Seat Bag Contents

[snapdragen]

OK Ladies,

What is the bare bones minimum you carry in your seat bag? I'm thinking of replacing the Alien XS I have with something smaller - like maybe just a hex wrench or two. I never use anything on the Alien but the hex when I'm out on the road. Otherwise, it's a spare tube, patches, speed lever, extra car door unlocker (OK - I locked myself out of the Suby one time too many )

[Veronica]

I fill this bag.

Well, only when I'm going to work. But I will often just leave it on for my night rides. It's easier to stuff a jacket, glasses case and long fingered gloves into it. So I'm prepared when the sun goes down.

When I take the Baggins Bag off, I replace it with a smaller Banana Bag. I tend to overpack for most things. I usually have at least one snack in my bag, a multi tool kit, a mini leatherman, CO2 cartridges and a tube or two, at least five dollars, plus my cell phone. I like to be ready for whatever may happen.

V.

[jobob]

Heh, I've taken overpacking to a whole new level.

In my rack trunk bag, I have: my Kryptonite cable lock (I know the day I leave it at home is the day I'm going to need it!); a spare tube; tire irons & patches; a set of hex wrenches; a ziplock bag with Jo's Pharmacopeia including "vitamin I" (you should have mentioned you needed some last Saturday, I had it), Sudafed, a couple of tampax, a couple of individually wrapped feminine hygeine towelettes, and eye drops; a banana; my Brooks saddle rain cover (which I put on this past Saturday), and, also this past Saturday I had stuffed in a rain jacket in case it started pouring while we were out. In the back outside pocket I have a little zippered bag with a $20 bill, a photcopy of my driver's license and health insurance card, and a card w. my home number and my husband's cell number; and in the other outside pocket, a pack of kleenex ...

... and ...

In the front handle bar bag I have my cell phone, my garage door opener (mini-version) w. the kryptonite key attached, car keys if I drove to the start, a few rubber bands, a small ziplock of fig newtons, a couple of Clif Shots, a special K bar (I've found I need to eat a lot while I'm riding or I sometimes get dizzy, so I make sure to bring lots of food with me), glove liners in case my hands get cold, my map holder when I'm not using it, and, I think that might be it.

I honestly don't know how you folks with those teeny-tiny under the saddle bags manage!

- Jo, the poster child for anal retentitude.

[MightyMitre]

Good grief!!! Jobo - ever thought how much faster you could go if you lightened the load. That's a very impressive assortment of goodies you've got and at least you'll always be prepared

This is like one of those 'What do you keep in your handbag.' questions. I like it !

I've got a very small pack that attaches under my saddle and contains a multi-tool which includes Allen ( hex ) keys, a spare inner tube, some of those instant puncture patches from Parker, 3 tyer leavers and a little devise for tightening up spokes. I've also got a mini pump which attaches to my bottle cage. That's it!

I don't have a mobile phone ( but ought to get one) and I used to keep £5 note and some coins in my pack too, but I now keep money in my pocket after me and my bike got seperated once and I didn't have any money.


PS No idea who Allen was or why we call our hex keys after him, but that's what we do here in the UK.

[jobob]

ever thought how much faster you could go if you lightened the load.

Hee hee, I suppose ...
... but you've got to figure even if I did pack lighter, I'd still have a couple of bottles of water, Kevlar belted 28 mm tires, a lugged steel frame, and 150 pounds (on a good day) of me to lug around, so I'm not sure how much difference it would make overall. The way I see it, it's good exercise, it builds me up for the touring I want to do eventually, and it gives me an easy excuse for being a slowpoke.
- Jo.

Plus, sad truth be told, I'm kind of afraid of going very fast - everyone in my group zips by me on the downhills, while I'm fethering my brakes to stay under 30. But I generally catch up to them on the next hill I'm getting more relaxed about tearing down those hills though, with all the weight I'm pushing I could just imagine the downhill momentum I could build up if I wanted to, whee ...

[Veronica]

I'm with you Jo. I often carry three water bottles, especially in the summer. A few pounds added for peace of mind is a good thing. Now twenty pounds off the bike, is a difference! The woman doing Cinderella with me weighs about 25 pounds less than Thom. That I could really feel!

Did the Romulus come with the braze ons for a third water bottle on the down tube?

V.

[jobob]

No, the Romulus has 700 C wheels so there's no room on the downtube for another water bottle, at least not on the 55 and 57 frames that Lee and I have. This is probably why Riv never came out with the smaller Romulus frames as they had originally intended, it might not have been cost-effective for them to switch to smaller wheels for the smaller frames. Then again, looks like the Romulus wasn't profitable for them from the get-go, a pity they won't be making them any more. I'm glad we got ours when we did!

Cool, you'll be riding the tandem at Cinderella, what fun!

Oh, and back to the topic at hand , you've all made me think some more about all the stuff I'm packing. And the reality is, I don't think I'd part with any of it. Most of it isn't all that heavy anyhow (although admittedly it adds up), and pretty much everything in there I've needed at one time or another, and was either very glad I had it or dearly wish I had it at the time. And it's really nice to have the rack bag to stuff my jacket in when it warms up during the day. I suppose you could consider my bike a station wagon compared to the Ferraris. ..

The only thing I could easily leave out is the very heaviest item, the Kryptonite cable lock. Nine rides out of 10 I don't use it at all, but that 1 ride in 10, when I'm not with a group it's really nice to be able to pull up to a coffee shop and lock it up and go in for a cup. No way I'd leave my bike unattended even for a couple of moments without at least some sort of lock on it. And naturally, when I do pull it out of my bag before a ride thinking I won't need it that day, I forget to put it back in and only realize it's missing on a subsequent ride when I am getting ready to lock up

I always find it ironic that locks are so heavy, my lock probably weighs about as much as Melissa's new Trek ...!

[Irulan]

Originally posted by jobob
I honestly don't know how you folks with those teeny-tiny under the saddle bags manage!

-

easy... take a camelbak. I wouldn't go anyplace but down the street with camelbak.

My seat bag has tire iron, spare tube and a mini tool. The rest of my spare gear goes in a pack.


I think its' kind of strange how road riders dont' use them... so much easier for drinking than reaching for bottles all the time.

Irulan

[Veronica]

I ride a 55 and I can only fit a small water bottle on the down tube, but it's worth it. Summers out here are usually in the 90s - 100s. Dehydration makes me cranky.

V.

[jobob]

Good point, but I don't particularly like having a backpack on my back when I ride. To each her own.

[MightyMitre]

This has got me thinking about the stuff I take with me when I ride.

Normally, ie in my non-cycling life I always take so much stuff. You should see the bag I take to work bulging with lip balm, spare disposable contact lenses, tissues, woolly gloves, umbrella's... but when I go on the bike I hardly take anything.

Maybe I feel more free on my bike or more relaxed. As long as I've got a few coins for emergancies I seems to worry less about what might happen. Barring anything really serious happening, I think I view the prospect of any minor problems as a potential adventure.

[pedalfaster]

I guess I'm a minimalist. My basic road seatbag includes tube, patches, tire lever, and a Park multi-tool (the small flat one with really basic hex sizes and a flat screwdriver). I have CO2 and an inflator in there too, but I really only use CO2 when racing or on a fast group ride. I carry a baggie with my insurance card (doubles as ID) and a few dollars in my jersey, along with a small pump in my jersey pocket.

My mountain bike set-up is the same, but I also have a chaintool and a slightly beefier multi-tool. I also carry a whistle (from my backpacking days ) and a compass. If I am riding in unfamiliar terrain I'll include a map.

When I ride alone I carry my cell-phone.

I have a Camelbak, but I use it more for hiking than riding. I too hate the feel of a "backpack" when I am on the bike. If I did loooong all-day back-country mtb rides I'm sure I'd use it . Right now my mtb rides tend to be only 2-3 hours so it seems like overkill.

[Irulan]

funny I don't even notivce the camel bak and I dont' even think of it as a back pack. It's very small, and fits anatomically, not like a day pack or anything bulky. I really like haveing the water right there. You can carry so much more water too, if dehydration is an issue it's definately something to think about.

Irulan.

[jobob]

Well, seeing as the fact that pretty much every notion of what I like/dislike in biking has changed radically in a very short period of time, odds are good I'll be a camelback convert sooner or later

Lets see...

"Oh noo, I don't want to get a road bike, I'm perfectly happy with my clunkie old hybrid on short gravel paths" (Road bike purchased about 2 months ago, joined group to train for metric century 1.5 months ago)

"Oh noo, I don't need real bike shorts, I'm perfectly happy with padded liners under my tights & regular shorts" (Purchased first pair of Pearl Izumi shorts a few weeks ago and will never look back)

"Oh noo, I don't need clipless pedals, I'm perfectly happy with platform pedals and powergrips with my cleatless bike shoes" (Will most likely have Crank Bros Candy pedals on my bike in the next week or so)

- Jo (I knows what I likes ... until I find something better!)


Irulan, just curious, what type of camelback do you have? There seems to be several different models.

[Irulan]

Originally posted by jobob
Irulan, just curious, what type of camelback do you have? There seems to be several different models.

There are several...
My main one is an old Jandt model that takes either a 40 or 70 oz bladder no problem.

My son has an expandable blowfish that takes a 100 oz bladder, I borrow this for all day rides but I'd like to get my own.

I don't even notice them. I really like having the water (or drink, some folks mix sport drink in them) right there, not having to get bottles out and so on. I find I drink a whole lot more. On long summer rides I take bottles or a water filter as a back up.

Even on short rides, like some of the 8 mile local trails I ride, I always fill the bladder and take it. I feel naked without it, really.

AS to what I carry, the minimun would be: water, cliff bars, first aid kit that fits in a sandwich baggie, mini pump.

add any or all of the following: GPS, camera, layers, more food, maps,

on extended all day trips, even more food, water filter, appropriate layers, maybe more tools and parts. But the big gear gets spread out among the groups... one pump, one set of teels etc for the whole gang.

Irulan