Depends where you are. If you’re somewhere with no signs/no roman character signs it can save your ass (especially if the GPS packs it up).
I’m going to get one of these for my new touring bike: http://www.stemcaptain.com/products/compasses. Weighs shit all and will probably come in handy some day (providing it actually works).
Don’t bother. Even though the preload bolt is supposed to be nonmagnetic, they have a terrible reputation for not working properly. steel steerers, headset parts etc.
The clock works well, but who wants to know the time on a bike tour?
The thermometer rotates without modification, and I think I’ve calculated that it’s 4C too low on mine.
For you MikeD
(This looks a bit like Marley, but I might be wrong)
V3.0 is meant to be better. I found a review on a blog somewhere.
Picture frame is next best option. I can put a picture of Tony Abbott to remind me when I’m lost that even if I have no idea what I’m doing, life will turn out okay.
Compass bells are the go to. $5 or something
This guy is my hero
he could learn from you.
No shirt is light.
Bloke sounds like shit dude but this thread kick ass.
Seems like a funny dude, if only a touch loopy. Some of his advice makes sense, other stuff I wouldn’t do. But hey, if that works for him…
Anyone know where I can get a camping stove/fuel? I had a look on ebay, but it seems that stoves are only available without fuel. So, does anyone know where to get fuel, or a stove with fuel included? Don’t need anything super fancy, one burner would suffice. Will try aussie disposals tomorrow when I am at work.
Yeah online places won’t ship isobutane, can get canisters from any outdoor store tho kathmandu etc
ah, any number of outdoors stores.
Thanks mates! Will check out a few tomorrow at work.
On the topic of slightly crazy lightweight touring - I was looking up Wildcat frame bags and stumbled across this guy: http://www.piano-tuning.co.uk/ultralight/
He’s a roving piano tuner who travels by bike and sleeps on rooftops.
“Despite living outdoors my visit is no different from a piano tuner that lives in a house except that I might hang my sleeping bag on a chair to dry if it’s damp before attending to your piano. I might also charge my mobile phone”
Some interesting ideas, e.g. he sleeps in a goose-down suit instead of a sleeping bag, wears running leggings as they dry faster than cycling ones, and carries a razor with no handle. He also rides a 14kg bike.
That guy is next level, up there with the credit-card-as-towel guy.
I bet he’d cut down his credit card if he could.
Razor with no handle. Up there with the cut-down toothbrush. Great ideas to make something completely impractical to use for basically zero weight advantage.
And sleeping in a down suit? Great idea if you separately need a down suit, you know, for fast and light mountaineering in high altitude. For the rest of us that don’t need a down suit, it makes zero sense: heavier, cooler, way more expensive than a sleeping bag. (I do recall a quote somewhere from Chris Bonington talking about reducing weight for an alpine-style ascent of some 8000-er peak - and he did mention cutting his toothbrush and sleeping in his down suit.)
When I was in the army everyone carried cut down toothbrushs and razors. But we still carried the 2kg sub zero issued sleeping bags - even in summer…
At least I have switched this trend around.
Did you have a hutchie? or one of those sleeping mats with the 3 inflatable tubes that always punctured?