Life cycle of a bivi beginner

[simon72]

I recently met a guy at a party who is bivi bike mad and we spent a few hours over more than a few beers talking about the minutiae of bikes, gear, managing weight, water purification, routes around the south downs etc etc. He had is kit set up in the garden as he was staying for a few days. It looked interesting. So I did some research, starting with "Sick as a dog so show me your bivi" (over 2000 posts!). Anyway, must say I am hooked. Pulled the old mountain bike out of the garage, dusted off the bits of kit I already have and have been on an internet spending spree. Almost got a complete set up, just need goundsheet and tarp. Planning my inaugural trip in the next fortnight, somewhere local, and will then probably realise I have bought all the wrong kit.. Watch this space..



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

[simon72]

My first run at a kit list...

Luggage:
Backpack with 3lt Bladder (Half full)
20ltr dry bag
8Ltr dry bag

Camping:
Mountain Shelter (or buy new tarp?)
Tent String (old kite surfing lines)
Alu Pegs (AlpKit Candy Canes x10)
Bivi bag (Blacks SF Bivi as Hunka XL sold out)
Sleeping bag (Cheapo synthetic for now)
Inflatable mat (cheapo for now)
Micro pillow (arrived but too big, more research)

Off bike:
Ski socks
Thermal skins
Northface soft shell
Rain proof jacket
Warm gloves
Beannie
Neck tube
Plastic bags for feet

Cooking:
Lighter x 2
Coleman F1 stove and C100 cylinder
Alu pot and mug
Ti cutlery set

Food:
Extra water (1ltr)
UHT milk (500ml)
Protein bar
Dolmades
Houmous
VIA coffee
Porridge oats
Hot choc powder
Boil in bag meal
chocolate

Bits and bobs:
Head torch
Toothbrush and paste
Toilet paper
Plastic bags
Ipod
Book
Paper towel
Wet wipes
Tools and spares
Bike pump
Dog food
Dog lead
Dog
Booze etc

What I still need:
Saddle bag solution
Handle bar bag solution
(maybe a Frame bag & Gas tank, but not yet)
Straps for fixing luggage to bike
Either new tarp or customise my existing 4 man mountain shelter? (850gm)
Ground sheet

Did I mention I have got the Bivi Bug? Let's see what happens after my first trip..

[Bearbonesnorm]

Simon - a couple of Gelert straps will see a 13L dry bag firmly attached to your bars for a couple of quid ... and I thought it was only Big Rob and me that carried milk

[restlessshawn]

yeah throw away the milk and replace with 500ml of rum, much better !

one silver rim and 1 black? bar ends on risers? don't show them that pic on singletrackworld they will burn you alive

[simon72]

Ahh yes, bike fashion. My trek was the dogs bollocks back in the 90's, when it had Judy XC's, front and rear V brakes (new technology back then!) and grip shift. The only original part left on this bike is the frame!

So I thought I should focus on the Bike aspect today and hit the trails for the first time is years. I forgot just how much I enjoyed muddy single track. I couldn't find my shoes with cleats, but it was probably just as well as had to put a foot down quite a few times on the technical sections...

I have been a slave to kitesurfing for about 5 years now and was nice to be able to decide when I wanted to go riding rather then being totally dependent on the right weather.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

[Tanglefist]

You could take some of the weight off of yourself, and onto the dog.

http://www.google.co.uk/products/catalo ... JEBEPMCMAU

You could also consider him to be emergency rations, like the Norwegian South Pole mission. You can jury-bicycle a dry bag or air mat to the saddle underside with enough straps, if you don't want to invest in a large saddle bag.

[simon72]

My attempt to start out with entry level kit has come unstuck. I never considered how bulky the cheapo stuff would be. I think my wife is going to inherit a synthetic sleeping bag that weighs over 1.5kgs: I will be purchasing a nice expensive down bag sooner than expected...

The bivi bag looks good 420g. Although it says "risk of suffocation".. Have I just bought an expensive plastic bag??



Uploaded with ImageShack.us

[Bearbonesnorm]

The bivi bag looks good 420g. Although it says "risk of suffocation".. Have I just bought an expensive plastic bag??

No, that's normal. It'd have to be something like eVent to stop that happening

If you are after a down bag then you won't go far wrong with something from AlpKit ... PD 600 should do 90% of people 90% of the year.

[simon72]

hmm, what am I doing wrong? here is my kit..



This breaks down as:
Backpack = 3kg with tools etc + 3kg water + 1kg sleeping bag = 7kg
8 ltr dry bag = 3kg food and cooking stuff
20lts dry bag = 4 kg clothes, bivi, tarp and mat.
total kit = 14kg




So am I riding heavy or is this about right?

Anyway, then I tried to strap the 20lts to handlebars and 8ltr under the saddle using webbing and clips I bought and it was like trying to strap on a slippery fish. The bags seem way too heavy and no matter how tight I get the straps the bags just slide loose as soon as the bike starts bumping about. I don't mind carrying excess weight for the first few rides but I wanted to avoid spending a small fortune in the early stages till I found my feet. Seems like I need to buy some expensive bags saddle and handlebar bags?

Got any advice??? :?

[Taylor]

Those siliconised bags are really slippy, you need the plain heavier duty bags with a rougher texture. XTra should fit the bill.

Get a water filter weighing 300ish grams and ditch a 1.5 litre's saving 1.2 kilo's. Fill up as you go.

A sensible weight for tarp, mat and bivi bag is 1200g-1500g(that's without spending silly money, just sillyish money) and you only need a set of base layers for a night in the bag with a down jacket to supplement that. so I'd suggest your carrying at least a kilo of extra clothes you don't need.

Whats the orange bowl for? Eat direct from the packet or your pan.
Wet food is carrying water, try dried/dehydrated food.
Remove the cardboard box for the spare tube.
Andrex wet wipes, ,clues in the name, try hunting out some of these, 55 sheets then have a smaller pack of wet wipes if you can't do without.
Is that a carton of milk? Or wine? If its wine I'll let you off.

That should have saved you about 3.5/4 kilo's in itself.

Try using smaller dry bags, if it doesn't fit in, it doesn't go. The more spare space you have, the more you're tempted to fill it.
20ltr dry bags are too big, I use an 8 under the bars.

[Chew]

20 litres on the bars may be a bit too much. On the bars i'd go with light weight items, such as a sleeping bag and some clothes.

When i started i just used a 8litre bag on the bars and a 20 litre bag on my back, so theres no need to splash any cash as you start.

Its a bit of a learning process, so just take what you think you need. When you get back after a trip you can go through what you took, and anything you didnt use dont take on your next trip. You'll soon work out what works for you.

[simon72]

cheers guys. cutting down weight is actually a lot more critical than I expected.

The bowl is for the dog.

My theory was wet food weights the same as dry food plus the water you need to rehydrate. Also milk weighs the same as water plus powdered milk. Therefore take nice foods stuff and less water. However I can see the theme here. "barebones"

I think you are right about the 20ltr bag, my back pack is empty so I can just load that up and get out there for my first trip and I am sure it will all seem obvious after that.

Hope to hit it before the weekend, and not just in the garden!

PS: When I get the dog one of those backpacks tanglefist recommended he can carry his own food and water!

[Bearbonesnorm]

I think flatfishy and chew have pretty much got it all covered.

How heavy is your backpack? Pointless buying lightweight gear if you then have yo carry it in a bag which weighs twice what it needs to. I happened to be in F+T a couple of weeks ago and took a close look at some TN packs - 20L, 210g and under £40 ... seemed very well made too.

http://www.fieldandtrek.com/terra-nova- ... ack-793023

[restlessshawn]

stu, is there anywhere on that pack to put in any kind of light back pad?

I thought my alpkit gourdon 20 was light till i saw that! though the gourdon is actually very comfy with light loads. I tend to use it with the back pad removed and my air mat folded into the back pad/bladder pocket

[Bearbonesnorm]

stu, is there anywhere on that pack to put in any kind of light back pad?

Read this - http://www.backpackgeartest.org/reviews ... 0peterson/

Much more info than I can give you.

[restlessshawn]

ta, don't think its for me, which saves me £40 :)

[Tanglefist]

Can you fit a pannier rack to the back? That's what I use because I don't want to spurge on a saddlebag. I don't use panniers, instead opting to strap a dry-bag to the top. You can fit a pretty huge bag there if necessary, say 35lts, with a couple of bungees it should be plenty secure. I think it's more important to get the majority of the weight off your back than worry about total weight.

[simon72]

First Bivi completed.
I am lucky enough to live next to Laughton Woods, so I headed out at 8pm and was back by 7am, before the wife and kids were up!

I managed to strap a saddle bag and bar bag on, however the saddle bag hit my legs and was not that secure. Need a better solution. My backpack was too heavy, but good enough for a test run.

My plan is to get a frame bag, a revelate saddle bag, add water bottle cages and a lighter backpack.



I arrived at my secret spot which I had scoped out a few days earlier.

Shot at 2012-07-25

I set up camp. I have chosen a 3m x 3m DD tarp and set it up as a combined tarp and ground sheet. This worked really well, however I can see a problem if there is high winds. It was great to be able to stuff all my kit to the inside edge.

Shot at 2012-07-25

I tried out some roasted chorizo which was excellent, I plan to get some metal skewers for the next trip and more of this type of cooking. I was thinking I could make up some beef and vege skewers then freeze them so they keep for 24 hours and I can use them on a 2 day trip.

Shot at 2012-07-25
The boil in the bag food was poor so might try uncle ben's rice next. I also foudn that drinking wine from teh bottel was dangerous, I necked the whole thing in about 15 mins. Plan to take a wine\coffee cup next time.

Shot at 2012-07-25
Hot dog. He was actually shaking cold during the night, so not sure what to do about that... I am not keen to start carrying extra bedding for the dog.. Anyone else faced this issue? During the night some foxes started going wild around the camp, it was kind of freaky but the dog started barking and chased them off. So he has proved his worth and I plan to keep taking him along.


All in all it was a great time. I did't like the air matt and plan to get a ultralite thermarest. I am also going to get a Rab Infinity down jacket. So the test run has definitely helped me to figure out what kit to get and what to loose. Can't wait to do a proper session up on the sussex downs, maybe this weekend.

[Bearbonesnorm]

No surprise the fox's didn't hang about, I'd be scared of a fire breathing dog too

You can get much more coverage/protection from a 3 x 3 tarp Simon. A lean to, although quick and easy doesn't tend to make the most of your space.

[Normg002]

The picture of your Lab has really made me want to take my Lab on a trip!

Maybe to keep him warmer, take a square metre of bubble wrap for his bed, and just put the warm kit you are not wearing over him? Would only cost you the weight of the bubble wrap - feck all - but should keep him a bit warmer?

[Ray Young]

If your going to take your dog then I think that he too should be warm at night, maybe a dog coat of some sort. Of course you would not have to carry it as you can get doggy panniers so he can carry his own gear and food, being a working dog he would probably enjoy being given something to do :) .
PS hope you ate something before sinking that wine otherwise you must have been very squiffy. Oh, welcome aboard by the way.

[Ray Young]

Just been looking at dog panniers, apparently a dog can carry up to 15% of it's own body weight so your lab could probably carry some of your gear too, bonus 8-) .

[restlessshawn]

Never tried taking my black lab thing, he's fine with the biking but don't think he would understand the stopping bit! He'd definately need a coat overnight, fine when he is running and stuff but he get's cold if there is hanging about and it's chilly

[simon72]

Just spent £100 on a thermarest neolite and £130 on a Rab infinity down jacket. Have I lost the plot? The jacket can't even get wet & I live in England. Wtf?? I know what's coming next.... New bike? At least the optimal bivi bike isn't full sus. That would be expensive!

[gairym]

i LOVE my Rab 'Ininity' jacket!!!!!

worth every penny.