Different Angle Pic

Per a request.  This shows the D rings on the bag:

Saddlebag Mount Hack

I’ve been thinking about this one for awhile, and finally managed to get all of the hardware I needed.  Currently I have three Carradice bags: Barley, Pendle, and a Super C.  The Barley is pretty much assigned to the X Bike; and the Pendel has been my day trip bag for the Trucker.  I picked up the Super C used a few months back with the thoughts that it would be a good camping/touring addition.

To make things easy, I wanted some sort of quick release for swapping the bags on the Trucker, and I couldn’t see spending $50 – $80 for what Carradice offers.  This one has been floating around on the net for some time.  A simple double spring loaded clasp, a pair of small hose clamps, and two sets of D rings for each bag = $6.00.

The result is a nice little setup that allows removing and exchanging bags in about two minutes.  Here’s the Pendle:

The other thing you’ll note is that I mounted a second Nashbar front rack, only this time on the back.  This $15.00 extravagance replaces the $7.00 Midlands mount, but it accomodates the different sized bags better.  Snugging up the Carradice straps or toe straps around the upper plate secures them quite well, with no sagging or sway.  These racks are very cheap but highly functional alternatives to a pair of Nitto M-12’s that would run about $150.00.

Finally, here’s a shot of the Super C.  That’s an inexpensive tent that I’m considering using strapped to the top of it.  The Super C is an unusual shape…kind of like a brief case, so it tends to sit high.  That, with the tent on top, makes it a chore to swing my leg up over, so I’ll be playing around with a different mount by maybe folding the tent differently and getting a compression sack.  Or I might just spring for a better tent. 

The Big Agnes sleeping bag straps down well to the front rack, and the sleeping pad is tucked in one of the panniers.  There’s plenty of room left for clothes, cooking stuff, and food, along with the normal list of emergency tools and gear.

Ride Report: 02.06.10

Hee hee.  yup.

Woke up to this, drank some coffee, watched the weather for a bit, and then started shovelling:

Fortunately, our neighbor Bob was out and about, and took pitty on our manual labor.  In exchange for some gas, he made quick work of the job.

We still gave it the old college try, just to make it look good.

Then, of course, it’s time to play.

and of course, snow = cyclocross.  It’s not much of a snow bike, especially with a layer of ice underneath it all, but as long as I kept the speed down and didn’t try to throw the bike into any sharp turns, it handled things well.

Distance: 2 miles  2010: 29.2

Lykens Valley Rail Trail News

Although their web site hasn’t been updated in a while, two separate news reports indicate that roughly $325,000 has been awarded via a federal grant and state gaming funds to build a riverfront park in Millersburg and the planned rail trail.  The two parks will connect, so theoretically, you could take the ferry from the west side of the river to Millersburg, and then ride the 20 miles to Lykens.

This money should finally get this project well underway.

The Best Laid Plans…

I should have known that posting about my desire to get in a longish ride on Saturday would somehow jinx those plans.  Instead of getting out on a what was an unusually nice January day, I woke up to the mother of all head colds and spent the day in bed.  I probably slept 20 out of 24 hours.  I’m finally starting to feel a little better…just in time for the temps to dip back into the 20’s for this coming weekend. 

Based on some good advise and my limited funds, I ordered a Big Agnes Skinny Fish mummy bag that was on clearance from REI, and it showed up yesterday.  Since I lay mostly on my right side with that arm extended, I ordered a right hand zipper, thinking that I could always open it up that way if I get claustrophobic.  But after playing around with the bag, I don’t think I’ll have that problem.

Even though its a mummy bag, Big Agnes cuts their bags…big.  My challenge was finding a long.  Their cutoff for regulars is 6′, which just fits me, but not my two sons if they want to use it.  What I found is that a lot of the regulars get heavily discounted in the off season, but few of the longs.  Still, I believe I made out pretty good for a 20F bag, thinking that I’m a cold sleeper and the ratings are a bit optimistic, it’ll work as is down to 35F.

There’s plenty of room to roll around, the zipper is well built but requires patience, the fabric and workmanship appear good, and it has that cool system for inserting a pad and pillow.  and the fill is made from recycled material.  Speaking of fill, I went with plastic for price, easier care, and less moisture absorbsion.  That makes it a four pound bag, and its a little big when compressed, but I think the tradeoffs are minor.  It comes with a stuff sack and a simple compression sack.

The next purchase will be a pad: Big Agnes, Thermarest, Exped, insulated or not, pump or not, inflatable or foam or composite?

I found an old but nice Carradice Super C bag, which boosts my storage up to 57 liters – more than enough.  There’s a guy who has come up with a cheap quick release hack for switching saddle bags that I want to try since I seem to be gathering quite the collection of Carradice items.

The X bike is sporting a new pair of skins: 700c X 32 Paselas.  I want to keep that bike “lite” for fun riding, and I wasn’t happy with the Schwalbe Marathon Plus’ and how they were a bear to get on the rims.  If one of the boys is riding it and flats out, they’re SOL.  So Ted at Pedal Pushers had a pair of slightly used tires, and I had a set of lighter rims from the Sloth.  The tires mount without tools, and viola!  I think this bike has finally found it’s personality.  I’m going to keep the Y2000 rims with the 29er knobbies handy for any trail riding; and the Schwalbes are going on the DC19 rims as spares for the Trucker.

Now you’d think I’d have pictures of all this goodness, but I wasn’t able to score a memory card for my new/used camera until last night.  Did you know it’s getting hard to find cards with less than 4 gig?  So I promise to take some shots here before too long.

Finally, with all the rain and wind, we lost our power for a few hours last night.  While the woodstove kept us toasty, I scored some major geekdom points by parading around the house with my headband mounted LED lamp.  Kind of took the romance vibe off with all the candles sitting about, but what can I say?

Sleeping Bag Query

Mummy or Rectangular?  When I sleep it’s usually on my side with one arm above my head.  I think I move around a bit, usually rolling from one side to the other a few times a night.  And when I’ve camped before, I find myself “cocooning” in the morning to keep my head warm.

Sooo…  A mummy would be warmer, take care of the cold head issue; but would I have an issue with not being able to move my arms?  A lower level Big Agnes would leave enough room for rolling around otherwise.  Never tried a mummy bag.

There are low temp rated rectangulars that people seem to like, and I could always wear my wool beanie to sleep; but they don’t pack up as small.  On warmer nights, they can be opened up and used like a quilt.

Advice?