MTB What do people bring?

Abitofsense

Hi all

My girlfriend and i are beginners so we are heading out next week for our 1st trial (easy enough :? ). Just wondering what people typically bring with them, safety gear, spare parts?, pump? etc etc...

Just dont want to get caught out miles up in the mountains after forgetting something simple that "everyone knows you should bring that!" :oops:

Any thoughts or examples of what you bring would be appreciated

Thanks in advance

1mancity2

Fluid, food, first aid box, spare tube, pump, shock pump, multi tool, tyre levers, spare jacket, cable ties, gaffer tape, mobile phone, powerlinks for chain, spare brake pads, puncture kit.

All fits nicely in my backpack with room to spare.

Safety gear I wear,

Helmet, goggles, elbow pads, knee pads, gloves and a 661 subtop.

DXG82

I take:

- my camelbak full of water (be realistic about how much you will drink - I once went out riding with a friend who was a complete beginner who turned up with one small bottle of water for a full day long ride in the summer (and there were not really many places to stop en route to fill up....))
- a couple of energy or chocolate bars (or something more substantial depending on how long I am going out for)
- Basic first aid kit - I don't have room to carry much, but just a couple of bandages just in case.....
- Spare inner tube (at least one per rider, more is ideal in case you are unlucky)
- Pump (make sure you have the correct pump for the type of inner tubes you have)
- Tyre levers (x2)
- Puncture repair kit
- Spare disc brake pads (if a longer ride in bad conditions)
- Waterproof jacket (if any chance of rain)
- mobile phone (which I wrap in a plastic bag to stop it getting wet)
- cash

I would say that is the minimum - some people I ride with seem to carry a full tool box so you might like to carry more!

In terms of what I wear -
- Sturdy shoes
- shin and knee pads
- shorts with padded shorts underneath
- quick drying t-shirt
- waterproof jacket
- Gloves
- helmet
- either sunglasses or clear goggles (depending on weather)

Have fun!

Andrew_J_Heard

most point probably covered by the posts above but -

Always carry enough to drink etc. i always use a bladder as bottles are a pain in the arse. i usually aim for about 1 litre per hour im out if its a tough ride. overkill at times but have used it all at other points.

always throw a little snack bar or energy bar in incase you do get hungry or need a kick.

Good multi tool
Chain link remover (Only ever had one chain snap in 10 years but it was a long walk home!)
Quick link/Power link
spare tube (at least 1 per bike)
tyre levers ( at least two)
pump or air cannistor inflator
couple of cable ties (usefull for emergency bodges)
medical kit ( i dont carry one personally but i should)

to wear
decent firm sole shoes ( soft sole trainers can really start to ache)
some comfy shorts (its not necessary but padded under shorts are brilliant)
small pak mac type thing ( you can spend a fortune but i just carry a cheap regatta pack away mac)
a good long sleeve base layer is brilliant for hot and cold weather
some half decent gloves ( keep your hands warm, are a god send if you crash, great to help when repairing things)
GLASSES (in capitals as so many new riders overlook it, you'll regret it once that first splash or bug hits your eyes)

cat_with_no_tail

Makes sure your mobile is properly charged, and is somewhere that is:
A. Protected in case of a fall
and
B. somewhere you can reach it easily if you need to (without removing your pack)

Enough food / drink to last me plus a little bit more just in case.
Home made 1st aid kit including foil blanket thing, some 30mg codeine (they don't make me drowsy), roll of bandage, butterfly stitches, electrical tape.
Pump
Tube
tubeless patch kit
good multitool including chain splitter
spare links
powerful torch
extra layers, waterproofs etc as weather requires.

I always wear a helmet and a pair of gloves and whichever shades suit conditions. And I usually have my GPS running (on the phone, which is stored as mentioned above).


I go overboard a bit on my rides, but I go out on my own, so if / when I go down, it's up to me to get home.

Rushmore

I tend to try and be as light as possible..

Camelback, which contains my wallet with cash,

Saddle bag - spare tube, pump, tyre lever ( I only take 1 as i don't usually use one at all, but if I have cold hands I might require the help, however, you should take 2 ) My phone, multitool, some scabs ( patches ) and a mini torch just incase.

I usually wear helmet, gloves and glasses to suit conditions. Along with a thermal base layer and long sleeve jersey ( if cold ) 3/4 length shorts with padded undershorts, and a pair of enties high tops to style it up!

but it all depends on how secluded you are going to be and for how long you expect to be out..

I always tell someone where I am going and what time i will roughly be back too...

cat_with_no_tail

I just finished watching 127hrs and thought of this thread.

I'm now going to start carrying a trolley jack, sat-phone, flare gun, full surgical trauma kit, emergency rations to last 1 week, water purifiers, and a medium sized pack of blood hounds.

mak3m

Cat With No Tail wrote:

I just finished watching 127hrs and thought of this thread.

I'm now going to start carrying a trolley jack, sat-phone, flare gun, full surgical trauma kit, emergency rations to last 1 week, water purifiers, and a medium sized pack of blood hounds.

dont forget spare batteries for your video camera and maby a bow saw if you have room

sniper68

Cat With No Tail wrote:

I just finished watching 127hrs and thought of this thread.

I'm now going to start carrying a trolley jack, sat-phone, flare gun, full surgical trauma kit, emergency rations to last 1 week, water purifiers, and a medium sized pack of blood hounds.

I watched that and my immediate thoughts were...
1.Why leave the wet chicks and walk into the unknown. :? .......
2.Why leave the wet chicks and walk into the unknown.....you will regret it it
3.WHY LEAVE THE WET CHICKS AND WALK INTO THE UNKNOWN YOU TOOL :roll:

At least he learnt a very important lesson.......

Andrew_J_Heard

Rushmore wrote:

I always tell someone where I am going and what time i will roughly be back too...

very good point. i always text the missus (even though we live together i know she'd forget what i told her) details of where im goin, what trail and when i should be home

Ghostt

Depends on where you are going and who you are riding with really.
As a bare minimum, I take water (hydrapack) mini pump, shock pump, spare tube, puncture repair kit, small roll of electrical tape, multitool, phone and a bit of food. Enough to get me home if anything happens really.
On longer rides, or ones further away from 'civilisation' (i.e. where help will take a while to reach me) I add a bit more food and a spare top plus a small but well stocked 1st aid kit (knowing how to use it properly helps too!).
When riding with other people/guys new to the sport, I take an extra tube, as chances are none of them will have one!
Things like spare brake pads I'd say weren't a necessity, if you check your bike regularly you should know how much life is left in them and if necessary change them before the ride. Yeah, you can be buggered without them, but if you check them before there shouldn't be a problem.

El Zomba

Pretty much all of the above. If you're going out on a longer ride (more than a couple of hours), bung some isotonic powder in with the water you're carrying; it'll help replace some of the salts you sweat out and cut down on cramps. Carry a banana to eat for a quick energy burst and something to stash down your shorts if you want to look 'imposing' to the general public. Also, if you're driving out to a trail, stash a change of clothes in the car and one of those giant rubber buckets to stand in while you change and put all of your dirty kit in once you're done. Even if it's just a clean t-shirt and a pair of tracky bottoms, you'll feel a lot more comfortable on the way home than you would with a wet and mud-coated bum.

The Rookie

For an upto 30 mile ride
2 tubes
4 instant patches
2 tyre levers
Multi tool
Short length of chain
3 pairs of powerlinks (usually end up going to someone else in the group!)
Water (hydration pack)
Tyre pump
Shock pump
Waterproof if rain looks 'likely'.

Simon

milko9000

Surprised so many of you bother taking the shock pump along for the ride. How often have you needed to use it?

dhobiwallah

Was also about to question the shock pump...

If you have your suspension dialled I really wouldn't bother. As this is on the beginners section that may not be the case - so by all means take it to experiment with what works for you; but don't carry it for the sake of it if you don't plan to use it.

Add to the above a tyre boot to bodge a large gash in the tyre sidewall (I use a section from a plastic milk carton)

Zip ties will get you home from a huge number of mechanicals - but only if you know how. They can convert your rear hub to a fixie if your freehub goes/ replace a sheared bolt / stitch a split tyre / keep you in your best gear after a snapped shifter cable etc etc etc.

As with first aid - anything you carry is only of any use if you know how to use it! Google search on trailside repairs should help :P

The Rookie

milko9000 wrote:

Surprised so many of you bother taking the shock pump along for the ride. How often have you needed to use it?

I carry a mini one, larger with gauge stays at home.

Simon

dombra

a lot of people take a lot of crap out on the trails with them. just because you have a camelback/rucksack doesn't mean you need to fill it.
unless you are doing a big day in bad weather ditch the brake pads, no idea when extra lengths of chain would be used, if you need a shock pump on the trail something has broken so bad the pump will not fix it.

if you are just starting out stick with a bottle and cage and a saddle bag. less weight to lug about = happier biker
this is plenty for a couple of hours "local" riding --> 1 tube, tyre levers, patch kit with tyre boot, quick links for chain, multitool with chain splitter and a pump. prob should chuck in a foil blanket as well esp in this weather.
after a few rides you will get a good idea of what clothes you should be wearing to stay comfy.

when you get a bit fitter and the miles and ride times increase maybe then you should start thinking about stuffing rucksacks full of extra clothes and food.

giblets

Firstly, can we get this in the Stickies, or in the FAQ? Seems to come up quite a lot.

For beginners, think a lot of them will want some perspective, a lot of us will be regular MTB bashers, with bikes that have done higher mileage, and we really attack the trails, consequently we are more likely to suffer extensive damage/ failure.

Local RIdes
I tend to take the bare minimum, it's limited to a simple mulittool (think it was a freebie on the cover), and stuff to fix a flat (tube, patches, levers, mini pump), a bottle, and maybe a jacket depending on time of year.
I tend to get FAR more punctures locally, as all the farmers cut the thorny hedges round here, but touch wood, not had one on a trail.

Longer Rides/ Trails
On longer rides (sometimes technically shorter, but more challenging, eg trails), I get the 'camel back' ( a cheap Costco 'Sierra Nevada') out. Add a jacket, cable ties, harribo.

I've recently added a power link and tool, after receiving my first ever chain failure (chain had done about 800miles), which seems to be around the right mileage for it to happen, so don't think you need to go out and get one straight away.

As for a tyre boot, only time I would have needed one, the wheel was bent beyond use, so again, unless you are being aggressive, it's unlikely you will need one urgently.

Brake pads? Unless you know you have old pads in there (in which case, take out and check/ replace), I'm confident I will make it back on the other brake, and just calm it down (unless you are doing some sort of mega ride). Trying to take the bendable clip out etc on the trail is a pain the rear anyhow.

cat_with_no_tail

I've seen chains go bang on the first outing.

Split links weigh nothing and a decent tool should include a splitter anyway, so I'd always have them.

Same for tyre boots. I've sliced sidewalls on "tame" xc rides more than once, and a tyre boot weighs nothing and a lot of punchy repair kits include one anyway.

MountainMonster

Even more important than the weight for the split links, they take up no space at all. 100 clips are the same size as pack of gum, so it's worth having a few.

tboy823

After my experience today, even if you have all the right kit..................



make sure you take it with you!!!!!!

Yacoby

tboy823 wrote:

After my experience today, even if you have all the right kit..................



make sure you take it with you!!!!!!

After a puncture where it turned out I had forgotten tyre leaves I now have a bag of tools that I ride with, so I just have to remember the bag as opposed to having to remember every tool.

dhobiwallah

dombra wrote:

a lot of people take a lot of crap out on the trails with them. just because you have a camelback/rucksack doesn't mean you need to fill it.

While that is true - you also need to consider how far your walk home is... A lot of people talk about local trails - I work shifts so quite often am out during weekdays. If my bike goes bang there is no-one to call to pick me up! 10 miles on foot is a lot harder than 10 miles on a bike; 10 miles carrying a bike when you can't wheel it is harder yet! As I also discovered even when there is a rescue service it is pretty easy to get yourself several miles from the nearest accessible road on a quick local loop too!

I probably carry too much kit - but there isn't a single one of my riding buddies that I haven't had to bail out with my magic camelbak

My Clydesdale mate seems to snap his chain about every third ride - never had it happen to me but I don't half get through SRAM powerlinks....

Yacoby

Just looked through my bag

pump
Multi tool
chain tool
power link
1-2 tubes
patch kit (for one of "those" days)
tyre leavers
cable ties
front light

When riding I also have food, phone cash. I have at times wished I had a small first aid kit (wipes and bandage)

barty81

also baby wipes and a metre of bog roll.just in case the curry you had the night before starts bubbling away in your stomach and you just have to relieve that pressure.

Jolly Swagman

I carry all the right stuff as judged by the fact every other bugger I ride with has to have me bail them out

Saladin

as well as everything already listed here it doesnt hurt to tell the Mrs/flatmates etc where your going - especially if your going out alone , leave as much info with them as possible - your route, the gear you've got with you, what time to expect you back, what time you'll phone before setting off type of thing.



Just for that little extra piece of mind really.

Jolly Swagman

Saladin wrote:

as well as everything already listed here it doesnt hurt to tell the Mrs/flatmates etc where your going - especially if your going out alone , leave as much info with them as possible - your route, the gear you've got with you, what time to expect you back, what time you'll phone before setting off type of thing.



Just for that little extra piece of mind really.

Tell them nothing. It is a slippery slope once you go down that path.

bobbygloss

One other thing I carry that no-one seems to have listed - a spare nut for a quick-release skewer.
I had a very frantic 5 minute search in long grass after one dropped off while changing a puncture.

Does anyone have a get-you-home fix for this? Swap for the back one and ride really carefully? Or can you borrow a nut from somewhere on the bike?

Jolly Swagman

Also, for fumbling around in the dark I would suggest a cheapo lightweight headlamp. Also, take the batteries out and turn them around the wrong way until you need it, that way they don't run out if accidentally knocked on.

concorde

I take:

Pump
Tube
Levers
Chocs
Waterproof layer
Phone
Money
Allen keys

Should take more!

In relation to the powerlink for again. How necessary is that. I the never snapped one. Does it tend to be fatties that snap them?!