Tent for a long cycle trip.

B"H I am planning a cross country trip. Looking for suggestions for a good tent. I have a Solo Tour
Lite from Performance. I did a trip around Great Lakes with it. It was ok, but a bit too small. This
time I am looking for more room, and, of course, not much heavier package. Thank you, Victor.

 

[email protected] (avgrin) wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> B"H I am planning a cross country trip. Looking for suggestions for a good tent. I have a Solo
> Tour Lite from Performance. I did a trip around Great Lakes with it. It was ok, but a bit too
> small. This time I am looking for more room, and, of course, not much heavier package. Thank
> you, Victor.

Back Country 2 by Eureka. It weghts 5lbs and packs real small. I bought it from Campmore on
recommendation. I have it 4 yrs and has never leaked. Make sure you waterproof the seams. It is a 2
man tent but great for 1 person. Visit www.campmore.com Marty

 

I don't know if they're readily available in the US, but I've recently bought a Saunders Satellite
Plus - http://www.robertsaunders.co.uk/pages/satellite.html. I haven't yet used it, but it comes in
at 4.3 lbs.

Dave Larrington - http://legslarry.crosswinds.net/
===========================================================
Editor - British Human Power Club Newsletter
http://www.bhpc.org.uk/
===========================================================

 

This time I am looking for more room, and, of course, not much heavier package. Thank you, Victor.

Victor, Check out whiteblaze.net , this is a site dedicated to long distance backpacking, such as
hiking the Appalachian Trail. Probably every light tent manufactured is discussed there. I
personally use a George Tarp from Integral Designs for extended cycling trips. I don't know the URL
for them, but you can find it by doing a search for "Integral Designs". Another tent worth checking
out is Henry Shires "Tarptent". John Carnahan [email protected]

 

Saw this Marmot Eclipse at REI this weekend. Looks roomy for a one-man and is plenty light.

http://www.rei.com/online/store/Pro...&storeId=8000&catalogId=40000008000&langId=-1

 

Hi, Victor, you wrote, "It was ok, but a bit too small. This time I am looking for more room"

Hmmmm, sounds like your subject line should have been,

'Long tent for cycle trip'

Lewis.

www.tinyurl/8vvh

[email protected] (avgrin) wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...
> B"H I am planning a cross country trip. Looking for suggestions for a good tent. I have a Solo
> Tour Lite from Performance. I did a trip around Great Lakes with it. It was ok, but a bit too
> small. This time I am looking for more room, and, of course, not much heavier package. Thank
> you, Victor.

 

I've got fancier tents, but one I use a LOT is the under $100 Colman ultralight I got at a discount
store. somewhere under 6 pounds with fly.

To me, ease of setup is more important than weight. I'd rather have a tent that weighs a pound more
and have it be self-standing, rather than deal with the kind that rely on staked-out sides to stay
upright, or full-sized.

After a long day, it can be a hassle to find a spot that will support the kind of stake tension
needed to keep those up. With a self-stander, you just need enough to keep it from blowing away...

Sj

 

"Seth Jayson" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I've got fancier tents, but one I use a LOT is the under $100 Colman ultralight I got at a
> discount store. somewhere under 6 pounds with fly.
>
> To me, ease of setup is more important than weight. I'd rather have a tent that weighs a pound
> more and have it be self-standing, rather than deal with the kind that rely on staked-out sides to
> stay upright, or full-sized.
>
> After a long day, it can be a hassle to find a spot that will support the kind of stake tension
> needed to keep those up. With a self-stander, you just need enough to keep it from blowing away...
>
> Sj

I totally agree. I use Eureka BackCountry tents. They are relatively cheap and easy to put up. I
usually never use stakes. Just put my stuff in it to hold it down in wind. The 2-Man size is just
right for one person with lots of room for stuff. I have even put my bike in it when it was raining.

I see lots of Sierra tents and other fancy ones. They may be great for 4 season windy snowy camping.
But a Eureka Backcountry would work great most of the time. HTH Richard

 

In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] says...
> B"H I am planning a cross country trip. Looking for suggestions for a good tent. I have a Solo
> Tour Lite from Performance. I did a trip around Great Lakes with it. It was ok, but a bit too
> small. This time I am looking for more room, and, of course, not much heavier package. Thank
> you, Victor.
>
I have found that a two-man tent is about as small a tent for a touring cyclist as I would desire.
Key features for self-contained touring are light weight (under 5 lbs.) and free standing. The
Northface SlickRock is a good example.

http://www.rei.com/online/store/ProductDisplay?storeId=8000&catalogId=40000008000&productId=
9451478&parent_category_rn=4500457

I use a clip Flashlight which is not free standing. I probably will opt for a new tent for my next
camping tour.
http://www.rei.com/online/store/ProductDisplay?storeId=8000&catalogId=40000008000&productId=
11939207&parent_category_rn=4500457
--

Cletus D. Lee Bacchetta Giro Lightning Voyager http://www.clee.org
- Bellaire, TX USA -

 

avgrin <[email protected]> wrote:
: B"H I am planning a cross country trip. Looking for suggestions for a good tent. I have a Solo
: Tour Lite from Performance. I did a trip

How do you keep people from stealing your bent while you're fast asleep?

--
Risto Varanka | http://www.helsinki.fi/~rvaranka/ varis at no spam please iki fi

 

<[email protected]> skrev

> How do you keep people from stealing your bent while you're fast asleep?

Lock it? Preferably to something solid.

There are some bikealarms too. And nonbikealarms. I recall one with a pin that when pulled out made
an awful racket. Should be simple to attach it to the bike... maybe with a clear nylon fishline so
it goes off if the bike is moved.

M.

 

Mikael Seierup <[email protected]> wrote:
: There are some bikealarms too. And nonbikealarms. I recall one with a pin that when pulled out
: made an awful racket. Should be simple to attach it to the bike... maybe with a clear nylon
: fishline so it goes off if the bike is moved.

Hmm what do camping grounds think when it goes off?

--
Risto Varanka | http://www.helsinki.fi/~rvaranka/ varis at no spam please iki fi

 

<[email protected]> skrev

> : There are some bikealarms too. And nonbikealarms. I recall one with a pin that when pulled out
> : made an awful racket. Should be simple to attach it to the bike... maybe with a clear nylon
> : fishline so it goes off if the bike is moved.
>
> Hmm what do camping grounds think when it goes off?

Well, if you visit the one in Poland I went to nothing. There was loud music from across the lake
all night. Drunk people arguing loudly half the night. "Kurwa!, kurwa!, kurwa!" summed it up nicely.
And finally an airraid siren that someone set off a few times.

Anyway you're supposed to wake up and beat the thieves soundly with your pump when it goes off.
I just brought a couple of wirelocks. Noone stole recumbents there anyway.

M.

 

avgrin wrote:
>
> B"H I am planning a cross country trip. Looking for suggestions for a good tent. I have a Solo
> Tour Lite from Performance. I did a trip around Great Lakes with it. It was ok, but a bit too
> small. This time I am looking for more room, and, of course, not much heavier package. Thank
> you, Victor.

I suggest a fully faired velomobile with a very reclined seat and headrest - no need for a tent.

Tom Sherman - Various HPV's Quad Cities USA (Illinois side)

 

[email protected] wrote:
>
> How do you keep people from stealing your bent while you're fast asleep?

Lock the bike to your tent. Getting the bike free should disturb things enough to wake you up while
the theft is in progress. The likelihood of waking the person in the tent should discourage most
thieves from even trying.

Tom Sherman - Various HPV's Quad Cities USA (Illinois side)

 

Mikael Seierup wrote:
>
> <[email protected]> skrev
>
> > How do you keep people from stealing your bent while you're fast asleep?
>
> Lock it? Preferably to something solid.
>
> There are some bikealarms too. And nonbikealarms. I recall one with a pin that when pulled out
> made an awful racket. Should be simple to attach it to the bike... maybe with a clear nylon
> fishline so it goes off if the bike is moved.

There are also the types of small fireworks that go off when the string attached to them is pulled.
These do not have enough black powder in them to really damage anything, but should result in the
thief's heart rate increasing very rapidly.

Tom Sherman - Various HPV's Quad Cities USA (Illinois side)

 

We made the Northern Tier crossing last summer and I think a free-standing tent is a very good
thing. Maybe a half a dozen times we set our tent up on concrete under a shelter to get us out of
the rain. One night in eastern North Dakota it rained 4 inches. The rain had been forecast so we set
up under the picnic shelter in a town park. It was very hot that night so we didn't even put the
rainfly on. And didn't get wet. The concrete platform was about 3 1/2 inches above ground so no
water came in the tent from below.

Ron Friedel

"avgrin" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> B"H I am planning a cross country trip. Looking for suggestions for a good tent. I have a Solo
> Tour Lite from Performance. I did a trip around Great Lakes with it. It was ok, but a bit too
> small. This time I am looking for more room, and, of course, not much heavier package. Thank
> you, Victor.

 

> B"H
> > I am planning a cross country trip. Looking for suggestions for a good tent. I have a Solo Tour
> > Lite from Performance. I did a trip around Great Lakes with it. It was ok, but a bit too small.
> > This time I am looking for more room, and, of course, not much heavier package. Thank you,
> > Victor.
>
>
> Back Country 2 by Eureka. It weghts 5lbs and packs real small. I bought it from Campmore on
> recommendation. I have it 4 yrs and has never leaked. Make sure you waterproof the seams. It is a
> 2 man tent but great for 1 person. Visit www.campmore.com Marty

Thank you Marty for directing me to Eureka tents. I actually ordered Eureka Apex 2A from
http://www.thetentstore.com/eureka!_apex_2a_03_tents.htm today. Thank you everyone for advice.

Victor

 

I've toured with both a top-notch 2-person freestanding tent (Moss Starlet) and a lighter, 1-person
non-freestanding "bivy" tent (Eureka Gossamer). Both have merits.

If weight isn't a top concern, or if you might be spending considerable time in the tent, then a
taller 2-person model would be very welcome. Being able to sit up in the tent is a bonus.

Some brands to consider...

Marmot MSR (the Zoid series seems nice) Sierra Designs North Face Eureka