RR: Studley park/Yarra Bend

[Tim Jones]

To contast the wet cold RR...

Headed out from work for my normal travel commute home today (Melbourne
Australia) - I live 8.5km from work but stretch it out to between 15 - 40kms
with my ride along paths then single track when I get to it.

Bloody hot today (36 degrees - that's Celcius), and just bought a Caribee
Hydration pack this morning that I wore over the top of my laptop backpack -
riding with the extra water certainly came in handy today, covering 35km,
15km of that on single track.

Starting from a steep decent that you have to take carefully (trees
surrounding you and sudden drops to either side) I decided that my tyres are
not really well designed for loose dirt, gravel or sand - but they do well
enough seeing as most of my riding is on paved surfaces.

Riding along the Yarra river, there are no really fast decents or wracking
climbs - everything is relatively flat. There are some rocky sections of the
path that require concentration, and other sections that require better
tyres than I have to ride down safely (my Geax Evolution tyres just skid
down loose dirt slopes of over 30 degrees).

It is fun though to get onto some trail however so close to the city (about
6km from the Melbourne CBD).

As we had a big storm here last week, it was disappointing however to see
the amount of rubbish that enters the waterway from the surrounding city and
rural areas, washed up into the trees etc.

After two hours of riding trail and bike path however in 36 degree heat, I
was certainly glad to immerse myself in a cool bath, and also glad to be
able to drink over two litres of water on the ride.

All the best,

Tim

 

[Peter Signorini]

"Tim Jones" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> To contast the wet cold RR...
>
> Headed out from work for my normal travel commute home today (Melbourne
> Australia) - I live 8.5km from work but stretch it out to between 15 -
40kms
> with my ride along paths then single track when I get to it.
>
> Bloody hot today (36 degrees - that's Celcius), and just bought a Caribee
> Hydration pack this morning that I wore over the top of my laptop
backpack -
> riding with the extra water certainly came in handy today, covering 35km,
> 15km of that on single track.

How awful! Do your back a favour, put a rack on that bike and use a small
pannier for the clothes/laptop. It'll be so much easier to carry your water
bag. and before you say 'singletrack', yes it is feasible. A friend of mine
rode in a team on the recent 24 hr race using a rack and one rear pannier.

Cheers
Peter

 

[ftf]

Peter Signorini wrote:
> "Tim Jones" <[email protected]> wrote in message new-
> s:[email protected]:3fd5aa03$0$1729$5a-
> [email protected]...
> > To contast the wet cold RR...
> >
> > Headed out from work for my normal travel commute home today
> > (Melbourne Australia) - I live 8.5km from work but stretch it out to
> > between 15 -
> 40kms
> > with my ride along paths then single track when I get to it.
> >
> > Bloody hot today (36 degrees - that's Celcius), and just bought a
> > Caribee Hydration pack this morning that I wore over the top of
> > my laptop
> backpack -
> > riding with the extra water certainly came in handy today, covering
> > 35km, 15km of that on single track.
> How awful! Do your back a favour, put a rack on that bike and use a
> small pannier for the clothes/laptop. It'll be so much easier to carry
> your water bag. and before you say 'singletrack', yes it is feasible. A
> friend of mine rode in a team on the recent 24 hr race using a rack and
> one rear pannier.
> Cheers Peter



I have often wondered about this... maybe it only applies to people with
back problems but I find things seem to weigh alot less on your back
than in your hands (obviously our anatomy caters for this), and
therefore you would hardly even notice something like a backpack with
2-3 ltrs of water.

The only advantage(s) I can think of for panniers is touring and if you
need to avoid a sweaty back (i.e. ride in your work/other clothes) - or
back problems.

My backpack has possibly saved me from many injuries, both on and off
road (cushioning the fall) and now I rarely ride without one.



--

 

[Tim Jones]

"Peter Signorini" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "Tim Jones" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > To contast the wet cold RR...
> >
> > Headed out from work for my normal travel commute home today (Melbourne
> > Australia) - I live 8.5km from work but stretch it out to between 15 -
> 40kms
> > with my ride along paths then single track when I get to it.
> >
> > Bloody hot today (36 degrees - that's Celcius), and just bought a
Caribee
> > Hydration pack this morning that I wore over the top of my laptop
> backpack -
> > riding with the extra water certainly came in handy today, covering
35km,
> > 15km of that on single track.
>
> How awful! Do your back a favour, put a rack on that bike and use a small
> pannier for the clothes/laptop. It'll be so much easier to carry your
water
> bag. and before you say 'singletrack', yes it is feasible. A friend of
mine
> rode in a team on the recent 24 hr race using a rack and one rear pannier.
>

I would be worried about the laptop getting too much vibration in a pannier
however - on my back, I have the most efficient suspension system on any
bike protecting it from bumps - the rider.

I am looking at getting a pannier however at some point - and just avoiding
real bumps with the laptop in their.

My current laptop bag I found at yesterday is actually a hydration bag
without the bladder - the laptop sits in their snuggly, and the Caribee bag
is really comfortable.

Tim

Tim

 

[Peter Signorini]

"ftf" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I have often wondered about this... maybe it only applies to people with
> back problems but I find things seem to weigh alot less on your back
> than in your hands (obviously our anatomy caters for this), and
> therefore you would hardly even notice something like a backpack with
> 2-3 ltrs of water.
>
> The only advantage(s) I can think of for panniers is touring and if you
> need to avoid a sweaty back (i.e. ride in your work/other clothes) - or
> back problems.

I guess I have a different take on this. As a bit of a whippet (62kg) I find
a full 3 ltr water bag is quite noticable and will sway on your back when
manoeuvring in town or off-road. I'll put up with it off-road as it's the
easiest way to access water. But for commuting and general touring (which is
what the Yarra Trail is after all) the only advantage I can think off for a
back pack is to carry water. You'll get a sweaty back, be generally
uncomfortable and I don't give much credence to the ideas of protecting the
laptop. Like when you fall off and your backpack with laptop cushions your
back....?

Laptops will fit in panniers, in fact I think Ortlieb make some specially
designed for this. It's easy to fit in some suitable shock cushioning foam.

Cheers
Peter

 

[Tim Jones]

"Peter Signorini" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "ftf" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > I have often wondered about this... maybe it only applies to people with
> > back problems but I find things seem to weigh alot less on your back
> > than in your hands (obviously our anatomy caters for this), and
> > therefore you would hardly even notice something like a backpack with
> > 2-3 ltrs of water.
> >
> > The only advantage(s) I can think of for panniers is touring and if you
> > need to avoid a sweaty back (i.e. ride in your work/other clothes) - or
> > back problems.
>
> I guess I have a different take on this. As a bit of a whippet (62kg) I
find
> a full 3 ltr water bag is quite noticable and will sway on your back when
> manoeuvring in town or off-road. I'll put up with it off-road as it's the
> easiest way to access water. But for commuting and general touring (which
is
> what the Yarra Trail is after all) the only advantage I can think off for
a
> back pack is to carry water. You'll get a sweaty back, be generally
> uncomfortable and I don't give much credence to the ideas of protecting
the
> laptop. Like when you fall off and your backpack with laptop cushions your
> back....?
>

Thanks - I might have to look into it more closely. I have burned a fair
amount of my cycling budget recently however, have just bought a new
wheelset (Deore hubs, Velocity VXC rims, Heavy duty spokes, disc specific).
Have to save up my bickies!

> Laptops will fit in panniers, in fact I think Ortlieb make some specially
> designed for this. It's easy to fit in some suitable shock cushioning
foam.
>

I'll look into it.

> Cheers
> Peter
>
>
>
>
>
>

 

[Gags]

"Peter Signorini" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> "ftf" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > I have often wondered about this... maybe it only applies to people with
> > back problems but I find things seem to weigh alot less on your back
> > than in your hands (obviously our anatomy caters for this), and
> > therefore you would hardly even notice something like a backpack with
> > 2-3 ltrs of water.
> >
> > The only advantage(s) I can think of for panniers is touring and if you
> > need to avoid a sweaty back (i.e. ride in your work/other clothes) - or
> > back problems.
>
> I guess I have a different take on this. As a bit of a whippet (62kg) I
find
> a full 3 ltr water bag is quite noticable and will sway on your back when
> manoeuvring in town or off-road. I'll put up with it off-road as it's the
> easiest way to access water. But for commuting and general touring (which
is
> what the Yarra Trail is after all) the only advantage I can think off for
a
> back pack is to carry water. You'll get a sweaty back, be generally
> uncomfortable and I don't give much credence to the ideas of protecting
the
> laptop. Like when you fall off and your backpack with laptop cushions your
> back....?
>
> Laptops will fit in panniers, in fact I think Ortlieb make some specially
> designed for this. It's easy to fit in some suitable shock cushioning foam

I bought a Bobblebe hardshell backpack
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~drgagnon/Backpack.htm to protect the Laptop
and I added some reflective tape to aid in visibility when commuting to work
early on winter mornings. When I was hit by a car earlier in the year, not
only did the backpack protect my laptop, it also took some of the impact off
of hitting the road and I much preferred the cosmetic damage to the pack
than to on me.

On riding with Camelbaks, I am sure that a few years ago I read an article
about a guy who accidently rode off a cliff in the course of a ride, landed
flat on his back some distance down, and was saved from serious injury by
the Camelbak he was wearing.......another added bonus I guess.

Gags