Just received a Thermarest NeoAir Xlite Thought I'd treat myself what with winter coming.

Shouldn't you have bought an xtherm then?

benp1 wrote:Shouldn't you have bought an xtherm then?

As I made it though last winter using either my Kylmit Inertia Xlite or my Alpkit Wee Airic I'll probably be ok, I do live on the tropical Isle of Wight I think I'm using winter mainly as a justification to myself for buying a sleeping mat which only cost £30 less than I paid for my first car although that might be an indication of how long ago that was and the quality of the car rather than the cost of the mat

Goat link.

sean_iow wrote: As I made it though last winter using either my Kylmit Inertia Xlite or my Alpkit Wee Airic

Blimey, I would have been shivering! I am a bit of a cold sleeper - I have an xtherm, sold an xlite to part fund it

benp1 wrote:

sean_iow wrote: As I made it though last winter using either my Kylmit Inertia Xlite or my Alpkit Wee Airic

Blimey, I would have been shivering! I am a bit of a cold sleeper - I have an xtherm, sold an xlite to part fund it

If I'm touring then it's comfort all the way so an Exped Winterlite. If I'm on an ITT then it's the Klymit Inertia x-lite as it guarantees I won't sleep in

benp1 wrote:

sean_iow wrote: As I made it though last winter using either my Kylmit Inertia Xlite or my Alpkit Wee Airic

Blimey, I would have been shivering! I am a bit of a cold sleeper - I have an xtherm, sold an xlite to part fund it

I did find it cold on the Kylmit, the Alpkit was better but they're both only 3/4 length. Just having my legs of the ground will be a big improvement They do list the xlite as 3 season and as we have palm trees happily growing outside on the Island I would say my winter is only an Autumn for further north If I venture further north I'll have to think again, or be cold.

A pair of disk compatible road wheels; some Vittoria Zaffiro Pro 700x28c tyres; a single speed conversion kit; a couple of pairs of merino arm warmers. Unfortunately no rim tape with the wheels so need to pick that up then the single speed conversion can go ahead

Socks, chain whip, rear light all for £15
It'll probably all fall apart (planet X)

What does a bikepacker who's reached Peak Bikepacker Stuff buy I wonder?

Ti bottle/tin opener (14g) seems a good guess. Sadly it didn't come with an instruction manual so I have an evening of tinkering with, erm, assorted bottles/tins ahead of me.....

Interestingly the "1.1" version had a FORWARD tin-opener. After presumably years of work and experimentation by tin-opener boffins, they came up with.... fanfare... version "1.2".. with a... reverse tin-opener. I do so like to be in the vanguard of comestible-vessel-access technology.

the vanguard of comestible-vessel-access technology

This was the last straw for me and a little snort inadvertently came out of my nose

My apologies 'Wind . The least I can do is offer some assistance :

Is that meant to look like you're pull the wet wipe out of a tiny toilet?

. Brilliantly observed. Now I'M snorting

Shimano ME700 MTB shoes.
Exposure Race MK12 light.
Endura MT500 WTP jacket.

Winter preparation

A pair of Compass Rat Trap Pass tyres - thank you Graham. Now fitted to my Disc Trucker all lovely and tubeless ... the tyres are so light, I reckon they could negate the need for any pre-event training whatsoever

A nice set of slightly used 700c wheels with an Alfine hub at one end .....that's two I've got now...

T5 Tilley hat. A free replacement for the one I've worn out - just had to pay for the postage. The best thing is, when this one wears out, they'll send me another

frogatthefarriers wrote:T5 Tilley hat. A free replacement for the one I've worn out - just had to pay for the postage. The best thing is, when this one wears out, they'll send me another

respect for wearing one out! I have one, which is inherited and has seen a lot of wear, stained and grubby but still intact.

A zendure four port charger, an ultrasonic washer and the usb current/voltage device.

...Well he's been a few times over the last few weeks, principally with a nice new discounted frame.

This is the end result, built of bits from the spare parts box - (wheels, seatpost and seat); some second hand finds - (brand new 11-42 cassette, clutch mech, chain and shifter for £75.00 - the old guy who sold me them had just bought an electric assist Trek, stripped it of all the above 10 speed transmission and fitted new XT D I 2 bits - sometimes you just get lucky!!); and the rest being new bits.

Only tried it down the lane so far, but it feels really nice.

IMG_5443 by hop58, on Flickr

IMG_5445 by hop58, on Flickr

My BB shirt arrived today! Yay!

A rather fine BB Gillet thanks Stuart.
Plus
A pair of titanium socks - how state of the art am I?
Not really as part of my ongoing quest to keep my feet warm and dry I decided to settle for warm and wet rather than cold and wet. So trying out some Nookie ti Neoprene socks paired with some stiff soled self-draining quick drying fell runners. Goretex boots seem to self-destruct after twelve months and take ages to dry out. Was hoping to try the Keen cut away style but after the way the dry grass on Dartmoor and Scotland savaged my ankles/socks/boots last winter/spring decided holes are not the best idea. Salomon Fell Raisers are looking favourite at present. Wonder if this will still work when it’s freezing?
Bet we have a dry BB200 with no river crossings now.

Yup, I got my gilet today as well and it's very nice. Thanks Stu.

A rather fetching BB top was waiting for me when I got home. Thanks Stu