Messages

46

Gear Talk / Re: Tire Selection for the Continental Divide Trail

« on: October 05, 2012, 12:06:42 pm »

Ahh, I have the Home Depot 30 gallon, going through two tanks of that would be quite the debacle.  Goatheads in the Southwest make tubeless a must, sharp rocks are a good reason as well.   I mentioned that I got 4 or 5 pinch flats while running tubes on the Monarch Crest portion of the Divide Trail.  I was ready toss my bike off a cliff by the time I was done.  If I were touring that whole way I probably would have called home to end the ride.

47

Gear Talk / Re: Tire Selection for the Continental Divide Trail

« on: October 04, 2012, 11:54:37 pm »

I like the two tanks of the air compressor rule, how big is your tank?

48

Gear Talk / Re: Surly Disc Trucker v. LHT

« on: October 02, 2012, 03:44:54 pm »

Anyone really tour on an LHT with full packs?   Is the frame stiff enough for full packs?

Credit card trips don't count.  Supported trips don't count either.

Surly had this on their site:

http://surlybikes.com/info_hole/faqs/what_is_the_cargo_weight_limit_for_the_long_haul_trucker

What is the cargo weight limit for the Long Haul Trucker?

There are too many variables involved for us to supply a straight, hard numbers type answer. Rider weight, rack type, terrain, cargo weight distribution, and more all come into play. Very generally speaking, we feel comfortable with combined rider and cargo weight of up to about 300lbs/136kg. However, if you're 150lbs (68kg) you probably are not going to like the handling of a bike carrying 150lbs of stuff, so be reasonable. The Big Dummy can haul more because it is awesome. And our Trailer can haul about 300lbs give or take.

49

Gear Talk / Re: Tire Selection for the Continental Divide Trail

« on: October 02, 2012, 03:24:58 pm »

The ones I just did recently were Mavic 717 rims with 2.35 Maxxis Ignitors, but they were UST tires.    They pumped right up with a hand pump, almost like it was simply a tubed tire.  I ride them at 30psi (I'm 190 lbs) and they seem to lose about 5-6 psi every couple of weeks.

I've seen friends work hours on non-UST tires trying to get them to seal though. I was thinking I had good luck only because I used a UST tire?  My next experiment is some Rhyno Lite rims with some Nokian studded non-UST tires.

50

Gear Talk / Re: Tire Selection for the Continental Divide Trail

« on: September 29, 2012, 06:32:13 pm »

Definitely a small learning curve, especially if you use non-UST tires and go tubeless as they won't set the bead as well and will have pinhole leaks that need to seal. 

I used UST Maxxis Ignitors and didn't even need to use sealant to get them to seal up.  That may be a better option for a long tour like this.  Plus UST tires have stiffer sidewalls, which may be better suited for touring.  The downside is they weigh more, but you don't feel it in rolling resistance.  When I switched to tubeless my bike rolled faster than it ever had.  I had gobs of Strava activity on the same segments to subjectively prove that to myself.

I can't imagine riding tubes on the mountain bike again...  I'd recommend them in a heartbeat to someone doing the tour you suggest.

51

Gear Talk / Re: Tire Selection for the Continental Divide Trail

« on: September 28, 2012, 11:06:32 pm »

Took me years to be convinced, but no pinch flats, which is huge on a rocky trail.  You can also run much lower pressures, which translates to better handling and less rolling resistance.  I haven't figured out the physics of the latter yet, but the difference is dramatic.

52

Gear Talk / Re: Tire Selection for the Continental Divide Trail

« on: September 28, 2012, 05:01:33 pm »

Are you going to be tubeless?  I just rode the Monarch Crest trail (which is on the Continental Divide trail for *I think* half of the ride, I could be wrong about that) from Monarch Pass to Poncha Springs in August.  I pinch flatted 4 times in 30 miles.  There are a lot of sharp rocks in sections of the trail, some of it is rather loose and sketchy as well.  If I did it again I'd probably be tubeless with a set of 2.35 Ignitors.

A friend did the entire Divide trail with a tubeless 2.25 Knobby Nic up front and tubeless 2.25 Racing Ralph in the rear.