riverfever
Adventurer
I've been doing a lot of thinking lately and have decided to take part in a certain race this coming summer. I've never done anything of this magnatude before. I'm not going to go into too much detail b/c I don't wanna jinx things or give away too many details just yet. All I'll say is that this will be a trip of about 500 miles of trail in length with approximately 40,000' of climbing that I will attempt on a mountain bike. The only real qualification is that it must be entirely self-supported. The setting will be in the mountains, during summer. So...the reason I've started this is to talk about some gear that I'm considering. I did not put this in the "Planned Expeditions" section b/c it's pretty far out still and I have a lot of logistics to sort out. Obviously, I'd like to go as light as possible but still be safe. The main things I was hoping to discuss are:
Sleeping arrangements: I may be doing quite a bit of night riding as well so I need something that's quick to setup and take down. I am leaning towards a hammock from Hennesey. They include a fly. I like this idea b/c it means I wont have to bring along a pad and they're silly light. It also means I wont wake up in a puddle and packing up in the middle of the night would be quick. I know there might be some cool spots on my back but I'm anticipating being really tired. I will be using a zero degree bag in the hammock. Anyone have experience with this setup?
Water treatment: Initially I was going to just use Iodine tablets b/c of their weight. However...I'm hoping for a finish time of inside a week and i don't wanna deal with any intestinal issues if possible. I'm a bit worried about Iodine not killing all the cryptosporidium. Should I sacrifice the minimal weight and use a filter system? What's a good one to look at?
I intend to use a hardtail bike with a rear rack. On the rack will be a dry bag with a Jetboil, sleeping stuff, rain gear, cold weather gear, water filter and some luxury items like chamois cream and toiletries. I should be able to carry about 150oz. of water in my Camelback along with food that will last me a few days. I will pass through a town probably every 2 days where I can re-supply with good stuff otherwise I'll be stocking up at gas stations. The food will probably all be on my back. I'll fill in more details as I can. Thanks for any help/suggestions.
-Chris
Sleeping arrangements: I may be doing quite a bit of night riding as well so I need something that's quick to setup and take down. I am leaning towards a hammock from Hennesey. They include a fly. I like this idea b/c it means I wont have to bring along a pad and they're silly light. It also means I wont wake up in a puddle and packing up in the middle of the night would be quick. I know there might be some cool spots on my back but I'm anticipating being really tired. I will be using a zero degree bag in the hammock. Anyone have experience with this setup?
Water treatment: Initially I was going to just use Iodine tablets b/c of their weight. However...I'm hoping for a finish time of inside a week and i don't wanna deal with any intestinal issues if possible. I'm a bit worried about Iodine not killing all the cryptosporidium. Should I sacrifice the minimal weight and use a filter system? What's a good one to look at?
I intend to use a hardtail bike with a rear rack. On the rack will be a dry bag with a Jetboil, sleeping stuff, rain gear, cold weather gear, water filter and some luxury items like chamois cream and toiletries. I should be able to carry about 150oz. of water in my Camelback along with food that will last me a few days. I will pass through a town probably every 2 days where I can re-supply with good stuff otherwise I'll be stocking up at gas stations. The food will probably all be on my back. I'll fill in more details as I can. Thanks for any help/suggestions.
-Chris
I didn't have enough notice for this years race and I need some time to go from a XC fitness level to an endurance level. I don't really mind the detours but that first one is a real drag. It adds about 55 miles and I checked it out the other day and there just aint much up that road. I raced XC for 10 years and I've never been as pumped up for an event as I am for this one. Should be real fun as long as I go with the right gear.