On my mtn bike which I use when most of the riding will be off-road I wear my
backpack.I bungy the tent rolled up in the ridgerest to the handlebars and
attach the sleeping bag to the seat post with cord.Then I put as much
food,water,tools etc either stuffed in the ridgerest,or secured on the top of it
with the bungies or in the stuff sack with the sleeping bag.This is it as far as
gear no rack,etc.

On my touring bike which I use mostly on paved surfaces or smooth dirt roads I
much prefer most if not all weight off my back and I already have a rear rack on
it so prefer to attach most of the gear to the rack.On this bike I will add a
small daypack as well with items I will need to access during the day which will
be bungied on top of everything else in a manner I can easily get to the
contents.

One caveat, is I would classify my gear(tent/pack/sleeping bag) as lightweight
but not ultralight yet.How I keep the weight down is just not take alot of extra
stuff.For example, my backpack is a very small capacity external frame pack so
this right there limits how much extra stuff I can take.I would eventually like
to get an ultralight pack but am concerned about the durability issue you
mention as well as the fact externals actually work well in the Florida heat
where I mostly backpack/bike.

So what I do with the pack on the touring bike is bungy it parallel with the
rack with as many as eight bungies counting keeping those keeping everything
else on top of it in place as well.It does extend over the end some which
doesn't cause problems as long as the bungies stay tight and I make sure to
check this regularly.An arrangement more like this:
http://www.rayjardine.com/adventures/2003-iua/2003-iua-2.shtml
with an ultralight pack would probably be more ideal and something I would
seriously consider for an extended trip.

As far as shoes I use trail runners with a sturdy toe box which work well with
my toe clips allowing me to avoid an extra pair of shoes.

--- In ultralightbiking@yahoogroups.com, Gary Blakley <garyblakley@...> wrote:
>
> Those of you who have combined the two disciplines; do you wear your
> backpack while riding and add the bike specific items to racks/bags
> on the bike or do you carry the pack on the bike too? I've yet to
> try my ultra light packs while riding. It would seem if we keep
> food, water and all bike tools, etc. on the bike the pack would be
> fairly comfortable at less than 10 lbs. If you do carry your pack on
> the rack is it hard to get it to carry well there? It would seem
> that it would be hard on the thin fabric and would only be an option
> on mostly smooth surfaces. I really like the idea of combining
> hiking and riding trips. One more question, two pair of shoes
> (riding and walking) or just one? It would be hard for me to give up
> my clipless and I haven't found a walking shoe I like for riding very
> much. I know I probably could get used to it though.
>
> Gary