# Should mtbr have a bikepacking/touring specific forum?



## jmmUT (Sep 15, 2008)

Just throwing this out there. What is everyone's opinion on mtbr.com having a bike packing/touring forum? Sure touring is technically road biking but mountain bike packing is common enough and more people are touring on 29ers, etc. 

Right now there is info and discussions but it's all scattered across all the forums. I think it would be awesome to have one forum here on mtbr.com where rides, gear, bikes, stories, pointers, etc. are all consolidated.

Thoughts?


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## AZ (Apr 14, 2009)

Yes, assemble all the info into one forum IMHO, needs a home.


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## MattP. (Oct 3, 2005)

Absolutely!


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## Berkeley Mike (Jan 13, 2004)

Sure.


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## discombobulated_conundrum (Aug 2, 2008)

Mucho gusto! Then I don't have to scrounge using this site's wacky search engine.


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## jmctav23 (Oct 16, 2010)

hells yeah, I mean seriously, electric assist crap but nothing for bikepacking...wtf


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## stumpbumper (Dec 3, 2010)

I only recently got into bikepacking and would like to see it added to MTBR.

I have found the existing bikepacking forum at https://www.bikepacking.net/ to be quite helpful and informative.

My bikepacking setup. I shoot a lot of photos and since taking this one I have replaced the cumbersome tripod with a compact Gorillapod from Joby :thumbsup:


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## RBowles (Jun 1, 2010)

I voted no. The rent is too damned high.


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## crux (Jan 10, 2004)

jmmorath said:


> Just throwing this out there. What is everyone's opinion on mtbr.com having a bike packing/touring forum? Sure touring is technically road biking but mountain bike packing is common enough and more people are touring on 29ers, etc.
> 
> Right now there is info and discussions but it's all scattered across all the forums. I think it would be awesome to have one forum here on mtbr.com where rides, gear, bikes, stories, pointers, etc. are all consolidated.
> 
> Thoughts?


This has been tossed around before and my answer is still YES.

For those that think "No, it's not pertinent enough to MTBR" we have both electric and cargo bikes. When is the last time you saw either on any single track trail. Bikepacking gives one the ability to really enjoy the back country more than what can be accomplished is a singular afternoons ride.


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## stumpbumper (Dec 3, 2010)

Good points.

Something else to be considered is that "bikepacking" is mostly done offroad on mountain bikes wheres adventure cycling or touring as it is just as often called is usually done on heavy-duty road bikes. As I pointed out in my previous post, the sport has grown enough to have a forum all its own and to me that indicates just how popular it has already become.

I think popular demand will eventually cause it to be added to MTBR but (and I hate to say this) the small number of replies to this thread indicate to me that not a lot of MTBR subscribers are interested in bikepacking at this time. Back on a postive note, adding it to MTBR will surely create more interest than now exists.

As you say, the great thing about bikepacking is it enables you to expand your mountain biking beyond single-day rides. In April several of us are bikepacking the Lake Moultrie, Swamp Fox and Awendaw passages of the Palmetto Trail in SC for a total of 74 miles. I have already done the three sections of the Enoree Passage (36 miles) and during 2011 I am shooting for completing all sections of the Palmetto Trail that are open and allow mountain bikes. When completed, that trail system will extend across South Carolina, from the North Carolina border to the sea just north of Charleston.


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## AZ (Apr 14, 2009)

bump


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## zukrider (Nov 14, 2009)

yes please. i need ideas for racking my full squishy, and in this thread alone, i have gotten an idea!

i plan to bikepack more than drive/camp this summer!


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## jmmUT (Sep 15, 2008)

Thanks for the bump. And yeah, things like rigging racks always seems to be tricky business. A place for people to discuss this on mtbr.com would be great. Not to mention routes, camping gear, and such. I think that'd be beneficial for a lot of peeps.


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## crux (Jan 10, 2004)

jmmorath said:


> Thanks for the bump. And yeah, things like rigging racks always seems to be tricky business. A place for people to discuss this on mtbr.com would be great. Not to mention routes, camping gear, and such. I think that'd be beneficial for a lot of peeps.


You covered quite a bit of ground in not all that many words here.

Currently I'm having some bars fabricated with means of holding a bar bag better considering how many lines (shifter and brake) can get tangled up there. I could list nearly half a dozen different forums where I could post this in littering MTBR with posts covering a singular topic.

What tent works best for bike packing for some one over 6'2"
How do I fir a rack / pack on my 6" bike, how about my 29er?
Traveling through NM and want to know the best route through Santa Fe National Forest? (BTW there are several, however you take a wrong turn and your on private property. Some don't care and support the trails, others have a significantly harsher opinion.)
How can I attach a 3rd or 4th water bottle to my bike?
I need to ford a river on the Umpqua trail. Where is the best spot? Is there a bridge?

Just a few simple questions I could think of off the top of my head that I've encountered where someone could benefit from this shared knowledge.


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## the-one1 (Aug 2, 2008)

I vote for removing the electric bike forum and replacing it with this!


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## Harold (Dec 23, 2003)

dude, what's with the tarp over the tent?


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## Oh-my-tush-a (Dec 7, 2010)

So, if lots of people are interested in a bikepacking forum, what needs to happen next to get an official bikepacking forum???


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## dirt farmer (Mar 28, 2005)

NateHawk said:


> dude, what's with the tarp over the tent?


I'm guessing the forecast called for rain that night, and he has no rain fly??


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## Harryonaspot (Oct 5, 2004)

*obviously*

yes


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## pyrotyro (Mar 27, 2011)

I didnt realize backpacking off of bikes was this popular!

Kick-ass!


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## jmctav23 (Oct 16, 2010)

Oh-my-tush-a said:


> So, if lots of people are interested in a bikepacking forum, what needs to happen next to get an official bikepacking forum???


I've been making blood sacrifices, but it hasn't seemed to moved the will of the almighty here yet.


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## stumblemumble (Mar 31, 2006)

Second removing the electric bike abyss and replacing it with this.


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## rushman3 (Jan 24, 2009)

Great idea, thanks for the photos of your FS bike with a rear rack. I have been thinking about setting up my 29 HT for Bikepacking, but now maybe using my 2011 29er FS STJ, if I can fiqure out the rear rack system.


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## floydlippencott (Sep 4, 2010)

Absolutely, please . Watch it take off once the info is out there.


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## AZ (Apr 14, 2009)

With the price of fuel increasing evermore this should be attractive to more riders.


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## wbmason55 (May 30, 2010)

Yes....need bikepacking.....now!
Eliminate "Electric Assist Bicycles" and "New Products and Innovations" (the former due to the fact that it's dumb, the later due to the fact that the forum sees almost no activity and can merge into other forums.)


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## stumpbumper (Dec 3, 2010)

NateHawk said:


> dude, what's with the tarp over the tent?


That's a bug bivy with a mesh top (from Marmot) beneath the tarp and not a tent (see below).

www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9E6koVov4A


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## stumpbumper (Dec 3, 2010)

rushman3 said:


> Great idea, thanks for the photos of your FS bike with a rear rack. I have been thinking about setting up my 29 HT for Bikepacking, but now maybe using my 2011 29er FS STJ, if I can fiqure out the rear rack system.


The rear rack on my full-suspension bike shown in the photo is available from Old Man Mountain. As far as I know, that's the only shop that offers front and rear racks for all makes and models of full-squishers (site quick link below). :thumbsup:

http://www.oldmanmountain.com/


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## stumpbumper (Dec 3, 2010)

Those who are interested in having a bikepacking forum added to MTBR and know how to communicate with the moderator might want to refer him/her to this recent posting on the North Carolina/South Carolina thread. :thumbsup:

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=704884


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## AZ (Apr 14, 2009)

A bump for a worthy goal.


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## wbmason55 (May 30, 2010)

AZ.MTNS said:


> A bump for a worthy goal.


Yes, still desired and not forgotten.


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## Okie81 (Apr 7, 2010)

Bump, any word on a new bikepacking forum?


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## jmmUT (Sep 15, 2008)

I just sent them an inquiry explaining the interest people have shown and asking about feasibility. In the mean time here's some stoke from a 80 mile route of pavement, gravel, and jeep roads I just did from Durango to Telluride, CO for the Bluegrass festival.

I did it singlespeed (32:22) and fully loaded (I wanted to be comfortable 5 days at the fest). Next time I'm using gears and bringing less stuff.


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## GittinSkinny (Jan 12, 2010)

+1 Bikepacking!!!!!!!!!


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## Oh-my-tush-a (Dec 7, 2010)

Awesome pictures of your route from Durango to Telluride. We are planning on bikepacking the Colorado Trail from Salida to Durango very soon. Any beta on snowpack and conditions in the San Juans along the CT would be great! Your pics look like the snow is melting fast!


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## jmmUT (Sep 15, 2008)

Oh-my-tush-a said:


> Awesome pictures of your route from Durango to Telluride. We are planning on bikepacking the Colorado Trail from Salida to Durango very soon. Any beta on snowpack and conditions in the San Juans along the CT would be great! Your pics look like the snow is melting fast!


Lower elevation of the CT Junction Creek, Dry Fork area are bone dry but it actually dropped four inches of wet snow just below timberline on June 19 and 20th! But it's been 90's in the lower elevations and 70's in the upper so the snow and mud is probably gone now. I saw people starting foot treks of the trail the other day so it's probably ok now


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## Jwiffle (Jan 26, 2004)

Voted yes, as my son and I have gotten into bikepacking recently. It is a lot of fun.


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