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I want to travel long distances with a mountain bike, and I have an army backpack that's wide, 55L, weights around 15-20kg total. I do not have a bike yet so I cannot test it, but I wonder if it won't cause problems in regards of weight distribution?

I'm planning to put it above the back tire on an attachable metal holder (the standard one) and strap it around my waist so it wouldn't fall down.

Would this work? I'm worried about weight distribution and it making me fall down, especially if I'm riding on an uneven road.

Please ask questions if you need to.

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    It sounds like you're planning to tie yourself to the bike via the backpack. That would be a bad idea. You'd be better off with the backpack on your back alone, even though that's not very stable itself. You could improve on this by shifting the heavy contents onto the frame (low down) and keeping the light stuff on your back. I'm pretty certain this has been discussed here before.
    – Chris H
    Commented Sep 2, 2016 at 8:42
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    While I've found the closest question (the one I was thinking of), you might also be interested in bicycles.stackexchange.com/questions/10504/…
    – Chris H
    Commented Sep 2, 2016 at 8:44
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    Nice, bike trailers! Awesome! Thank you - that would be my answer, I think. :-) By the way, how much would it reduce my possibilities for types of roads I can ride on? I'm planning to ride from country to country.
    – Jack
    Commented Sep 2, 2016 at 9:35
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    I'm no trailer expert. I've just bought one to carry my daughter but not fitted it yet. I held off for so long because some of the roads round here aren't sensible for child trailers, and some of the bike paths have width restrictions to keep things other than bikes off them. For just carrying luggage, a single wheel trailer should be able to go anywhere a bike can, though very tight turns may be ruled out.
    – Chris H
    Commented Sep 2, 2016 at 10:22
  • @Chris H Thanks for input for your concerns. I have similar, and I'll be looking for as small a solution as possible that would have some type of cover and good mechanism so my bag wouldn't fall (after all, it's 15-20kg!).
    – Jack
    Commented Sep 2, 2016 at 12:24

2 Answers 2

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Your answers are

  • Frame bag that fits inside your bike's main triangle. May have to custom-make this.

  • Racks and panniers, both front and back.

  • A trailer, towed behind the bike

  • Backpack worn on rider's back

  • Or go without those items.... Staying at a motor inn/motel/cabins/bed&breakfast may mean you have much less to carry.

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    Frame bag and racks and panniers probably won't work, as I'm carrying everything I will need for a long-term trip. I will also not stay in inns/motels/cabins/bed&breakfasts because they cost money, and I'm on a very low budget. Backpack on my bag, 15-20kg, would not work due to its weight, unfortunately. As for a trailer - I guess that's my solution, then! I hope it will not be super-hard to ride with it throughout countries.
    – Jack
    Commented Sep 2, 2016 at 12:26
  • @Jack You'd be surprised how much use panniers are. Trailers add rolling resistance because there are more tyres. Backpacks get horrible very quickly, for anything over a kilo or two. Also you can do more than one thing, if you have time to prepare.$15 of cloth, velcro, and a long zip(per) plus time at a sewing machine could make you a custom frame bag that will carry some of your stuff. Racks are cheap, trailers are not cheap because they're relatively rare.
    – Criggie ♦
    Commented Sep 3, 2016 at 0:14
  • Well, the thing is, I'm going on a hiking trip, so technically I have to have a backpack - something that I can carry on my back. If I will be going into a store, I'll have to lock my bike up, and I can't leave it with my stuff, nor can I carry multiple small and heavy bags into the store. Other than that, I would have to buy everything in any case, because I leave on Monday most likely, and I'm not even at my home.
    – Jack
    Commented Sep 3, 2016 at 7:53
  • @Jack that information does change your question quite a lot. Consider using edit to add that to the original question... which would become "How do I ride with a tramping pack?" Trailers are out - unless you want to lock it up like a second bike or you build a trailer out of a lockable box and still lock that to the bike/stand.
    – Criggie ♦
    Commented Sep 3, 2016 at 7:57
  • I am planning to just take my backpack with me when going to the store, and leave the bicycle locked up to the bicycle stands near a store.
    – Jack
    Commented Sep 3, 2016 at 9:22
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I commute every day about two hours with a bag of tools that weighs more than that. It's fine on the rack I made at the back tied down so it can't move around.

Center it properly, strap it down and the only time it will give you grief is when you're off the bike holding the handlebars, then it tends to lean the bike over if you don't pay attention. And it digs the stand into the ground and the bike might fall over. Apart from that I just ride normally.

I advise against strapping it around your waist, you may need to ditch the bike or it could get caught on something. Also make sure there are no loose fitting or straps hanging out which might get caught in a wheel or hit your legs, common sense stuff.

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    It can't be emphasized enough that the load must be well-secured and tightly strapped. If it flops around as you ride it will make the bike quite difficult to handle.
    – Daniel R Hicks
    Commented Sep 2, 2016 at 11:44
  • Hmm. I was thinking that originally, but my stuff takes a lot of space, too. Maybe I am wrong about this and you can explain it otherwise? Here is the backpack that I will carry (it's quite a bit wider than my body): 2.bp.blogspot.com/-YGN7HPbirDU/VN-6p7gtfkI/AAAAAAAAVC8/…
    – Jack
    Commented Sep 2, 2016 at 12:29
  • My torso is about as wide as the upper part of the bag - I'm thin, but that tells how wide the backpack is.
    – Jack
    Commented Sep 2, 2016 at 12:30
  • I can't see it as being a problem my bag is wider than my body as well. I'm actually more stable with it on the rack than with it on my back. But strap it down tight. I have a home made wide rack, but used to do the same with the normal one.
    – Kilisi
    Commented Sep 2, 2016 at 12:47
  • Thanks, I'll ask to try that at first when I get to the store. :-)
    – Jack
    Commented Sep 2, 2016 at 14:12

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