Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Guys I need some help.

I thought of posting this elsewhere but I wanted as many as possible to see it. Sorry if it is in the wrong place. Ya'll know of my transformation from fat man to cyclist.

I am getting stuff together to ride a bicycle from Alabama to Colorado. I am going to try to leave around May. Lots of change in my life and part of it is that I am more financially broke than ever before.

I am looking for super light weight camping equipment that I can carry on a bicycle. If ya'll have any top notch equipment that you can let go for cheap or possibly some outdoors stuff trade.please PM me the details. I need tent,and bag most since I can build an alcohol stove but open to any suggestions. Also need rain gear in a medium to small tall.

You close to Tuscaloosa

I'm NW Alabama,Winston county.

Post your route for members to offer support along the way.

If Birdwatcher doesn't chime in, shoot him a pm. He's the resident expert...

I plan too when it gets closer. Going to ride the Natchez Trace in a few weeks

We see a whole lot of bicycle tourists out in Wyoming in the summertime. Many of them have a little trailer they pull behind them, might work out for you.

I've considered it. I about to buy a classic steel touring bike and set it up with racks and bags. I want to see how I like that before trying a trailer. In some ways it seems great and in some it might be a pain. I don't have a lot of cash to experiment with right now and am buying everything used.

I have a badlands/ black ovis tent you can borrow. Just send it back when your done. Never been used.
PM me your address and I'll get it to you.

Appreciate it buddy. I might need to hit you up in a couple weeks if I don't trade up anything.

Yes Mike knows a thing or two about long long long distance bicycling. I would look to him for advice and tips.

Timbermaster went out of his way to give me a down sleeping bag when I needed it going up into Yellowstone 😎 I’d be happy to pass it along to you. What sorta altitudes are you planning to hit in Colorado?

I prefer racks and bags, never have tried a trailer, but I hear the constant slight tug can wear on you, deciding factor for me we’re stories of jackknifing when folks hit the brakes going downhill.

I’m a tad worried about your tight budget, I think I averaged about $50 day including meals and a motels about every third day if thee was no place to camp.

This. Come through OK.

Most, "not most"... all of the the ultra light or backpack tents I've seen and used are not durable enough to withstand the rigors of their intended design.

I haven't planned the route yet. Going close to Boulder where a cousin lives. I figured some of the guys on a biking forum could give me suggestions on routes. Any advice is appreciated.

My plan is to carry a 1983 Schwinn Voyager SP to my upcoming masters mechanics classes and make sure it is in tip top shape. I need to get all my kit together by March including the bike that I am going tomorrow to get. Then I am going to test it out on the Natchez Trace. That 440 miles will be a proving ground so to speak on me and equipment. It's close enough from home that I could be rescued and my wife will meet me along the way for a couple days anyway. Ideally,I want to leave for Colorado in May but I am just starting actual planning.

Shoot me a PM if you like. I'll pick your brain as much as you want about cycling. I would be interested in what you spend $50 a day on. Once I have my kit,I don't see spending money on anything really except food.and I can eat really cheaply. I thrive on whole grain rice and dried beans,and I'm not above skinning a fresh killed rabbit for the pot. LOL

Well, you have a great bike anyway, I tour on an ‘89 Voyageur, the steel frame touring bikes of that era were/are awesome.

Big mistake I did was take a 20+ yo bike in 2013 and start riding the heck out of it, the wheel hubs had never been repacked in all that time and I ruined ‘em.

No matter, I was of course on 27” wheels, I had a 700c wheelset built. I would highly recommend this. Wheels have come a long way in the last 30 years. The cantilever brakes on my bike accommodated the slightly smaller wheel, I would expect yours would too.

Cut corners on everything else if ya want but not tires. 27” tires are gonna be hard to find. You want at least as puncture-resistant tires on a par with Continental Gatorskins or Schwalbe Marathons. I also bring five spare tubes and an extra tire folded up. I’ve actually needed that spare tire on two of my three tours and once I went through three tubes in a single day (defective tire) miles from the nearest supply.

This is the website where I learned a whole lot....

https://www.bikeforums.net/touring/

Our own Paul Barnard hangs out there too sometimes.

Headsets and bottom brackets. Assume the grease in those of your bike have dried up too. If they are in good shape you can replace the bearings and repack them good enough for a tour.

Since my bike is also daily transportation I quit messing around and got a Chris King headset ($130??) and a sealed RG bottom bracket (‘nother $130). Now I hardly ever have to mess with ‘em.

Saddle, obviously important. I am absolutely sold on Brook’s traditional leather saddles (B17). They rock (another $130).

And if you can find them and they fit your budget, Ortleib panniers front and back are absolutely the way to go. Completely watertight and mine have seen hard use for seven years now, battered but still good as new functionally.