Indian Pacific Wheel Race - IndyPac - IPWR

Vegan Joseph vs Pawel:

I hope he interviews better than he monologues...

Ah, it's written. Sweet :)

5 minutes a day is 30 hours in a year.

Not that relevant here but huge in engineering. Anyway yeah keep moving or you’re touring!

Ps, you’re still doing fucking awesome and the fixie race is amazing

Wonder if he’s been DAS’d yet.

Ha, I just posted one thinking he probably hasn't heard that yet!

Is the race for the free beer still on? The one where someone promised to offer too much free beer to the first finisher on a fixed gear.

edit: this

Interesting to read that Abdullah didn’t bring sleeping gear, Just water, emergency bivvy and repair kit.

Why don’t people use time trial bikes for these races? It seems those Titanium bikes with relaxed geometries are just a trend?

Ultan Coyle used one in TCR 2 or 3 (I can't remember which). Position was just too extreme for so much time on the bike. Super stiff and narrow tyres probably not great either.

It’s 5500km. Relative comfort kicks in for me after 300km so... fuck... that...

Wait, hold up, stop.

He has no sleeping arrangement? Wonder where the car rumours started...

emergency bivvy

IS sleeping gear.

Why don’t people use time trial bikes for these races?

Definitely doable but a few problems I considered:
possibly limited position (my Shiv would work but some bikes not tall enough to allow sustainable position)
limited tyre clearance - fat tyres really help on ultra races
they're often smaller or odd shaped so fitting 'luggage' becomes a problem
they're covered in proprietary bits and bobs so if something fails it's gonna be very difficult to fix (tricky cable routing etc)
gains aren't actually that big, especially once you cover the aero frame in luggage

The position seems the same? Also, most people are using 25mm tyres.

I rode >830k on my TT bike without stopping. HTFU ;)

Just need to make sure you buy a TT bike that's adjustable enough for the position you need for ultra distance.

He has a bivvy. It's toasty in Australia (~23 so basically a British heatwave), and there's road houses and hotels along the route (ok, no quite as many as Europe but some).

once you cover the aero frame in luggage

Yeah that's what struck me about Abdullah's setup - very minimal. He's got the bivvy but I'm not sure I've seen a down jacket or sleeping bag and mat that could fit in that frame bag.

Why don’t people use time trial bikes for these races? It seems those Titanium bikes with relaxed geometries are just a trend?

Agree - there is a lot of herd thinking, some sponsored riders and lots of people get the same kit to show group affiliation. TBH I've never really seen the point of Ti frames for anything much. But if people like them it is up to them, of course.

A TT bike would make sense for IndyPac if you could get the position ok for extended use. Christoph Strasser used one when he went across the nullarbor last year.

I didn't use mine as I've not been comfortable on it for a while and tyre clearance and carrying enough luggage + water were issues. I did use the wheels off my TT bike, though

For TCR there is more rough surface and more climbing and descending so less benefit. DK about TABR, I'd have thought all the windy plains would favour it.

Yeah that's what struck me about Abdullah's setup - very minimal. He's got the bivvy but I'm not sure I've seen a down jacket or sleeping bag and mat that could fit in that frame bag.

He might want warmer gear after Adelaide, but he could buy a down jacket there. It got cold in Victoria last year. That was by the coast, there could be snow in the mountains, they had it in early March last year.

I’d like to see a kit break down of his as it’s some proper minimalist shit. And yeah it’s warm but deserts tend to be bitch ass cold at night.

Yeah I know but I like comfort so what?

His setup doesn't look minimal to me
2 feedbags
framebag
stem bag
saddle bag
shit taped to frame

My setup was much the same last year but I had no bottles, bladder in full framebag, bigger saddle bag but nothing taped to frame. And this had to deal with -5degC to 45C compared to Aus with more stable temps.

I did think about both the Tarmac and the Shiv for TABR but dismissed both.
Tarmac is not Di2 or disc and I like my Di2 and discs. No hand fatigue.
Shiv brakes are shit and just didn't have enough space for my stuff.

Just checked Kristoffs from last year and it’s only a little lighter. Still popping it in the stupid/brave category.

But there's more accom options once you get to the east coast so it's probably less necessary to sleep rough.

I think it's mostly above zero, even in the mountains at the moment.

Didn't Allegaert sleep in a ditch on Falls Creek or something last year? There was a moment when people where concerned about his safety, his dot wasn't moving, stalled in a random spot, and it was sub zero that night?

I guess the main difference is he doesn't have one of those huge wagging saddle bags.