Tents on Bikes

[Nanci]

So I'm looking over the bike calendar for this spring, and there are several overnight rides. I'm thinking it would be cool to have a small tent to carry along and be self-supported rather than piling my stuff in a van. I see that Topeak makes a sort of cool tent that uses the bike front end and the removed font wheel instead of poles, but the disadvantage there is you can't set up your tent then ride your bike anywhere.

Big Agnes makes a couple ultra light tents, in the 2-3 pound range. They seem like they would roll up small enough to carry, too.

What are you guys using?

Nanci

[pkq]

I've been looking at the MSR Hubba tent, which is published to weigh 3 lbs. I bought a Mountain Hardwear 2 man for backpacking and car camping. It has turned out to be a bit heavier than published. One backpacker guy said MSR is one of the few companies that publishes the true weight of its tents. Don't know the validity of that statement, since I have not tested tent weights. So I am considering the MSR.

The Mountain Hardwear has a vestibule and extra space, which is great to have in bad weather. When I got in the MSR at the store, it had extra space and has enough vestibule space. Pretty nice for a 1 man.

http://www.rei.com/online/store/Prod...ory_rn=4500666

[Nanci]

Big Agnes publishes (and explains) a bunch of different weights for its tents, like trail weight, packed weight and fast fly weight.

Here's the SL Seedhouse 1 for example:

Trail wt 2lb 6oz
Packed wt 2lb 13oz
Fast fly wt 1lb 12oz

I looked at the MSR and Mountain Hardwear, too. I think freestanding would be nice, though.

Nanci

[DeniseGoldberg]

I have a Sierra Designs Clip Flashlight CD that I bought before my first solo tour back in 1998. At the time it was the lightest tent out there, but today you (obviously) can find lighter tents. I carried the 2-man version because I was afraid of getting claustophobic if I was stopped for a day by bad weather. If I start camping again on my trips I may consider getting a lighter tent.

Don't forget that you should use a ground sheet under the tent (which unfortunately does add some weight). I bought the one made for the tent, although you could also do something like cut up a shower curtain.

Another option - depending on where you plan to camp - is to look at a Hennessey Hammock . Here's a link to a discussion about the hammock on crazyguyonabike.com: http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/forum...essage_id=3079. Oh, I just re-read your post. This suggestion may not work if you're going on a large group ride since the camping spots probably don't include a place to hang a hammock! But I'll leave the entry anyway - they are light and maybe you'll be interested for some solo trips.
--- Denise

[annie]

Nanci,

How do you plan on carrying the tent? Rack and panniers? A trailer? Are you also going to carry other items that you'll need? Definitely, you want something lightweight, but you have to consider the actual size, too, so that it fits in whatever you're going to carry it.

annie

[Pedal Wench]

Nanci,

I have never taken them on the bike, but I have hiked them across the Grand Canyon numerous times, where ultralight is a necessity.

The North Face Slickrock went on our last two week adventure. It is a single-wall design, half mesh, half nylon, and very light because the rainfly only has to cover half the tent. We're going on another epic hike in May, and we're gonna bring The North Face Pebble. This one only has one door, but is even lighter and has more ventilation - essential in some locales. When every ounce doesn't matter, I love the North Face RoadRunner. Also a two-door design. All three are free-standing.
(If you're noticing a trend, there used to be a North Face outlet store nearby, and we got some AMAZING deals. We cried when it shut down!)

[SadieKate]

Have you considered a bivy bag?

By the way, we loves our BA bags and pads. We have semi-rectangulars and can actually breathe. Sweet dreaming! In a stuff sack with the girdle, it is one small package.

Campmor sometimes has screaming deals on tents and bags. We've bought several through them.

Also, these trips are supported with a vehicle to haul your gear? If you haul your own gear on one of these, your speed will be significantly impacted which will significantly impact everyone else. Don't take me wrong, I think loaded touring is way cool but everybody has to be doing it. It affects everybody's schedule and if the vehicle hauling gear is also the SAG wagon and can't pass the slowest rider, uh, unhappiness happens. Just a thought.