A couple of days ago I stumbled across a bicyclist who is preparing to ride from Vancouver, BC, to New York City with less than 35 pounds — including his bicycle.
This is no credit card tour, however. The cyclist, Igor Kovse, is geared for full-out camping with a tent, sleeping bag and a pad. He's also carrying tools, clothing for wet and cold weather, a camera and photographic supplies.
Whenever I'm bicycle touring, it's obvious that I'm in serious need of a gear diet. That's why I like to see how the ultralight half lives.
Apparently Igor has been traveling like this for quite a few years. He announced his upcoming transcontinental tour at the Ultralight Biking Yahoo group, and referred people to his Crazy Guy on a Bike touring page for a previous ride from Dushanbe to Delhi that lists all of his equipment.
Checking around on the web, I see that Igor is constantly on the move on his bicycle with tours on every continent, except Antarctica. Check out “On My Bicycles” for his tours, gear, and galleries. Also check out Trento Bikes.
Heavy touring
I've never been one to travel light on bicycle tours. If I find an empty pannier pocket, I'm not satisfied until I fill it. Now that I use a trailer, I pack it until the bag is full then I bungee stuff to the top.
On my last bicycle tour to the Olympic Peninsula with a friend a couple of years ago, I volunteered to carry the tent along with most of the other gear in a trailer. That three-person dome tent alone weighed about as much as all the gear that a typical ultralight cyclist will carry.
Igor's gear weighs 12.3 pounds, his bike 22.5 pounds. He weighs everything, even his bicycle computer. That's how he knows the razor blades he carries instead of a knife weigh 2 grams and his toothbrush is 6 grams.
No panniers
As I scanned his list of supplies, about the only category I didn't see was cooking supplies. He's not carrying a stove or cooking utensils, and he's only packing a half pound of emergency food.
He follows the lead of most ultralight bicycle travelers and uses stuff sacks lashed to his bicycle or racks, instead of panniers.
Although these ultralight bicyclists may find themselves without a few comforts of home, they certainly gain the advantage of not having to lug extra weight around.
To learn more traveling light, the Adventure Cycling Association website has information about ultralight bicycling.
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