The Big Five – Shelter – Part One

Shelter

The quickest way to save weight on your shelter is to get rid of it and take a credit card, but for me that is a problem.

1. Cost
2. Location
3. I really like camping

So I have had few tents for touring, my first tent was single skin cheap as you like and a great start 36 years or so ago, and it really started something.

Jump forward a few decades and I found myself in a Nallo GT,  a lot more robust and unbelievably more expensive, and 3.2kg great tent and still used.

But it had its problems 3.2kg is to much for a solo cyclist to carry, this tent will stand up to just about anything, I say just about as it was flattened at Castle point new Zealand in a massive gale. Testament to its strength that trees fell before it did and it was my fault for pitching on the sea front with a gale due. That night all the other tents on the campsite were destroyed and although damaged I was still able to use the tent which was impressive, has since been repaired like new by Hilleberg.

The only other problem I have suffered with this tent is condensation as it needs lots of ventilation and good orientation as it zips up so wind tight. Still if I was sharing the load I would carry this tent and be sure of warm dry nights with lots of space for gear.

So in my search for the perfect solo tent I next moved to a Marmot Limelight 2. This seemed to tick all the boxes, free standing stealthy green and much smaller, but the reality was it was nearly as heavy as the Nallo and actually as big pack size I was disappointed to say the least. So eldest son needed a tent for a year long outdoor education certificate and the tent moved on.

Well then along the Vaude Hogan and this was a great tent my only complaint of it was the vestibule is tiny and pitches inner first, about 1.5kg packs up nice and Small easy fit in a pannier and free standing nearly. The real problem with it is it now resides in youngest sons pack. I seriously thought about buying the same tent as a replacement as it is that good but I wanted the version with a bigger vestibule which I was unable to get for the right sort of money in New Zealand.

So the the current end game is out of China and is the Luxe Sil peak Mini and it is a great not so little tent, with a total weight of 1.4kg and a tiny pack size its great for me. 2.4m by 2.2m heaps of space for bad weather or getting out the sun, well made and has held up well. Can be used as a tarp, a tent with or with out pole but not free standing can be pitched quickly with 4 pegs but is better with 8 pegs. Without the pole and inner you have a 800 gram trap tent. The inner nest is for one only but the tent will sleep 2.

So its downsides are that it slopes being a Tepee style of tent and that makes the tent wall feel closes to you feet and head but has never touched. The other problem is that the mud wall on the nest is quite shallow and should be higher its never been a problem but had me worried when a stream formed under the tent in a storm. Luxe has since changed the inner with higher mud walls which I am sure is a good idea.

So my system is now  1.8 kg lighter and has reduced in volume by over 75% and at the moment have no reason to change as this tent fly fits on my front forks and the pole and nest in the Ortlieb dry bag(with other gear), and the  tent fly on left as viewed in this picture.

 

Change is Never Easy

Over the last few month I have been building and modifying Bagheera, from dynamo hub through brakes and gear changers, bags and handlebars, and even a new charging system.

So just as I think its right, the next iteration comes along, and changes everything and I have been riding more and writing less, which is good but I feel like I have not recorded this growing process so over the next few posts I intend to put this situation right.

I have a love hate relationship with springtime, weather is improving and I’m able to ride more but the garden wants more time as does the house, so at the moment feeling a little thin even if my waist line says different.

As I prepare for the Tour Aotearoa my weekly and individual mileage goes up, I am constantly trying to reduce weight of the kit I carry. I guess my approach to this is make a list of everything I could ever need, weight it, have an OMG moment and then go to the absolute minimum. Then comes the, this is meant to be enjoyable factor and slowly add back in what is really needed, till I have my acceptable comfort level.

I learned the hard way carrying to much may allow you to do anything and be ready for anything, but when the world starts to go vertical life is not much fun when you drag a loaded bike up a mountain because its to heavy to peddle. Now more than ever in my life lightweight kit is more readily available and is tough enough for extended use, the downside is it’s costs and you have to be a little more careful.

So I have gone from a 20kg touring bike to a  16kg bike and 40kg of food water and gear to 16kg. Yes there are differences and maybe some sacrifices but it works for me.  These are both fully loaded and neither bike is generally this heavy.

Totals Old 60kg

Totals New 32kg

So how have I done this, what has changed and do I miss anything and can I and should I go lighter…………?

 

As if by magic Tour Aotearoa 2016

For my 50th year I plan to do a grand tour of New Zealand, well this failed as wife got a new job and everything changed. For me none of this was really planned, So I settled on a new bike and and while looking for places to go I found the Tour Aotearoa, which means I will still be 50 before I finish my planned tour, more than that the tour has been organized by the Kennett Brothers who are the authors of the book   Classic New Zealand Cycle Trails So the route for the brevet is the more or less what I was going to follow Route map  

Got a new bike well this is how I intend to use it. Tour Aotearoa 2016

Bikepacking New Zealand & the Tour Aotearoa 2016

Name Decal’s orderd

Well name chosen and Decal ordered from  Velo Ink only $8.99 will be on the bike in a few weeks 😉

Say hello to Bagheera

Everybody knew Bagheera, and nobody dared to cross his path; for he was as cunning as Tabaqui, as bold as the wild buffalo, and as reckless as the wounded elephant. But he had a voice as soft as wild honey dripping from a tree, and a skin softer than down.
—Rudyard Kipling, The Jungle Book