I'm tougher than pio, I can pack in, but I don't think I'm tough enough to bike pack on a process.

I'd give your current bike a try before you put money into a new one. Add some air to the shock and fork and take it on some easy overnighters on familiar trails to see how it does. The extra weight of the gear you bring along will make any bike feel unusual. If you find yourself liking bikepacking and want to do more, then pony up for some bags and maybe a new bike if the current one isn't working out. The main thing with a full suspension, especially with a small or med frame is if it has enough room to run a seat bag. You probably don't have one yet anyways, so it's not an issue for now. Just get a compression sack and straps to carry your sleeping gear on your handlebars, and a backpack for everything else. On some short trips you can get a feeling for loading and how it affects the bike's handling. Then go from there...

**mtngirl79** · 10-08-2017, 11:40 PM

Honzo climbs rad. Honzo does everything rad. But it's smaller triangle so less space for frame bag and it doesn't have all the hooky things. I don't see myself going for more than a couple days, tho.

On the other hand the unit x is rigid so it would be more reasonable to commute on... it has all the hooks...

But I feel like having a honzo would be better.

**mtngirl79** · 10-08-2017, 11:44 PM

Originally Posted by evdog

Fatbikes are fun til you have any sustained uphill. Then you quickly realize you're pushing around unnecessarily heavy wheels and all the stuff you were sold on about needing extra traction was a load of shit.

I'd give your current bike a try before you put money into a new one. Add some air to the shock and fork and take it on some easy overnighters on familiar trails to see how it does. The extra weight of the gear you bring along will make any bike feel unusual. If you find yourself liking bikepacking and want to do more, then pony up for some bags and maybe a new bike if the current one isn't working out. The main thing with a full suspension, especially with a small or med frame is if it has enough room to run a seat bag. You probably don't have one yet anyways, so it's not an issue for now. Just get a compression sack and straps to carry your sleeping gear on your handlebars, and a backpack for everything else. On some short trips you can get a feeling for loading and how it affects the bike's handling. Then go from there...

See, this is my rabbit hole issue. I was going to get a drop bar gravel bike and try the bike packing thing with that as I need a bike to commute on so it would be multi purpose...

But then why go on roads when there is single track..?

**jamal** · 10-08-2017, 11:51 PM

I really like the sutra ltd, and had the same idea. Seems like it would be fine on big tires, but on the other hand I've never ridden a loaded bike. The rove nrb is pretty sweet too.

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**mtngirl79** · 10-09-2017, 12:07 AM

Yeah maybe that mountain trail is too ambitious... maybe I should get the sutra and then think about a hardtail next year if I like the bikepacking thing

**springsproject** · 10-09-2017, 07:38 AM

If you like backpacking and you like mt biking, well, you'll probably like bikepacking. Getting a "gravel bike" would really limit your options as far as the places you can go. I would rather bikepack on actual singletrack as opposed to dirt roads. Mt bikes are fine on dirt roads but gravel bikes on trails are probably not the most fun.

I wouldn't be too concerned about the size of a triangle on a specific bike because it won't have enough space for a big bag, you'd be surprised by how much stuff you can still cram in there. Also, it helps prevent overpacking. Go do some trips on your current ride without any fancy pants bags and figure out what you really want and go from there.

Whatever you do, for the love of all things holy, don't hang your coffee mug off your seatbag. I'm not sure why that's a thing but it needs to stop.

**sethschmautz** · 10-09-2017, 07:57 AM

Originally Posted by thejongiest

Let's be straight, you need every bike. We all need every bike. Every bike and then some.

I think a steel 29er with a rigid or small travel fork is the the way to go.

I've been thinking lately that a steel or Ti HT 29er with short travel fork would be an awesome all-around bike. I still have young kids (youngest being 1) that I'll be pulling in the chariot, the tag along, or put in the iBert for several more years. In addition, it would make a great bikepacking bike as several of my friends have been getting into bikepacking.

In a perfect world I could run a second wheelset with fat tires for mellow winter trail riding. I already have a full sus 29er with a great wheelset that could do double duty for this bike. I'm guessing once I add in fat tires, though, I'm going to be looking at a new(er) frame which will drive the price up. I like the idea of picking up one of the Motobecane Ti HT frames used and building it up as it is cheap, but I'd probably not be able to run the fat tires...

Good topic, mtngirl.

Seth

**mtngirl79** · 10-09-2017, 08:24 AM

I'm fairly certain I will like bikepacking, especially on single track. I'm also not terribly worried about climbing being too hard. When I first started mountain biking I walked practically all the climbing and I still liked it.

I don't care.

**reckless toboggan** · 10-09-2017, 09:07 AM

Originally Posted by evdog

Fatbikes are fun til you have any sustained uphill. Then you quickly realize you're pushing around unnecessarily heavy wheels and all the stuff you were sold on about needing extra traction was a load of shit.
...

Completely disagree. Fat can go up, down, snow, mud, ice, bushwack, animal trails, and just putt putt along.

More pressure in the tires for long gravel or smooth, less pressure for snow, or bushwacking. The traction and rolling resistance change dramatically by controling tire pressure. If you haven't figured that out, then you're doing it wrong.

My Fatboy weighs a hair less than 26 pounds, and that's with tubes.

Edit to add: fatbike also has more versatility. Depending on your bike camping route, you could swap the fat tires and rims for a standard 1.95 x 29, 29+, 650b+, etc. with any type of tread from minions to slicks.

**406** · 10-09-2017, 09:54 AM

Originally Posted by mtngirl79

I don't understand why steel over aluminium.

Less harsh of a ride, steel flex makes for a more comfortable ride but is heavy. Ti is the best of both worlds. I like the look of this bike:
http://www.whycycles.com/our-bikes/wayward/

You could just run different tires and bars for different types of riding, dirt road vs bike packing.

Last major injury I had, I bought a new bike during recovery.

**GoldMember** · 10-09-2017, 10:21 AM

Originally Posted by thejongiest

Let's be straight, you need every bike. We all need every bike. Every bike and then some.

I think a steel 29er with a rigid or small travel fork is the the way to go.

This reminded me of Rule #12 of the Velominati: "The correct number of bikes to own is n+1" where n = the number of bikes you currently own.

I also like Rule #5: "Harden the fuck up"

Also, Rule #4 is the first time I'd ever heard the term twatwaffle. Some funny shit in here.

http://www.velominati.com/the-rules/

**Iowagriz** · 10-09-2017, 10:46 AM

Been bikepacking for 3 years now, 29er hardtail, rigid fork. Mostly due to the lack of distance singletrack in my area, but I'd likely run the same out west. Why? Due to riding 55-60lbs of bike and gear. It's not like doing singletrack on a race bike, slower speed, enjoying the scenery. Majority of time is spent uphill, slower downhill is a good rest.

I also enjoy the forest service and gravel roads when bikepacking. To me it is about the distance of travel and views more than gnar singletrack.

Really think about what type of riding you will really do vs. What you think you will do. FWIW, I enjoy commuting on the 29er more than a drop bar bike, I like to be able to jump curbs and feel more nimble when on it.

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**mtngirl79** · 10-09-2017, 11:06 AM

Originally Posted by 406

Less harsh of a ride, steel flex makes for a more comfortable ride but is heavy. Ti is the best of both worlds. I like the look of this bike:
http://www.whycycles.com/our-bikes/wayward/

You could just run different tires and bars for different types of riding, dirt road vs bike packing.

Last major injury I had, I bought a new bike during recovery.

That bike is way out of my price range. Not buying bike until I'm working my regular job again. Broken legs are expensive.

**mtngirl79** · 10-09-2017, 11:12 AM

Originally Posted by Iowagriz

Been bikepacking for 3 years now, 29er hardtail, rigid fork. Mostly due to the lack of distance singletrack in my area, but I'd likely run the same out west. Why? Due to riding 55-60lbs of bike and gear. It's not like doing singletrack on a race bike, slower speed, enjoying the scenery. Majority of time is spent uphill, slower downhill is a good rest.

I also enjoy the forest service and gravel roads when bikepacking. To me it is about the distance of travel and views more than gnar singletrack.

Really think about what type of riding you will really do vs. What you think you will do. FWIW, I enjoy commuting on the 29er more than a drop bar bike, I like to be able to jump curbs and feel more nimble when on it.

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See, this is where I hang up... I think that I would like to have the honzo for longer cross countrier, but not bike packing rides... but that unit x bike might be perfect for bike packing and pretty reason able to commute on..?

I have spent the last year and a half on galby learning how to ride and now I want to ride other places!