sixstringsteve
Well-Known Member
- Location
- UT
Still deciding on the route, but right now I'm thinking the Gila river ramble, or something else close to Phoenix/Tucson.
Have you been bikeacking yet kev?
Have you been bikeacking yet kev?
Any Mtn Bikers on RME?
- Thread starter glockman
- Start date
- Location
- Draper, UT
I need to up my game with my welding and get into making aluminum bike racks
- Location
- Stinkwater
Not a legit trip. I've strapped my crap on the bike and hit Corner Canyon a couple times just to see how the whole setup rides on the trail and work out some bugs, but I haven't done an overnighter yet.
I tell myself that I'm waiting until I've put a 46t on the rear, but if I'm honest I think I'm a little intimidated. I haven't even been backpacking since Boy Scouts and I think I'm freaking over my gear - enough? Too much? Too heavy? I need to just get off my butt and do it.
Last edited:
- Location
- Stinkwater
I kludged up a set of fork cages but I don't weld aluminum so I used that Alumaweld brazing stuff. It worked but it ain't pretty. Let's have a tig day.
sixstringsteve
Well-Known Member
- Location
- UT
I see a lot of potential for an aftermarket rack like that trek has. Obviously it would only work for hardtail, and you'd need to find a creative way to mount it (hose clamps?), but i think it'd be much better than a saddle bag.
sixstringsteve
Well-Known Member
- Location
- UT
I totally get that. I'll bet once you get over the hurdle of your first night you'll be a bikepacking fiend. I think the swell would be an awesome place to bikepaxk, once it's a little warmer.
If bikepacking is anything like backpacking, I'm always tweaking what I bring and always learning what I can live without. I'm excited for you to experience your first night out there.
- Location
- Draper, UT
Just say when. I've haven't tried aluminum though, yet.
- Location
- Stinkwater
I dunno that'd you be restricted to a hardtail if you're making the rack yourself though. Build a U shaped bracket and fix it to the seat stays with hose clamps and inner tube, then put your mounting points anywhere you want on the bracket, build them to match standard rack mounts or design your own. As long as the whole thing is fixed to just the seat stays then the suspension doesn't matter.
The weight would probably play hell with suspension performance, but I'd pay that price to get the increased cargo cap on my squishy. I share your skepticism of saddle bags.
sixstringsteve
Well-Known Member
- Location
- UT
I'd be worried about clearance at full compression. I wouldn't want the rack slamming into my seatpost when my wheel travels up.
It'd just be a matter of designing something custom to work specifically with each bike at full compression.
It'd just be a matter of designing something custom to work specifically with each bike at full compression.
sixstringsteve
Well-Known Member
- Location
- UT
So here's a fun question...
If you could only have one bike for everything, which bike would it be?
For my riding style and size, my bronson is pretty much the best all-rounder I've found for a variety of trails and riding styles (though its going to suck for bikepacking). I can smash out 35 mile days on it or take it to the bike park. It's fun at all speeds, but not the fastest bike in the world.
If I did a ton more bikepacking, i'd lean toward a plus hardtail like a stache, fuse, honzo, or chameleon. For a long distance hauler with full suspension, i think a tallboy, hightower, yeti sb5+, or spot mayhem would be my choices.
I see a pinion gearbox bike in my future one day. It makes a ton of sense for bikepacking.
If you could only have one bike for everything, which bike would it be?
For my riding style and size, my bronson is pretty much the best all-rounder I've found for a variety of trails and riding styles (though its going to suck for bikepacking). I can smash out 35 mile days on it or take it to the bike park. It's fun at all speeds, but not the fastest bike in the world.
If I did a ton more bikepacking, i'd lean toward a plus hardtail like a stache, fuse, honzo, or chameleon. For a long distance hauler with full suspension, i think a tallboy, hightower, yeti sb5+, or spot mayhem would be my choices.
I see a pinion gearbox bike in my future one day. It makes a ton of sense for bikepacking.
- Location
- Stinkwater
Only one? I'm gonna cheat and take that Voytek I linked upthread. Sporty geometry, room for everything from 26x4.8 to 29x3, light AF. I'd own multiple wheel and tire sets and probably swap between a Bluto and the carbon fork too depending on the occasion.
- Location
- Draper, UT
20 lbs of Aluminum filler rod is on it's way
- Location
- Stinkwater
I get back from Oregon the 2nd or 3rd, let's play. I'll see if I can scrape up some scrap to practice with, just any aluminum do?
- Location
- Draper, UT
6xxx series is most common and what my filler is good for (4043).
I have a truck bed tool box (diamond plate) we can cut up if we have to but new flat stock would be better.
I have a truck bed tool box (diamond plate) we can cut up if we have to but new flat stock would be better.
sixstringsteve
Well-Known Member
- Location
- UT
We were lucky enough to ride Moab with Corban and his 7 year old son, Maxton a month or two ago. Maxton is a seriously talented rider. Imagine every obstacle being 50% larger for us with big wheels.
- Location
- Stinkwater
I thought my boy was awesome for riding the outside loop at Bar M when he was eight. That kid is riding Mag 7 and shaking off endos? He's rad.
sixstringsteve
Well-Known Member
- Location
- UT
Ian is a rad rider too. How tall is he now?
sixstringsteve
Well-Known Member
- Location
- UT
Tess and I just completed our first bikepacking trip. We did the Gila river ramble. 100 miles, 10k feet of elevation in 3 days. It was TOUGH but so much fun. We have the bug now.
We used oveja negra bags and love them. The whole time I was thinking "I need more weight over the rear tire... I wonder if i can commission Eric to make me a rack one day..."
I learned a lot on my first bikepacking experience:
1. The best bike to bikepack with is the one you already own (sorta). I got by just fine with my sc Bronson, but there are bikes that would have handled the trail a lot better. (a hardtail with 3.0-4.0 tires)
2. We walked/hiked A LOT. Like 5-8 miles out of 100.
3. The hardest part wasn't the weight on the bike, rather being forced to ride with the seat all the way up the whole time. I couldn't lower my dropper a ton or the pack would hit the rear wheel. I ended up locking my rear suspension so I could lower my seat a bit more. Low seat > rear suspension.
4. Rear suspension isn't needed; you aren't going fast enough. For some people, front suspension isn't needed either. I was glad I had it though.
5. Hose clamps and Blackburn cages rock
6. It's amazing how much ground you can cover in a day on these things. We had a 41 mile day with over 3000ft elevation.
7. I needed much lower gearing. I was running my sram 1x11 with an oval 32t. A 28 or 30 would have been a lot easier
8. A frame bag would have been ideal to keep weight low and centered and keep it off my back.
9. Be prepared to carry a LOT of water. We had 8 litres each some days.
10. Water is heavy and sucks to carry
11. I didn't eat nearly as much food as I had planned
12. Hydraulic hoses on modern trail bikes are at a weird angle for the front end loader. My cables were bent at awkward angles. A cable actuated disc like the bb7 would be ideal
13. Due to all the extra weight, your brakes are going to be overtaxed. Consider bringing a spare set of brake pads
14. The extra load, extra miles, and extra neglect your bike will see during the trip means maintenance and durability trump weight.
15. Simplicity is key. The simpler your bike, the better.
16. A small bike headlamp allows you to pack in more miles after the sun goes down. We chose not to bring ours but we wish we had.
17. The wider the tires, the better; especially in the southwest. For the route we took, there was way too much sand. We hiked/pushed at least 3-5 miles in the sandy kitty-litter river bottoms. A fatbike would have been ideal. If i were building a dedicated bikepacking rig, it would have 3.0-4.0 wide tires.
18. Riding technical trails on a loaded bike requires MUCH more skill than riding a regular mtb (and much different skill). I felt like a total mtb noob all over again. You can't get your weight low, can't get behind your seat, can barely lift the front wheel, etc.
19. Momentum is the secret. You can't just have a burst of energy and accelerate up a steep part; your bike is too heavy to accelerate. No matter the speed, just keep your momentum and keep it moving forward.
20. On a trailbike I tend to be in a spinny gear with a high RPM. On the bikepacking trip, I was usually in a gear or two harder, pushing along.
21. It was easy to forget about pace and just meander. We had to really push it to make the miles we needed every day. It felt a bit like an endurance race; racing the sun every day. (Granted this was one of the shortest days of the year).
22. No amount of prep work will get you more than 30% prepared for what the trail will be like. In other words, all your research will still leave 70% of the variables unknown. Be prepared and flexible. The unexpected WILL happen.
23. A loaded bike is a LOT slower. We can ride 35 miles on our trail bikes in 4 or 5 hours. Loaded up, it took 6-8.
Bikepacking robs mountain bikes of their playful/sporty nature, but opens up am entirely new world for exploration. For me, I walked down intermediate obstacles that i would have jumped over on a regular day riding. Manuals, bunny hops, and jumps were out of the question.
With traditional trail riding, the challenge is around speed and riding technical sections. With bikepacking, the challenge became making it to camp before dark without breaking my bike, my body, or my gear.
We had a blast. It was one of our most incredible experiences together. I definitely see a future with Tess and I exploring/riding new countries on our bikes. We had a blast. She will have the video on your yt channel in a couple weeks.
It was one of the most difficult things we've done, it also one of the most rewarding.
We used oveja negra bags and love them. The whole time I was thinking "I need more weight over the rear tire... I wonder if i can commission Eric to make me a rack one day..."
I learned a lot on my first bikepacking experience:
1. The best bike to bikepack with is the one you already own (sorta). I got by just fine with my sc Bronson, but there are bikes that would have handled the trail a lot better. (a hardtail with 3.0-4.0 tires)
2. We walked/hiked A LOT. Like 5-8 miles out of 100.
3. The hardest part wasn't the weight on the bike, rather being forced to ride with the seat all the way up the whole time. I couldn't lower my dropper a ton or the pack would hit the rear wheel. I ended up locking my rear suspension so I could lower my seat a bit more. Low seat > rear suspension.
4. Rear suspension isn't needed; you aren't going fast enough. For some people, front suspension isn't needed either. I was glad I had it though.
5. Hose clamps and Blackburn cages rock
6. It's amazing how much ground you can cover in a day on these things. We had a 41 mile day with over 3000ft elevation.
7. I needed much lower gearing. I was running my sram 1x11 with an oval 32t. A 28 or 30 would have been a lot easier
8. A frame bag would have been ideal to keep weight low and centered and keep it off my back.
9. Be prepared to carry a LOT of water. We had 8 litres each some days.
10. Water is heavy and sucks to carry
11. I didn't eat nearly as much food as I had planned
12. Hydraulic hoses on modern trail bikes are at a weird angle for the front end loader. My cables were bent at awkward angles. A cable actuated disc like the bb7 would be ideal
13. Due to all the extra weight, your brakes are going to be overtaxed. Consider bringing a spare set of brake pads
14. The extra load, extra miles, and extra neglect your bike will see during the trip means maintenance and durability trump weight.
15. Simplicity is key. The simpler your bike, the better.
16. A small bike headlamp allows you to pack in more miles after the sun goes down. We chose not to bring ours but we wish we had.
17. The wider the tires, the better; especially in the southwest. For the route we took, there was way too much sand. We hiked/pushed at least 3-5 miles in the sandy kitty-litter river bottoms. A fatbike would have been ideal. If i were building a dedicated bikepacking rig, it would have 3.0-4.0 wide tires.
18. Riding technical trails on a loaded bike requires MUCH more skill than riding a regular mtb (and much different skill). I felt like a total mtb noob all over again. You can't get your weight low, can't get behind your seat, can barely lift the front wheel, etc.
19. Momentum is the secret. You can't just have a burst of energy and accelerate up a steep part; your bike is too heavy to accelerate. No matter the speed, just keep your momentum and keep it moving forward.
20. On a trailbike I tend to be in a spinny gear with a high RPM. On the bikepacking trip, I was usually in a gear or two harder, pushing along.
21. It was easy to forget about pace and just meander. We had to really push it to make the miles we needed every day. It felt a bit like an endurance race; racing the sun every day. (Granted this was one of the shortest days of the year).
22. No amount of prep work will get you more than 30% prepared for what the trail will be like. In other words, all your research will still leave 70% of the variables unknown. Be prepared and flexible. The unexpected WILL happen.
23. A loaded bike is a LOT slower. We can ride 35 miles on our trail bikes in 4 or 5 hours. Loaded up, it took 6-8.
Bikepacking robs mountain bikes of their playful/sporty nature, but opens up am entirely new world for exploration. For me, I walked down intermediate obstacles that i would have jumped over on a regular day riding. Manuals, bunny hops, and jumps were out of the question.
With traditional trail riding, the challenge is around speed and riding technical sections. With bikepacking, the challenge became making it to camp before dark without breaking my bike, my body, or my gear.
We had a blast. It was one of our most incredible experiences together. I definitely see a future with Tess and I exploring/riding new countries on our bikes. We had a blast. She will have the video on your yt channel in a couple weeks.
It was one of the most difficult things we've done, it also one of the most rewarding.
Last edited:
- Location
- Draper, UT
will 3/4" rebar heavy enough
sixstringsteve
Well-Known Member
- Location
- UT
Well... I DO need more weight over the rear wheel...