Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Cycle-touring, Expeditions, Adventures, Major cycle routes NOT LeJoG (see other special board)
mnichols
Posts: 1465
Joined: 22 Apr 2013, 4:29pm

Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by mnichols »

I've got my pack size down to about 10 litres including pump, tubes and bike spares

Big improvements this year are swapping out my waterproof for a shakedry, my gillet for the tiny endurra waterproof gillet, and tiny pants!

I haven't used chamois cream all year, so hoping to be able to do a week without it. If it becomes a problem ill pop into a chemist and buy a tube of sudocream. I'm not taking suncream - I've never had sun burn in my life even touring in +40 degrees

Trousers are as small as they will get. I don't take spare bib tights anymore

Biggest things left are 2 inner tubes, even though i run tubeless - dare i go to 1 and patches? Deodrant - any tips on reducing from a roll on? my 4 way usb charger and cables, lube

Any tips on reducing these, full pack list below
Bike, Pedals
- Skewers
- Water bottles
- Helmet
- Garmin
- Spokes
- Top tube bag
Small Front & Back Light
Rack Bag
Electrolyte tablets
Waterproof Jacket
w/p Overshoes
Gillet
Spares
Pump
Presta/Schrader Adaptor
Small lube
2 spare tubes
chain link
Allen keys
Chain tool
Tyre Levers
Tyre boot
Puncture Repair Kit
Spoke key
Small first aid kit
Bent wire
USB Charger
USB Cables
Lip Balm
Essentials ?Deodrant?
Phone & headphones
Cash
inhalers inhalers (spare)
Post Office Credit Card
Comb
hay fever tablets
Driving Licence
Reading Glasses
Passport
Tooth Brush
toothpaste
Prescription (on phone)
Cycling Clothes
Socks * 2
Cycling Shoes
2 x Cycling Shirt
Cycling Glasses
Headband/tube
Base Layer
Aeron Bib Tights * 1, Inner Shorts
Cycling Gloves
Pants
Trousers
User avatar
mjr
Posts: 20308
Joined: 20 Jun 2011, 7:06pm
Location: Norfolk or Somerset, mostly
Contact:

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by mjr »

mnichols wrote:Deodrant - any tips on reducing from a roll on?

https://uk.lush.com/products/guvner and one of those small pots you sometimes get lip balms in.

mnichols wrote:- Skewers

Pardon? Why would you need more of these than on the bike? Similarly, replace "Spokes" with a "Fiber fix".

mnichols wrote:- Helmet
- Garmin

You know ;)
MJR, mostly pedalling 3-speed roadsters. KL+West Norfolk BUG incl social easy rides http://www.klwnbug.co.uk
All the above is CC-By-SA and no other implied copyright license to Cycle magazine.
Warin61
Posts: 192
Joined: 16 Nov 2016, 8:51pm

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by Warin61 »

Your not taking a spare chain, cable, etc probably because you think you can get to a bicycle shop if you need them. Use the same thinking for the second spare tube, etc. If you use the spare tube, seek a bicycle shop - buy 2 and throw the used one away. While your there .. take a look at the jerseys they have you may find one you like (I like to collect these kind of useful souvenirs).
rualexander
Posts: 2639
Joined: 2 Jul 2007, 9:47pm
Contact:

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by rualexander »

Spare spokes not necessary if you have decent wheels to start with.
Overshoes?
Deodorant?
User avatar
horizon
Posts: 11275
Joined: 9 Jan 2007, 11:24am
Location: Cornwall

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by horizon »

Firstly, thanks for sharing it - it's quite a personal thing and a faff to write up but actually it's crucial as we all know. So, great to compare. Secondly, I was quite surprised.

I got out a Mountain Warehouse rucksack which I know is 12 litre and I use as a carry on bag on Ryanair (that's the extra one with your passport in it). It's seriously small. I was obviously impressed by the list but, here's the thing, there were items that I wouldn't take - yes, me of the two large rear panniers and a bar bag and that's not camping!

So what are these items? Mostly it's the pharmaceuticals which I feel are invading our lives: that's the inhalers, the anti-histamines, electrolyte tablets, the deodorant, lip balm, the sun-cream (which you don't take). And you also don't take a razor, shaving foam and after-shave! I know I'm being controversial here but there is actually a movement nowadays to reduce bathroom stuff to five items. The medical stuff I have to allow but I did actually get rid of it myself (especially the hay fever tablets). I've already posted many times that I think deodorant is just fear-based marketing, but that's my personal view. Somebody who can ride more than 100 miles in a day shouldn't have to worry about it.

So onto the practical stuff: second inner tube, overshoes, first aid kit, tyre boot. But things like spare links are so small as to be irrelevant whether you take them or not.

So, just observations. But also not just about pack weight/size but also a little bit of your philosophy of travel. The razor for example and the driving licence. And no book (although I presume that would go on the phone like the maps). What you list tells us is how you travel and what matters to you.

Anyway, thank you again for sharing. I'm now trying to stare down those panniers . . .
When the pestilence strikes from the East, go far and breathe the cold air deeply. Ignore the sage, stay not indoors. Ho Ri Zon 12th Century Chinese philosopher
mnichols
Posts: 1465
Joined: 22 Apr 2013, 4:29pm

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by mnichols »

The pedals, skewers, etc are listed separately as I have to take them off to pack the bike in the box.. They aren't spares. It's just to remind me to put them in the box

The inhalers and antihistamines are a medical requirement

I only take one pair of shoes, so the overshoes are lightweight and keep them dry when cycling so that I can where them in the evening even if its been raining all day

I go backwards and forwards on the deodorant, but I've ridden with people who say they don't need them in hot climates.... And they REALLY do, so came to the conclusion that you can't smell yourself. It can be unpleasant for others if riding in a group

I sometimes take a disposable razor and sometimes just grow a beard

I find the garmin essential (for me) to find my accommodation, particularly where I don't speak the language or can't read the alphabet like in Jaoan

Helmet is a condition of my travel insurance and personality never ride without one anyway..... But let's just say its a personal choice and leave it there

I might forgo the 2nd tube, and have done when riding with someone else... 5 people is 10 tubes

Tyre boot weighs as much as a piece of paper and I've fashioned mine into a pouch that I keep the other bits in like chain link, etc
mnichols
Posts: 1465
Joined: 22 Apr 2013, 4:29pm

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by mnichols »

mjr wrote:
mnichols wrote:Deodrant - any tips on reducing from a roll on?

https://uk.lush.com/products/guvner and one of those small pots you sometimes get lip balms in.

mnichols wrote:- Skewers

Pardon? Why would you need more of these than on the bike? Similarly, replace "Spokes" with a "Fiber fix".

mnichols wrote:- Helmet
- Garmin

You know ;)



I like the deodorant powder, will get some of thst

I always keep 3 spare spokes in the seat tube of all my bikes. I just shove it up the seat post with a bung and forget they are there. I always buy or negotiate them when I buy the wheels. I will look into five fix though
mnichols
Posts: 1465
Joined: 22 Apr 2013, 4:29pm

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by mnichols »

rualexander wrote:Spare spokes not necessary if you have decent wheels to start with.
Overshoes?
Deodorant?


Might have to agree to disagree on the spokes. Have seen a broken spoke end the tours of 3 different people over the years. I've broken a few myself over the years, but carrying a spare made this an inconvenience rather than a tour stopper
mnichols
Posts: 1465
Joined: 22 Apr 2013, 4:29pm

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by mnichols »

Warin61 wrote:Your not taking a spare chain, cable, etc probably because you think you can get to a bicycle shop if you need them. Use the same thinking for the second spare tube, etc. If you use the spare tube, seek a bicycle shop - buy 2 and throw the used one away. While your there .. take a look at the jerseys they have you may find one you like (I like to collect these kind of useful souvenirs).


I normally take a spare cable, but this is a UK tour and so I figure I can get to a bike shop on 1 brake or in 1 gear. I also replace them all about 6 weeks before I travel and the same with the chain

If the chain breaks I just remove the offending link and replace with a quick link
nsew
Posts: 1006
Joined: 14 Dec 2017, 12:38pm

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by nsew »

rualexander wrote:Spare spokes not necessary if you have decent wheels to start with.
Overshoes?
Deodorant?


They don’t weigh anything and look the part taped to the nds stay. Enough to get lucky? I don’t know. Wheels are a magnet for damage.
m-gineering
Posts: 254
Joined: 23 May 2015, 12:01pm

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by m-gineering »

rualexander wrote:Spare spokes not necessary if you have decent wheels to start with.

and you don't need health insurance if you're not sick.. It's easy to pop the head of a spoke if the spoke catches on something (somebody's pedal etc) while jra. Bend up a few emergency spokes with a Z-end and stick them in your seatpost.
Take 2 tubes for those cases where you can't find the thorn the first time! Get extra lite tubes though

Instead of greasy chamois cream take a look at talcum/baby powder or cornflower
Marten

Touring advice for NL: www.m-gineering.nl/touringg.htm
nsew
Posts: 1006
Joined: 14 Dec 2017, 12:38pm

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by nsew »

Definitely one of the tubes. When/if that is put into use, source another.
nsew
Posts: 1006
Joined: 14 Dec 2017, 12:38pm

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by nsew »

Not sure about your thinking re cables. One of each is a given.
pwa
Posts: 17366
Joined: 2 Oct 2011, 8:55pm

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by pwa »

Regarding bathroom stuff, nobody needs shaving foam. It is not necessary for shaving. I have been shaving for at least three decades without using it, having discovered on a cycle tour that shaving without it is as easy as shaving with it. You just have to wash your face first, which allows water to soak into any bristles and soften them. Then a hint of soap in a splash of water over the shaving area. I know the shaving is not relevant in this case, so I am talking about the rest of us really.

I'd take sun cream. I've had a few friends who have developed skin cancers, not people who burn easily. Not burning does not make you immune to skin cancer.
roubaixtuesday
Posts: 5814
Joined: 18 Aug 2015, 7:05pm

Re: Reducing pack size for credit card tour

Post by roubaixtuesday »

Thoughts:

Not sure where you're going but I wouldn't bother with trousers or bib tights, just use shorts both on and off the bike. Hiking shorts can be very light indeed.

Do you need cycling specific shoes? I've done tours in normal sandals or trainers before. If you do want cycling specific shoes on the bike, ask yourself if you really need a separate pair for off it. If yes, flip flops?

Overshoes - I've never taken on tour, and certainly not if I had a separate pair of shoes for evenings. I wouldn't bother with a front light.

Are you on your own or with someone else? Many of your list can be shared.

I've never come back from a tour and wished I'd taken more luggage!
Post Reply