RR: Studley park/Yarra Bend



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Tim Jones

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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
 
"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
 
Originally posted by 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

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.
 
"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
 
"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
 
"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
>
>
>
 
"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
 
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