Been pondering some bike packing trips, but I’m a newbie that was once only focussed on speed and finish lines. I was looking for some recommendations for gear to start out with, what I should perhaps avoid and what I should look out for when planning. Thinking that my Parlee Chebacco would be a good bike for this and I’d appreciate all the advice I can get, thanks!
Hi Billy, my gf and I have used Tailfin carbon racks on our bikes (Tarmac and Aethos) for some long trips. We stay in hotels so as not to carry a tent. The Tailfin racks are great and super light and beautifully engineered (although not cheap!). They also look cool. They clamp to seat post and thru-axle to no contact points on the bike. (And no, I don’t work for Tailfin!). I’ve used the Tailfin panniers too, but if you can fit it all on a rear rack and frame bag, that’s a lot more aero. Make sure whatever you get, you test on an overnight at least once before making a long trip. The bikes react very differently with the added weight on the back. Good luck!
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For a first trip use what you already have or try out a cheap saddlepack and bar bag. Tailfin is nice, I have one myself, but I bought this after 4-5 years of bikepacking.
Just start with an overnighter from home, in familiar surroundings to try it out.
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I have used Old Man Mountain axles and racks on 4 bikes now. Nothing but success there. I tried the gigantic seat packs and they will work, but I didn’t like using them. The standard Ortlieb panniers are wonderful. Standard frame bags are helpful too for the items you want to be easier to access. Personally I like strapping a normal tent to the top of a rack instead of the bikecamp specific handlebar ones.
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How did you find the hotels’ reaction to the bikes?
A cheaper alternative to Tailfin is the Ortlieb Quick Racks. Add the thru axel mounting and it’s rock solid regardless of the bike. We did 4 weeks in Europe last year with these racks and Ortlieb panniers (staying in hotels) and we LOVED it. Planning to do another longer and more adventures Euro trip next year adding tents to the setup.
As others have said, the weight really changes the bike handling- it’s not bad but use care on downhills. I almost had a huge wreck descending down a bumpy concrete path through a vineyard- corner tightened up and the weight pushed me out, out, OUT! Yikes!
Hotels were mostly fine with bikes - some we took into the room, some wanted us to leave them in a storage room, stairwell, etc. My advice is take a very good u-lock regardless of the weight penalty so you have piece of mind. The one accom that sticks to mind wanted us to lock our bikes to a flimsy rack in the yard in full view of passers-by in a dodgy part of town. I ended up carrying 2 bikes up 3 flights of very steep, narrow stairs.
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This is 100% not a recommendation because I will be doing my very first overnight bikepacking trip in late July. I have a 2024 Santa Cruz Stigmata in size XL. To plan for this first bikepacking trip - I will be spending a night at a campground - I will be using/acquiring/have acquired the following:
- Route Werks handlebar bag (I have been using this for a couple of years). I am thinking of putting my HoverAir drone and some of its accessories in there.
- Bought a medium Qunature (Rockbros brand) bikepacking bicycle frame bag - it’s more like a half frame bag - that is long enough to store the tent poles. I was looking at the Tailfin half frame bag and I think if I could fit the tent poles in 3.0L version, I would have gotten that instead but it’s too short. I wanted a frame bag with a shape still allows me to fit at least 750-ml bottles in the cages on seat tube and down tube. A larger Tailfin half frame bag that is long enough to fit the tent poles would have prevented me from putting a 950-ml bottle in the down tube. The Qunature frame bag allows me to put a 950-ml bottle in the down tube but not a 750-ml in the seat tube. So I ended up getting a Wolftooth B-Rad 2-slot mounting base to lower the seat tube bottle cage so now it even fits a 950-ml bottle. To allow me to pull/insert the bottles from the sides, I replaced the Tacx bottle cages with the Elite Cannibal XC. In addition to tent poles, I want to put toiletries/bug repellent/sun block/first aid kit in there.
- Ordered the new Tailfin Journey rack - the one without the pannier mounts - and its 10L SpeedPack. I am planning to put a tent (a borrowed Big Agnes Fly Creek UL2)/sleeping bag/sleeping pad/jacket/clothing in the SpeedPack. I am not entirely sure if everything I want to go in the SpeedPack will fit so some of them might have to go to the Qunature frame bag. Or I might strap some on top of the SpeedPack with a couple of Voile straps.
- The Stigmata has a roomy down tube storage and that’s where the emergency bike repair kit already reside.
I am not planning on bringing any cooking utensils because this is just an overnight trip and the campground is not far from civilization. That is, I will be bringing food that is ready to eat with me.
A good resource is the bikepacking channel on Youtube.
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Hey Billy,
A couple of quick questions when sorting out gear is
-how long are you going(how many days/nights)
-how are you going to travel(credit card/less gear vs backcountry/bring it all)
This will help you sort out what you need to carry all the necessary equipment. Keep in mind it’s super easy to over-pack and be mindful of how you load the bike(bulky lightweight can go high. heavy/dense try to keep low)
I work for a bikepacking gear brand and we would be happy to help you dial in a system. Check us out at rockgeist.com; we have a great variety of bags handmade in Asheville, NC and may have exactly what you need. Drop us an email if you have any questions.
Good luck and happy trails
Tim
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Great info, thanks all!
Hotels in Europe , Australia and NZ pretty are easy. Most have some storage room for beverages, a closed garage or some other facility to keep your bike locked away over night. Asking ahead is free too.
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Having done my first overnighter a few months ago I’d suggest, where possible, to just use what you have or borrow stuff. You’ll work out what suits your needs pretty quick and have a better understanding of what you want going forward (if you ever want to go again).
Figured out very quickly that it is easy to over pack and weight is weight no matter how fancy your bags are. It all counts.
I’m still working out exactly what tweaks I’d make for next time but I definitely won’t be using anything that requires a rack. Strapped to the frame or fork from now on. And leaving as much as possible at home.