Another post-trip update. After 7 days of riding, 400 miles of technical trails, gravel and road in all conditions, it was still going strong. I barely noticed it's existence, which is probably the best thing you can say about a harness. Here it is at the beginning of the trip, all shiny and clean (...

Update after 7 days riding 400 miles of trail, gravel and road in all conditions... It worked really well. At times I carried a fair bit of weight (a nearly full 250g gas canister, snacks, and various other bits). There was a bit of rubbage but I got that on my proper gear too. https://c1.staticflic...

Yep, think so. Saw it on Alpkit's Facebook earlier.

Bit of a leftfield idea, but how about one of those massive bottle cage (e.g. Topeak XL) that can take a 1.5-2l bottle on a strap-on cage on the downtube, leaving you room for a small triangle bag in the seat tube/top tube corner? Chainring clearance could be an issue though.

See also: http://bearbonesbikepacking.co.uk/phpBB ... =13&t=8807

I had a crack at improving this. I ripped the insides out and replaced the horrible woven tarp stuff with some equally non-technical, but much neater-looking black material from a freebie rucksack I got from a conference. More importantly, I replaced the corrugated plastic inside. I went for two lay...

Probably. I'll try and keep it to light stuff but it would probably be ok. I'd be a bit worried the stitching might tear out on rough ground, but I've used my patented "run the sewing machine backwards and forwards a few times so there's far more thread everywhere than should be necessary"...

I think you're seeing things It's a rigid carbon fork.

I did a test pack for an upcoming trip last night. Having taken my Alpkit 1L Brupot out of its mesh bag to put it in my Stem Cell XL, which fits very snugly, I was thinking I could do with an another stem cell to go on the other side, but I'm too tight to buy one. Then it occurred to me that the mes...

Got the email, cheers. Will submit tomorrow

frogatthefarriers wrote: Like this:-
http://bearbonesbikepacking.co.uk/phpBB ... ock#p93456
You'll have to scroll down a bit, sorry, I don't know how to narrow it down any more.

Like the idea of heating the sauce in the pot to save on washing up!

How can I submit mine Ian? I pledged after the email you mentioned before.

Having prised my Yorkshire wallet open, I'm now in.

Think I know what my pledge will be but I'm wasting 15 potential words.

Will PM you re. map case and saddle pack.

I'll probably download the OSM/OCM data as I use Viewranger, though I like to have a paper backup as a) it seems sensible and b) I'm a map geek and will take any excuse to buy more maps! I was hoping a friendly hostel might agree to store some stuff if I stayed there before/after/both, but that does...

Thanks Andy, I'll drop you a PM. My plan is to take bike packing stuff, though not necessarily bike pack the whole time. Something along the lines of what Andy suggested - bike packing from Auckland to Rotorua/Taupo, then some accommodation there and maybe hire a bike to do some day rides from there...

Great stuff, thanks. What time of year were you there? It'll be midsummer when I'm there so I'm guessing a fair bit busier. The advantage being that I'll be able to get away with carrying less. I looked at the Old Ghost Road - it looks excellent, probably an ideal level of technical riding for me - ...

I'm in the incredibly jammy position of having a week to 10 days free in New Zealand in December, courtesy of a work trip. I'd like to spend as much of this time as possibly riding a bike and seeing the country. I'm looking for good route with interesting, but not hugely technical, terrain. I'm flyi...

Breakfast is usually porridge, because that's what it is at home anyway :-bd Tea is often pasta (orzo if space is an issue) with tuna and a tin of condensed mushroom soup. It sounds heavy, but a tin is about 15g, and you don't need to add water to it, so unless you're gathering and filtering/boiling...

It's good, but it's no http://thefuckingweather.com/

What johnnystorm said. Though I wouldn't bother with the top tube bag. Some may already have them and you want maximum l/£. Credit to you for trying to do this as well. Edit: though I also see Stu/Chew's point. Depends on your budget really. Agree that sleeping bags are going to make more difference...

Hi Ian,

I'll take the bottle cages please. Give me the word and I'll Paypal you and PM you my address.

Cheers,
Dave

The Case for Working with Your Hands: Or Why Office Work is Bad for Us and Fixing Things Feels Good

Been on my to-read list for some time. Must get a copy.

I was idly watching this thread but your mention of Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance has got me hooked Trail-rat. I re-read it (having first read it in my teens and probably not really understood a lot of it, both technical and theoretical) this time last year. It suddenly made a lot of sen...

I always thought it was an instruction.

"mount" snowden

That'd probably get you on some FBI list.