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Yuri Bahti <ybahti@...> wrote:
Nice repeot Gary. You sure have a great backyard.
Thanks for sharing.
yuri
>From: Gary Blakley
>Reply-To: ultralightbiking@yahoogroups.com
>To: ultralight biking
>Subject: [ultralightbiking] Trying a BOB trailer
>Date: Tue, 19 Jun 2007 20:28:36 -0600
>
>This may be a little off topic for this list but it's been pretty
>quiet and I figure at least a few of you might be curious. Stay
>tuned too for a link for some pretty nice scenery photos.
>
>I've never pulled a BOB. I have owned a two wheel trailer at one
>time for shopping but never toured with it. A friend owns a BOB that
>needed some work and I offered to get it in shape if he'd let me try
>it out. So, Friday I headed out for a two night bike camping trip
>with the BOB in tow, I left at 11:00 AM Friday and was home by 2:00
>PM Sunday. I loaded it with my usual (light) camping gear with the
>addition of a couple of items, a pair of Crocs (light weight sandals)
>and my old Sierra Designs Clip Flashlight tent. We've had a wet
>spring here in southern Colorado and the mosquitos are hungry and
>numerous so I chose to take the neglected tent. I don't think I've
>used it since I started ultra lighting about 4 years ago. On this
>ride I'd not have access to any services till I was 40 miles from
>home so I carried food for 3 days. The weight of my gear and food
>was 17 lbs. without water, not counting the trailer or the bag. I
>was thinking to myself... ah, this extra weight is no big deal.
>
>The route started out on the Great Divide Mountain Bike Route
>(GDMBR). From my home in Del Norte, I headed north up to Canero
>Pass (10,100'), over Cochetopa Pass (10, 500'). Then I left the
>Divide route and crossed Los Pinos Pass (10,600') to Slumgullian Pass
>(11,500') and hitting pavement, then south over Spring Creek Pass
>(10,900') and down into the the Rio Grande river near the head
>waters, into Creede, South Fork and then back home. 196 miles, and
>over half of that was on dirt forest service roads. It should go
>with out saying I did a bit of climbing. The road surface was quite
>good for the most part. I rode my trusty Ibis Hakalugi cross /
>adventure bike. I feel an MTB is overkill for rides like this and a
>cross bike, or even a touring bike with fat (ish) tires is more than
>adequate. I am probably the minority though.
>
>So, the trailer... I wish now I'd chosen a shorter ride, or at least
>a ride with less climbing to try it out. The thing is a boat
>anchor! It's supposed to weigh 12 lbs. I don't know if that
>includes the (4 lbs.) bag or not; didn't weigh it. But, it is truly
>amazing how slow and hard it is to get this sucker up a hill! The
>bike handled fine with it, I could even ride no hands after I got the
>feel for it. It's sort of cool that you can jack knife the bike and
>it will stay up on it's own. The trailer can be inverted to make a
>little camp table. I heard of a guy who strings his tarp up between
>bike and trailer when in the jack knifed position for a shelter. It
>makes a quick improptu weekend trip easy because you don't need to
>mount a rack if it's not already on your bike and that big bag is
>easy to just throw the camping gear into. On down hills it flies,
>better aerodynamics than panniers, and on the flats you hardly notice
>it's there. That's the good stuff. I'll never pull one again, I
>think. I typically love climbing, this thing made me dread it. Now
>I see why most of the Divide riders only do 40 miles a day. Still, I
>am somewhat amazed how much difference it made. I assume, mostly,
>it's the weight. Also, on rough surfaces, I was hitting each bump
>three times as opposed to two. The little 16" wheel had to affect
>that as well. I spent a good portion of the trip thinking of the to
>best way (for me) to mount light weight bags on the bike which, BTW,
>is pretty much what this list is about. I still think ultra light is
>the only way to go (for me). The challenge is in putting together a
>light and practical way to haul gear, balancing convenience, comfort
>and cost. I think the ideal set up will be different for each rider
>and his particular riding and location. I've tried several
>different ways and will keep trying new ways to haul my gear.
>
>This is the first time I've been bike camping this year. I
>remembered why I love doing this. I spent a grand total of $2.78 in
>Creede for a bad cup of coffee and a very marginal muffin. I burned
>no fossil fuel. I went around 60 dirt miles without seeing another
>car or person. I saw and experienced much more than I would have in
>the same amount of time backpacking, and, I would have had to drive
>to get there.
>
>Photos here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/garandpatti/sets/
>72157600404773119/
>
>Gary Blakley
>
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