Touring in the 50's

Cycle-touring, Expeditions, Adventures, Major cycle routes NOT LeJoG (see other special board)
francovendee
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Touring in the 50's

Post by francovendee »

As a young man when I saw a cyclist on a loaded touring bike I marvelled at the amount of gear they carried.
I guess if they were camping then their tent would be much heavier than today's lightweight materials. Likewise bedding and cooking kit.
In fact anything they needed would have been much heavier.
I'm wondering just how heavy this would be to carry on the bike.
Suggestions in Kg or lbs. :D
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velorog
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by velorog »

In spite of today's wonder materials cycle camping in the 1950's was not vastly different than today. You could go heavy or ultra light. The lightest off-the-peg cotton tent was sub 4lbs. My own 2 man Uniform Staffordshire tent weighed in at about 6lbs. Sleeping bag was a Blacks Icelandic at 3.5lbs. You could get solid fuel, meths or pressure stoves. I used a one third print Optimus pressure stove with a Gilwell canteen. (I cannot weigh them as they are hidden away in the loft.) The big difference then is that there were no lightweight sleeping pads or pillows. You slept on a groundsheet using a saddle bag as a pillow.
A prominent author at the time, Showell Styles, describes his lightweight camping kit using a homemade sea island cotton tent as follows: tent and poles 2lbs; sleeping bag 3lbs; groundsheet 12ozs; canteen 10ozs; KFS 4ozs; plate and mug 4ozs; solid fuel stove and matches 12ozs. Total 7lbs 10ozs.or 3.5kg. He even goes further to suggest dispensing with the tent poles and using the bike to support the tent, and sleeping on a cape instead of a groundsheet.
There is not a great deal new about bike packing.
Mike Sales
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by Mike Sales »

Old-School Minimalist Ethos

You could argue that this is nothing new. Prioritizing weight or the lack thereof has been a pillar of backpacking and outdoorsman ethos from the start.

A popular camping and survival book called Woodcraft published in 1888 by George Sears outlined a lot of this early outdoorsman ideology. He says "the temptation to buy this or that bit of indispensable camp kit has been too strong and we have gone to the Blessed woods handicapped with a load fit for a pack mule this is not how to do it."

"Go light; the lighter the better, so that you have the simplest material for health, comfort and enjoyment."

Wise words from the 1800s that are still very relevant today.

Side note: this book is riddled with attacks on big and heavy gear items from way back in the day. For example, recommending moccasins instead of long-legged boots.

Sears definitely takes jabs at consumerism as a whole. But, more specifically, he advises we should simplify what we carry without compromising our safety nor enjoyment. That sounds a lot like our early definition of ultralight backpacking and minimalism in general.
https://www.greenbelly.co/pages/ultrali ... ng-history
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horizon
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by horizon »

There is a well known meme that goes (in the words of one person writing to another), "I apologise for not having had enough time to write a shorter letter ..."

It takes ages to get the weight down when travelling, sometimes years in fact. There is a world of difference between the person who travels light because they are ignorant of what they need and one who knows exactly what is required and needs take nothing more.
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
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simonineaston
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by simonineaston »

Brian Walker (see here) was a contributer to sundry magazines, as correspondant & illustrator. He was friends with Alex Moulton, who back in the early '60s, asked him to take a prototype to Iceland to test it over the worst terrain he could think of. Brian duley obliged - and took his wife-to-be, I understand... I've read snippets of his report in The Moultoneer but have never seen the full piece. It would make amazing reading I imagine.
Alex Moulton and Brian Walker at the Westbury White Horse.
Alex Moulton and Brian Walker at the Westbury White Horse.
S
(on the look out for Armageddon, on board a Brompton nano & ever-changing Moultons)
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simonineaston
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by simonineaston »

Staying on the Moulton theme - hope nobody minds that I'm stretching the remit into '60s again, too - here's a picture of a replica of Colin Martin's one-off Moulton Marathon. The replica was built by Hans Werner, a Moulton fan whose attention to detail was legendary and who is now no longer with us. Alex Moulton built the Marathon expressly for Colin, to use to travel overland to Oz and is a master-work of minimalism even by modern standards. Features include custom made wire cages for billy sets, and very modest panniers (not shown, unfortunately), Ever Ready lights (poor chap!), and the eagle eyed will spot the dual sprockets, allowing Colin to manually move the chain to enjoy a choice of ratios from his duomatic hub. Folks were indeed made of stern stuff, back then. Colin made it all the way to Australia, where upon his Moulton got nicked!!
replica of one-off Moulton Marathon
replica of one-off Moulton Marathon
S
(on the look out for Armageddon, on board a Brompton nano & ever-changing Moultons)
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by Vorpal »

When I was a teen, in the 80s, my brother and I used some late 50s US military issue gear that was either our dad's, or purchased from Army surplus places. I think it was pretty good, and certainly better than anything we could have bought new. We had an aluminium nesting 'mess' set that was well-used & still served its purpose. Our tent was from the same era. It was called a 'pup' tent, but I don't know where that term came from.
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PDQ Mobile
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by PDQ Mobile »

I think the greatest difference between touring now and in the 50's and 60's is traffic levels and speeds.

The start of a tour to Wales from central England led two young cyclists along the A40 in those days!!
And it was ok.
I would not contemplate it now.
PH
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by PH »

Biggest weight saving, then and now, comes from taking less and one of the ways to achieve that is by sharing. I get the impression it was maybe more sociable in the 50's. My Dad had some photos of himself, my Uncle and two pals, all early 20's, walking in Scotland, a ridge tent not much bigger than the one I use on my own, shared meals on the one cooker and what looks like a saucepan from home, and they all appear to be wearing the same clothes all week. It's also likely that they had the one camera between them, certainly not one each. There may have been more sophisticated equipment available, I doubt they considered buying it, they weren't enthusiasts in the way we might think of now, it was just something they did. Life was tougher, all four would have done military service, my dad stayed in, so they'd all have experienced hardship. I'm not suggesting it's a good thing to be cold and hungry, just that it was more accepted as part of the experience.
We've never had it so good :wink:
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simonineaston
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by simonineaston »

Biggest weight saving, then and now, comes from taking less
That reminds me of the old adage, "Spread out everything you're planning to take with you on the bed, before you pack, then remove half the kit and double the money..."
S
(on the look out for Armageddon, on board a Brompton nano & ever-changing Moultons)
Jdsk
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by Jdsk »

simonineaston wrote: 22 Sep 2021, 11:21am
Biggest weight saving, then and now, comes from taking less
That reminds me of the old adage, "Spread out everything you're planning to take with you on the bed, before you pack, then remove half the kit and double the money..."
Haven't heard that before. Very good.

It's the flip side of putting it all out when you return, and seeing what you didn't use.

Jonathan
Jdsk
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by Jdsk »

Vorpal wrote: 22 Sep 2021, 8:42amIt was called a 'pup' tent, but I don't know where that term came from.
It's half of a dog tent.

Jonathan
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by Vorpal »

Jdsk wrote: 22 Sep 2021, 11:28am
Vorpal wrote: 22 Sep 2021, 8:42amIt was called a 'pup' tent, but I don't know where that term came from.
It's half of a dog tent.

Jonathan
:lol: :lol:
PH wrote: 22 Sep 2021, 11:13am Biggest weight saving, then and now, comes from taking less and one of the ways to achieve that is by sharing.... Life was tougher, all four would have done military service, my dad stayed in, so they'd all have experienced hardship. I'm not suggesting it's a good thing to be cold and hungry, just that it was more accepted as part of the experience.
We've never had it so good :wink:
That's a good point, and even when we were teens, my brother and I carried rather less than I do, now. Not only could we share, but we normally just slept on the ground. If that was too cold, we put a thin insulating layer between the ground and our sleeping bags. I don't recall that was necessary very often. I don't think I could sleep well on the ground now.
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velorog
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by velorog »

Ground insulation in the cooler months was always a problem before the introduction of the lightweight Karrimat in 1968. Showell Styles recommended layers of brown paper but I preferred an old army blanket. In the photo below, taken at Styhead Tarn Feb 1962, we were camping on snow and the blanket was folded into 4. Very difficult trying to sleep on a strip of blanket about a foot wide. The tent used was a Blacks Tinker.
PICT0004.JPG
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Re: Touring in the 50's

Post by Vorpal »

velorog wrote: 22 Sep 2021, 2:16pm Ground insulation in the cooler months was always a problem before the introduction of the lightweight Karrimat in 1968. Showell Styles recommended layers of brown paper but I preferred an old army blanket. In the photo below, taken at Styhead Tarn Feb 1962, we were camping on snow and the blanket was folded into 4. Very difficult trying to sleep on a strip of blanket about a foot wide. The tent used was a Blacks Tinker.

PICT0004.JPG
Nice picture :)

We didn't have any kind of mats, or anything. We did have a chunk of canvas, cut from a tent older than the pup tent to use as ground cloth. After that, it was the emergency bin bag & if still more insulation was needed, that got stuffed with any clothes we weren't already wearing.
“In some ways, it is easier to be a dissident, for then one is without responsibility.”
― Nelson Mandela, Long Walk to Freedom
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