Bikepacking - a viable alternative to racks & panniers

Oh this looks amazing. http://www.bikepacking.com/plog/trans-america-off-road-trail-odyssey/

Could be the next big one.

Does anyone central / north / east have a front rack and panniers or some bikepacking gear they fancy lending me for this weekend? Fancy a last minute trip..

I has two large rear panniers you are welcome to use

Quick test fit of some new kit that's come in intended for an 1100km single track blitz!
-Bike Bag Dude (BBD) frame bag
-BBD Handlebar roll
-Oveja Negra saddle bag
-Oveja Negra snack pack

Still a long way to go from being ready, one more large order to come in, mainly tiny spares and the like, and a Thomson Elite as I don't trust Giant seatposts.

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Looks tight! That framebagging works well with suspension?

Fuckers! Not a few weeks before I'd asked them on the phone whilst ordering some bits if they had anything more basic than the kanga in the works, answer was a 'no, kanga is great, we won't be making a lower priced kanga'like product'

But yeah for £12 not really worth the effort to make your own version.

Yeah, works very well. The kink in the bag is just there as the bottom half of the bag is empty (it's dual compartment + map pocket on the other side).

I'll have to take a couple of close-up shots of how the outside seams are sewn, it looks like a tight fit, but actually fits perfectly. The seams are sewn "outwards" rather than inwards, if that makes sense. It also means that the pro pedal has a bit of a shroud to slow it down from gunking up with fine sand and dust.

Fully seam taped and waterproof too. You can fill your laundry tub and submerge it and it doesn't let water in!

On the seat bag side, I need to leave about 4" worth of wheel travel in the vertical direction from the top of the wheel. Plenty of space, even for a mudguard too.

I like it! What will be the ride?

Anyone got a saddlebag I could try out for this weekend? Would very much like to see how they work.

hi Chak, i may need mine this weekend unfortunately, but after that you're welcome to borrow it if thats any good.

Here we go.

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That's idea touring loading.

What are you sleeping in?

@TM you don't have to answer that

One man tent, 1.5 kg, tent on top of the rack and poles/pegs in either panniers or TT bag. Over sized and over weight yet affordable and comfortable inflatable sleeping matt in one of the panniers too.

@skinny bit heavy tbh but to lighten up with equivalent functionality would have cost $$$$$

Won't be able to get setup photos yet, house sitting :S

I'll be riding the Munda Biddi trail, it's about an 1000-1200km (depending on diversions in place due to burn offs, mining etc) combination of single track, fire trails and the occasional road in south west western australia. It's also the longest continuous off road cycle track of its kind in the world.

The huts on the trail are spaced about 40-60km apart, designed for the average cyclist to achieve in a days riding, with towns 2-3 huts apart. I'm planning on skipping the huts and hitting a town every day, so I can replenish supplies and get a few hours good shut eye easily. Looking at my plan I want to do the entire length in 8-8.5 days, about 100-200km a day, depending on the section difficulty. The 100km will likely occur towards the end where pea gravel is rife and I have to climb and descend through the Stirling escarpment.

The majority of the trail is in national parks, with no mobile reception in some areas even from Telstra, which prides itself on having the best coverage. EPIRB will be a must, particularly as I'll be solo.

End of September is the time I'm looking at - will be posting up setup pics and dry weekend runs in the lead up to it!

Yeah you can end up spending stupid money to save 1-2kg. And in the end that's the weight you'll carry in water when topped up.

Behind the lanergram

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Amazeballs!

Best mossie repellant = Avons skin so soft btw.

bullshit

He's 100% correct.

Have you tried it anywhere with thick clouds of mosquitoes? I tried 3 different repellents in the Rockies, nothing worked. I went for one piss in Colorado, and got 4 bites on my bellend (I didn't think to put repellent on it)! My mate went for a shit and got hundreds on his butt cheeks!

https://youtu.be/HAP53yJQJRQ

My spork broke in Wales. Found this review for a possible alternative... anyone tried one of these?

http://semi-rad.com/2015/08/professional-gear-review-spoon/?utm_content=buffer4c988&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer