So this wasn't an overnighter, but after having had my frame bag, Mountain Lion and Viscacha for a while without using them in anger, I thought it was about time I at least took them for a test run. I'm busy for the next few weeks and have had a back injury that stopped me doing much through January and most of February, but I finally managed to get out on the bike on Sunday... joy!



A friend is riding the RideLondon 100 later in the year and so wanted to start to get some more miles in at the weekend so we did a day blast from Guildford down the Downs Link to Shoreham by Sea. I didn't measure the distance but from the N Downs Way to the outskirts of Shoreham is 37 miles. We did a loop out of Guildford up to St Martha's church and then down the hill, plus the final stretch into Shoreham and the 'commute' from home to Clapham Junction so I'm guessing it was around 50 miles.



The bike is a Canyon Nerve XC 8.0. This is the first time I've used the bikepacking gear on the bike properly, and whilst I left a few bits out, I did pack the main stuff to see how it all felt. So, this is how I chucked stuff in:

Mountain Lion:
Cumulus Quantum 350 down bag
Rab Microlight down jacket
On-One Merino Tech jacket
Wooly hat

Bar Pocket:
Maps
Phone
Wallet
Heaps of space left...

Wildcat Leopard Frame bag
Alpkit Xtra 13 litre dry bag
Spare tube & puncture repair kit
Tools (chain links, spare chain section, three tyre irons, tyre boot, mech hanger)
Lube
Brake pads
Topeak Mountain Morph pump
Topeak pocket shock pump
Alpkit MyTiMug with Primus Express Lander stove & lighter inside
Primus power 230 g gas cylinder
First aid kit

Revelate Viscacha saddle bag
SilTarp 2
Alpkit Hunka XL
Exped Downmat UL 7
Endura Thermolite leg warmers
Northwave waterproof shoe covers
Gore Bike Wear Gore Tex gloves

Revelate Gas Tank
Battery for AyUp light on bars
Many many Mule bars

Osprey Talon 33 rucksack
3 litre Camelbak reservoir
Rab Drillium jacket
Soreen (aka malt loaf)
Multitool incl chaintool
Gerber
Brew kit
Mug
Keys etc

On me...
On-One Merino Perform base layer
Repack Berino Jersey
Bontrager liner shorts
Endura Singletrack shorts
Pearl Isumi Enduro III shoes

So... first thoughts after a days ride...

I was a little worried how heavy the bike was when I initially lifted it. It was a little front heavy but having me on the pedals balanced that out pretty well when riding. A little heavy in the steering initially but I soon got used to it and the ride up to Clapham Junction didn't really take much longer than it would commuting - pleasantly surprised.

I need to tweak the setup of the Mountain Lion - I have the new SLX brakes on the bars and the angle of the hose is perfect to get right in the way of the back of the Mountain Lion and prevent it from sitting snugly. I possibly need longer brake hoses which is a bit of a pain. I was a bit worried about the drybag slipping out one end of the Mountain Lion. The Mountain Lion straps dont really want to slip through both sets of loops on the drybag as the straps are closer together at the base than at the top. Perhaps slipping them through one set is enough. I ended up slipping the Revelate pocket straps through and that seemed fine.

My little AyUp lights are just tall enough to shine forwards over the Mountain Lion and dry bag, but not over the Pocket as well...

The frame bag is pretty small due to the rear shock and I think I overstuffed it which dragged it out of shape a bit. The wider items probably need to go in the rucksack to avoid this.

I didn't notice the Viscacha whilst riding at all... just sat there and did its job.

Overall I was surprised how well the bike rode. It felt pretty smooth and quick. I could still pop the front end up, and it didn't feel sluggish to accelerate, although this was a pretty flat route and I'm sure I'd feel it on the hills much more.

But compared to dragging my four-pannier laden carthorse up the Alps a couple of years ago:


... the section out of Guildford up to Pewley Down, and then on up to St Martha's Church felt great, as did the descent from St Martha's. Using a full suspension bike really helped everything feel nice and smooth; I wouldn't do this on a longer trip, and I want to build up something like a Surly Troll for the future, though this has got me thinking about whether I could get away with/would want suspension forks on a long trip.

A pretty flat route for the most part but lovely to get out, good to test the gear on the bike, and a really nice ride!

Some pictures from the day...


A large portion of the Downs Link runs along disused railway lines. A little flat but lovely countryside and generally a good quick surface interspersed with some singletrack and some mud pits! Smooth...


..but pretty.


Never actually looking quite as cool as I'm feeling...


Some natural fencing / hedging...


Stopped at a lovely farm shop for some snacks (no, not these guys...)


Observing the locals...


Light at the end of the...


Just arriving at Shoreham before dark...

Looking good there - you seem to have pretty much everything sorted!

Nice, looking good. What's the Bar Pocket? Got a link?

Shalarim

P.S. loved your Alps reports very inspirational.

Shalarim wrote:Nice, looking good. What's the Bar Pocket? Got a link?

The bar pocket is just a Revelate Pocket. Can order it direct or from Cyclosource in the US, or from a place in Europe I think, though I can't find them on Google. I'm sure someone posted a link on here...

Shalarim wrote:P.S. loved your Alps reports very inspirational.

Do you mean my trip to Switzerland in late 2011 (if so, thanks!), or Gairy's posts from the Alps?

InspiredRamblings wrote: Do you mean my trip to Switzerland in late 2011 (if so, thanks!), or Gairy's posts from the Alps?

Your trip to Switzerland in 2011. Read through them a couple of weeks ago.

Ah cool! Good to know it occasionally gets read. Last year was a bit disastrous as far as adventures go and I haven't kept up with the blog. Been meaning to do a couple of catchup posts and get back at it. I found it quite motivating to do - kind of focussed me on what it was I wanted to spend my time doing. I guess there's a post ready and waiting just above here.

The dealer in Europe is Veloista. Andy at BACKCOUNTRYBIKING is importing Revelate stuff now I believe.

@ inspiredramblings.
Is the route you took "the downs link" also national cylce foute 223/22?
I ask because I quite fancy doing that route next weekend, Also what are your opinons on finding a decent spot to camp about 25-30 miles in?
Cheers

Nice pics by the way

MM-on-POINT wrote:@ inspiredramblings.
Is the route you took "the downs link" also national cylce foute 223/22?

I think its very similar to NCR 222, though perhaps not the exact route all the way. It was obvious that we were following the Downs Link bridleway; not so obvious that we were following a NCR (if we were!).

MM-on-POINT wrote:I ask because I quite fancy doing that route next weekend, Also what are your opinions on finding a decent spot to camp about 25-30 miles in?

The route is mostly wooded on either side and there were spots you could have wild camped, though you'd have to be fairly subtle and head off into the woods just before dark. I honestly can't remember what was around that distance...!

Some info on this page, see the map and stage links at the bottom of the page...

Cheers

MM-on-POINT wrote:Nice pics by the way

Thanks - just an iPhone and a bit of editing using the Snapseed app.