backpack/pannier/trunkrack

[bouncybouncy]

Thank you all for your input...for some reason i knew Denise would chime in on this one (you touring guru you!!!)

I am gald to here about Arkel products...i do wonder how it holds up on a bit of singletrack (an option on part of a route i have mapped out) and how being lopsided on a dirt path might be...but i guess on those days (if it is an issue) i could just pop it off and put it on my back!

the other option i saw was a trunk/pannier combo (another "shorty" out there discussed it on another thread) found at REI: (alot cheaper i might add)

http://www.rei.com/product/47802472.htm

but i really like the idea of a backpack (i am partial to backpacks!!!) especially with helmet holders!

***Carrie Anne....i do not think it has sunk in yet of what a wonderful place i ended up...i keep feeling like i am going to wake up in #@!! again we are landscaping...i cannot get over what fun it is to watch grass seedlings struggle to pop out of there little shells...and every morning waking up to new little green things that will show their pretty little faces soon (daffodils, tulips, crocus', and some other little white flowers that close up each night as to shut their little eyes!!!) i know FL has beautiful foliage, but there is just something so special about seasons and how the flowers appear to wake up from long winters naps that is so exciting
where i work is supposedly a black bear "the town mountain bear"...i can't wait to maybe get a glimpse of him...it is all a stir in the neighborhood "when is he gonna wake???"
OK...i have babbled enough for now...hehe...can you tell i love this place?

[Melody]

the other option i saw was a trunk/pannier combo (another "shorty" out there discussed it on another thread) found at REI: (alot cheaper i might add)

http://www.rei.com/product/47802472.htm

I use that bag and like it alot. I've got the MTX QR Beam Rack on my Bianchi which I use to commute. Only real problem is that I have to be careful how much weight I put into the bag since the beam rack has a max weight of 20 pounds.

but i really like the idea of a backpack (i am partial to backpacks!!!) especially with helmet holders!

I do too. I own a Deuter Hydro EXP 8 hydration pack (http://www.deuter.com/cms/front_cont...roducts_id=554) . I'm a big fan of the cooling air pockets in their hydration pack design. I carry the hydration pack (sans bladder) when I need some extra space or with bladder on longer rides (like the upcoming Cindy).

If I really need more space than what the Deuter can hold it gets shoved into my Chrome Metropolis messenger bag (http://www.chromebags.com/metropolis.php)

Ultimate, however, I think I'm going to find a way to get bosses added so I can have a good rack added to the back of the Bianchi so I can truly weigh down the bike

Mel