What weight do you carry?

[Banjo]

Hi there. I have a Trek Valencia hybrid with a rack and panniers on the back. May fit front panniers if needed but would rather not.

I am planning some short overnight or 3 day tours locallish with tent sleeping bag small gas cooker and some spare clothes. Will try to buy food daily close to the end of the days ride to save carrying it.

My tent weighs 1.5 kilos, havent weighed the rest yet but have ridden the bike with 12 kgs in the panniers not counting my tools pump and the panniers themselves.It rode fine and I got up a couple of steep bits no problem so I think i need to keep under about 15 kg.

Does this sound like a sensible amount of kit to carry ?

 

[rualexander]

For a three day tour, not carrying much food, you shouldn't need to carry much more than half that weight, maybe 7-8kg, including your camping gear.

 

[asterix]

It's a personal thing how much you carry. With the right gears a few extra kilos is neither here nor there in my experience. No way I'd ever get the load much under 15 kg if at all!

For a start, I quite like a biggish tent, etc.

 

[sgw]

I would love to be able to get down to under 15kg.

As I confessed on here a while back I have sometimes carried at least 30kg. I think more often would be 20 - 25kg. I was offered much good advice on here about the sensible principles of weight reduction but much of it would involve me spending more, for example, on a sleeping bag, than I have spent on my bike. It's not as though my gear is particularly heavy anyway, it's more the type of touring I do and what I choose to take.

Another thing is that I am not too proud to get off and push up hills both on and off road. I mean real hills, Dales, Lakes etc but tbh I would probably be pushing unladen anyway. I do a lot of backpacking too and would often appreciate the bike if only as a wheelbarrow. I am a lot stricter when backpacking though, down to about 12kg so long as I can get water and food every other day. Some of the so called bridleways I use are in reality rocky stream beds (Ann Clifford Way out of Settle past Stockdale farm anyone?) and I have never seen another touring hybrid even attempting them. The only bikes I have seen on some of them have been piloted by Darth Vader look alikes and had better suspension than most cars I have owned.

Anyway I would obviously say that I consider 15kg as very reasonable but would not argue with anyone who might suggest that less is better. btw my own tents are usualy a 1 man Sawela which I use in colder weather at 1.2kg and in summer I often take just the fly of a 2 man Vango Banshee which I would estimate at about 1kg. Most of my weight is in food, drink and camera, batteries, binoculars etc.

 

[willem]

I am on record here as someone who likes to travel light. For me, comfort is climbing hills with ease (well, with less pain and effort). Of course, I still want a spaceous enough tent, a good stove and a warm bed. Even in cold and wet weather. So in July when touring in Norway, and prepared for the worst weather, I had a total of 18 kg in a bar bag, two rear panniers, and the tent on top of the rack. The bike handled fine, but I also think in my case that with anything more it would no longer do that.

Some 2-3 kg of my luggage was bad/cold weather gear that I would not often expect to take, and on my return I also concluded I could save another 2-3 kg by leaving unnecessary stuff at home (cheap) and by getting some lighter kit (expensive). So for normal temperate weather my luggage weight could be reduced to some 13 kg, without any deprivation. Finally, I also concluded that this could be further reduced to about 11 kg, but with some deprivation of comfort that I decided I did not want to endure. It is a fine line, that you wil have to draw. However, you seem to have made some sensible decisions so far. Doing without fron paniers saves some 2-2.5 kg, and quite a bit of money. You may be better off spending that money to reduce the pack size and weight of the gear - I think.

Willem

 

[Arch]

This was my load for a camping weekend last summer. It was only a two night trip, and I didn't have to take cooking gear. The panniers are quite small - yours look bigger. So it ought to be do-able.

No idea of the weight, I'm afraid. I got up every hill between here and Beverley - none of which are huge, but some of which are big enough for someone used to dead flat....

 

[willem]

I guess the difference between a three days tour and a thirty days tour is probably an extra 1 kg, for some more socks, jockeys and shirts/jerseys.
Willem

 

[sgw]

My recently slimmed down sub 23kg (see Willem, I am trying )

Mind you the step through in front looks similar and is well under 13kg. Looks as ever can be deceptive.

 

[willem]

Well done, and nice picture. Shedding weight takes time, but with the two of you, you already have an advantage of probably some 3 kg. My question is, of ocurse, if you noticed the difference while riding/climbing, and if you had to give up any meaningful comfort?
Willem

 

[sgw]

My question is, of ocurse, if you noticed the difference while riding/climbing, and if you had to give up any meaningful comfort?
Willem

Marginaly perhaps. You see I don't even push myself realy. Once spinning like a dervish and doing walking pace or less, I get off.

I am feeling stronger and fitter though I have done a lot of fully loaded riding and walking with full gear over the last 6 weeks. It's maintaining it, esp over the winter that will be the problem.

I realy don't go in for comfort. 3/4 sleep mat, only one pair of shoes and one change of clothes. On that trip I could get regular water, though it looked more like Guinness, and food from villages we passed through. When I go alone, I need to carry more and I like to be alone so I stay on the tops as long as I can.

 

[Wardy]

Last couple of trips I've had about 20kg spread between front and rear panniers, but I like my comfort so I have a two-man tent, a hefty down bag and an Exped Downmat. I usually carry a fair bit of food as well. Mark you, I usually end up coming back with clothes and food I haven't used so that should tell me something! If you don't like the idea of having front panniers (it helps to distribute the weight a bit better) have you considered adding a bar bag?

 

[doog]

Didnt weigh this on my short tour of Dorset / Somerset but suffered a broken rear spoke towards the end . Thats a tent,ground sheet, mat and sleeping bag on the back and my so called 46 litre Alturas

Anyone else tend to just throw anything else on the back...flip flops, water

 

[User10119]

I've no idea about weight, but B&B-ing I still managed to more-or-less fill a pair of ortlieb back-rollers, and the Cub took his own front rollers on his islabike.


And snap

I have a Valencia too. Although she's a bit smaller than yours...

 

[vernon]

Hi there. I have a Trek Valencia hybrid with a rack and panniers on the back. May fit front panniers if needed but would rather not.

I am planning some short overnight or 3 day tours locallish with tent sleeping bag small gas cooker and some spare clothes. Will try to buy food daily close to the end of the days ride to save carrying it.

My tent weighs 1.5 kilos, havent weighed the rest yet but have ridden the bike with 12 kgs in the panniers not counting my tools pump and the panniers themselves.It rode fine and I got up a couple of steep bits no problem so I think i need to keep under about 15 kg.

Does this sound like a sensible amount of kit to carry ?

I'd worry less about weight and more about what is essential. Too many folk are preoccupied with weight sometimes at the expense of being comfortable when camped out.

For a three day tour I take
tent
sleeping mat
sleeping bag
one change of cycling clothes
one change of non-cycling clothes
tea bags
powdered milk
cous cous
couple of cuppa soups
corned beef
pouch of bolognese sauce
trangia
meths
oats
multi-tool
spare tubes
pump

Everything fits into a couple of panniers with lots of room to spare and weight has never been a consideration as the difference of a couple of kg is the equivalent of 2 litres of water and insignificant compared to my 130kg body mass.

 

[sgw]

Anyone else tend to just throw anything else on the back...flip flops, water

I quite often have a carrier bag of last nights rubbish strapped on top of mine. Sometimes carry it all day if I forget or don't find anywhere to get rid of it.