camping gear

[Trow]

Hey Folks,
With the Cold Kiwi looming on the horizon, can anyone suggest a decent tent company that can supply a tent small enough to carry on the bike (keep in mind I have a naked bandit) I need at least a 1 man 2 woman tent.. (saying 3 man tent doesn't sit well with me)

so any suggestions would be appreicated, and for the rally, do you guys go down in groups from Auckland, would rather go in a group so there's a bit of support!


Cheers choooks

[Lou Girardin]

Camping? Tents?
Is that like raising the sheets in a motel bed? That's the nearest to tenting I'll get.

[Slingshot]

What kind of luggage system are you using?


The Warehouse seems to have a good range of tents now and some of them are quite small, you may find that you need to get creative with how you pack the tent though.

[Trow]

well, I don't have any gear here in NZ but I was just using soft luggage throw overs (the kind you clip your seat over) and a tank bag... I could buy a rack for the rear and bungee stuff to that!

[idb]

Kathmandu has a good range.
I have a two man (or one man and one woman if you prefer) (or two woman - phwaarr...) tent that folds down to about 450mm long by 150wide.
They have pretty good and regular sales on - frequently 60% off.
And no, I don't work for them nor do I have shares...in case you were wondering.

[bungbung]

A macpac minaret is pretty good. Or for a bit more room, the olympus. Have a look at http://www.macpac.co.nz/products/dis...,66/miid,2339/

[phantom]

I've got a lightweight Macpac tent that I bought for cycle touring and in the past I've just bunged it all into my old tramping pack, bungeed it onto the back of the GB and Bob's your uncle. I intend going to the Cold Kiwi as well but coming from the other direction

[Pickle]

We use a Great Outdoors tent, Discovery packs down small weighs total of 3.4kg and can sleep 3.
Try going to Rebel Sport they have tents on special all the time or K Mart, Doyles, Dwights Canvas
How about looking up on Trade Me ( just did & there are plenty ) to see what is going but look for the better brands like MacPac, Great Outdoors adventure series or Kathmandu.

[curious george]

Doyles.
Macpac and Katmandu are very light weight tents (and expensive) that are great for walking adventures, but I find the ground sheets very thin.

For regular camping look for something with a heavier groundsheet.
Make sure the fly is seam sealed (all the stitching is taped on the inside to waterproof it) and give it a good soaking before you go anywhere.
This is to make sure you have all the pieces, and it really is waterproof.
Buy some more pegs before you go and take extra guy ropes too.
If you have the room, a patch reapir kit for the floor and fly might come in handy too.

[Holy Roller]

If you are only going to give it little usage the Red Shed dome tents are great. Last one has lasted for four years doing the Cold kiwi and Brass along with a couple of Ulysses rallies. My last bike I just used bungy cords to hold it on.

It just depends how much room one requires in the tent, for a single person I have seen the cheapest Warehouse pup tent used at the Brass, just need a good sleeping bag.

[raster]

I've got one that will take 3 people, use that if you want, We don't use it anymore, packs down fairly small too, bags got a small tear in it.

[scumdog]

Any of the advertise '3-man tents' will do, go for rugged rather than light, I use a combination of bungy cords and those small webbing 'ratchet ties' to hold it in place on the bike.

I think ours is a Great Outdoors item, is a dome shape and has two of those flexi poles with bungy cord through the middle, we've had it for years and olny change is thicker stainless pegs (made from old conveyer-belt pins).

When packing makes sure the flexi-poles are not near the outside of the bundle/bag in case the are chafing on part of you bike.
And ALWAYS open out the tent and dry it off before re-packing after using it.

BTW a smaller tent is (obviously) a little more cramped - but in cold conditions it also warms up quicker.

Use those self-inflating mattress things, those Warehouse 'poofter-pads' are useless.

[Trow]

I've got one that will take 3 people, use that if you want, We don't use it anymore, packs down fairly small too, bags got a small tear in it.

Thanks for the offer mate, If I don't get one before the rally I might take you up on that!

And thanks everyone for the tips as well, heaps of stuff I had never even thought of!!!

Great site looking forward to meeting some of you soon.