How LITTLE I carry for ULTRA-DISTANCE Bikepacking Races (COMPLETE gear list)

[@Danilyn_Livao]

I love how you’ve managed to keep everything minimal while still being fully prepared. Thanks for great video, Tristan!💯

[@tristantakevideo]

Thanks so much. Really glad you got something out of it! 🙏🏼

[@Danilyn_Livao]

​@@tristantakevideo Your insights were incredibly helpful. I appreciate you sharing them. 👌

[@Apidurabikepacking]

Hi Tristan! What an achievement. It's great to see the Racing Series serving you well and going the distance. Chapeau.

[@tristantakevideo]

Thanks guys 🙏🏼

[@declanroche7600]

Great video Tristan. You do the research and testing so we don’t need to!

[@lazlo2511]

Well Done! Thanks for the run down, so detailed, keep at it!

[@tristantakevideo]

Thanks so much 🙏🏼

[@CycleXplorer]

Love that bottle trick with the arm warmers. May have to try that!

[@Jimoto]

An amazing amount of concise and helpful information. Thanks!

[@Japan323i]

Very innovative storage methods.. water bottle as quick reach storage ; backpack + flasks for water…nice to see the follow up reason for the failing tire pressure.. saw some carry a small amount of sealant.. Love the lights set up.. have same rear red lysene.. love it! .. congrats on the W!

[@JacobFahrenkrug]

Nice setup! For the spare parts I always bring a part of a chain and a couple of chain locks. Saved me twice already. A unfortunate chaindrop is all it needs and I do experience them once in a while especially on SRAM red ;)

[@tristantakevideo]

This is great advice. I took a very, very big risk not bringing a chain breaker and spare links. Having said this I was pretty confident that with a 1x setup and the size of the teeth, I wouldn't have any chain drops, and thankfully that proved to be the case.

[@wendysuperfan1014]

thanks Tristan. Congrats!!

[@tristantakevideo]

Thanks as always Wendy 🙏🏼

[@ariffau]

Bloody hell that’s a nice Kaius!

[@JibbaJabber]

Tru dat. I want one!

[@tristantakevideo]

Agreed. I'm a big, big fan.

[@andres3247]

The video I was looking for ☺ thanks for sharing 🤘

[@spinlouton9538]

Congrats!!!

[@dorothyb.]

Great video Tristan

[@1337aznpro]

great video again mate. well done!

[@tristantakevideo]

Thanks mate!

[@JJuarezMAgsMx]

Excellent video, very detailed, great adventure, greetings

[@0xStevenx0]

Hey Tristan, congratulations on an incredible achievement! This video is exactly what I was looking for - so valuable. I recently completed my first ultra gravel race at THE GOATS in Portugal, and your insights here are a huge help as I prepare for Badlands next year. I’ve subscribed to your channel and plan to watch all your videos for more tips! Looking back on your experience, is there anything you would change or do differently for Badlands? Any specific tips for that race would be awesome. Thanks for sharing such detailed content - truly inspiring!

[@tristantakevideo]

Thanks mate, and congrats for getting round The Goats! For Badlands, it depends how long you plan to race it over. Anything more than 62 hours and you'll most likely want a Dynamo operated light if you don't have one already. My Supernova and head torch combination would have lasted half way into a third night, but I wouldn't have been 100% sure they'd last the entire time. Badlands being in September means the days are a little shorter and the nights a little longer, so extra battery life is useful. Sleeping for an hour or two (or 3 or 4...) can help mitigate this. I also wish I hadn't tried to carb load to such a degree the day before Badlands because it's what caused my stomach issues which slowed me down a lot...I think I would've been a good 3-4 hours quicker had I not had those problems. In terms of other things, if I could've fit wider tyres, I would have (40's were fine but not ideal...45's would be better for sure), and I think if I had napped for 30 minutes right before the second morning I would've been able to ride harder later in the day. These are all very personal experiences and different people respond differently during ultras, but those are a few points off the top of my head!

[@0xStevenx0]

@ Thank you so much, Tristan! Those insights are super helpful - I’ll definitely consider the dynamo light and rethink my pre-race carb intake. I currently ride 45 mm tires and even found myself wishing for something wider, so your advice really resonates. One quick follow-up: when you plan those short sleep breaks, do you have any specific routines or strategies to maximize recovery in such a short time? Can’t wait to put these tips into practice and follow along with your future videos. Cheers!

[@kozmicbluescali1]

That is the right tire brand.

[@gordonl9394]

I use cygolite hotshot tail light. It lasts weeks for my two hour round trip commute. One less thing for you to worry.

[@deamon2107]

How about nutrition Tristan? That will be also great to share! Kudos for the win. Excellent Riding.

[@tristantakevideo]

I cover a bit on nutrition in the last part of the video, but it’s not ideal advice for everyone. Nutrition in an ultra is as much about eating what you can find, when you find it..there’s rarely an ideal strategy due to the nature of the event and the amount of unknowns riders face.

[@gregmorrison7320]

Watch the video.

[@ukaszbonczol5613]

Thanks for the tip on the 165 mm cranks.

[@tristantakevideo]

Glad it helps. That’s honestly been the #1 improvement to my cycling over the past decade..the difference I noticed when I went shorter cranks 8 years ago was incredible.

[@haemstah]

That Supernova light beam does look a good option for a night or two,

[@tristantakevideo]

It works amazingly well for such a small light. I still can't believe you can ride comfortably at 70 lumens with it.

[@محمدسلام-غ8ح1س]

❤❤❤❤

[@KerenWang]

The optical arm straps don't measure HR the same way as an chest HRM. Once reads electric signals, the other uses light.

[@tristantakevideo]

Correct. Optical straps won’t work all that well through tattoos which is a consideration for a few people.

[@jamesrowe4861]

Great result, congrats. 👏🏻👏🏻 interesting you don’t carry a quick link and chain breaker.

[@tristantakevideo]

Thank you 🙏🏼 Yeah, it was extremely risky not to bring one and something I should’ve suggested people take.

[@jamesrowe4861]

👍🏻

[@Medic23451]

You mentioned that you didn't use your aero gloves for the aero gains because of the low speed. As far as I was made to understand, aero is even more important at low speeds though, since you spend much longer on the course. Meaning the watts saved will be lower, but the time saved will be higher. I got this insight from Dylan Johnson's video on wind canal testing. Now I'm wondering if you have a different view on this. Great and informative video by the way!

[@tristantakevideo]

Dylan is correct, though in his video he’s referring to riding at significantly faster speeds that I was for this ultra - even when he talks about slower speeds, from memory he’s still talking above 25-28kph which is where aerodynamics kicks in to a “noticeable” degree. The gains from gloves when riding at an average of 17kph are so insignificant they’d be barely measurable (and definitely not noticeable), so even though the theory is right, it doesn’t quite apply in this situation.

[@Medic23451]

@@tristantakevideo Got it, thanks for the explanation

[@lucamuller6729]

The supernova setup is really good but kind of expensive; I found a cheaper alternative by using a ebike supernova mini 3 12V (really good pattern) and connenting it via a USB-C Triggerboard to a standard Powerbank (needs to be capable of 12V output via the USB-C) its about half the price, 7h endurance at 240$ and very versitile, can be used to charge the phone/garmin and can itself be charged at 65w at 20000 mAh which is rapid.

[@greghart6310]

Tristan - how do you find riding with contact lenses? I would dearly love corrective lenses of some description but found that when sweat dripped from the helmet padding into my eyes the lenses would stick to my eyeball, usually in completely the wrong orientation meaning I couldn't see a thing. Do you have a secret or would I be better off getting a prescription insert for my riding sunnies? (I use Rudy Project Cutlines which have support for a clip in prescription lens system)

[@tristantakevideo]

I’ve never had issues riding with contact lenses myself. It’s terrible to admit but I did the entire Atlas Mountain Race (5 days) without removing them. Not recommended and should be avoided, but it was fine for me. Inserts are definitely the way to go if you’ve got the glasses for them already.

[@Flipchartsundmehr]

I did the same years ago when I was on a 5-day survival Training. Eyes were red and sore after that and when I finally removed them, they fell into pieces 🤣

[@greghart6310]

@@tristantakevideo Thanks, yes I think for me the inserts will be better. I have bad astigmatism and need a specific multifocal prescription that doesn't seem to be available in contacts (at least not disposables - struggle with harder lenses)

[@azametric1553]

​@@greghart6310 I can recommend a lightweight cycling cap under your helmet. That will soak up and disperse most of the sweat, and steer dripping away from the eyes. The 10€ version from decathlon is quick drying (overnight), and maybe worth a try before you invest in other options

[@redauwg911]

would you consider a Dynamo Hub next time👍

[@tristantakevideo]

For races longer than 2 nights, yes. The Supernova I have is great for 2 nights in a row though..I’ve been really happy with it.

[@CycleXplorer]

Be good when everything uses usb-c so only 1 wire and 1 spare is needed.

[@tristantakevideo]

Absolutely. Thankfully most devices are going that way these days.

[@markjthomson]

Really useful thank you. With the photochromic glasses, how do you find the contrast of the dark lens when you are going through shadows and light? I have a black Oakley lens that is a shocker so changed it out for the prism lens, but they don't do photo chromic in those colours that I've seen. At the moment I carry 2 pair of glasses.

[@tristantakevideo]

I haven’t had any issues..I wear the photochromic glasses all the way through winter when the shadows are really dark and in summer they work excellently. I think it’s a much better solution than two pairs of glasses, personally.

[@stephangeissler7491]

Two questions: 1. Why didn't you went for the 1040 Solar? Even slightly heavier you wouldn't have any power issues. 2. How was your approach for the case, the battery of the Supernova runs out of energy? Since the Suppernova battery pack does require - to my knowledge - their own charger, was it a "zero backup" approach and relying on the head lamp in such a case?

[@tristantakevideo]

I wanted to use the device I bought for road racing and training as well as ultra-distance races, so size was a big part of the consideration (along with the extra € when purchasing). I also would've had to charge a 1040 as I don't think it would have lasted 56 hours. And with the Supernova, as I had used it for 2 full nights at Badlands last year I was confident it would last fine for the two nights I had planned for El Piri. But yeah, worst case scenario I would have relied on the head torch.

[@MrDaljoh]

One go? No sleeping equipment?

[@tristantakevideo]

No sleep system for this race, but I’ve put a link in the description to a video where I run through what I took to Atlas Mountain Race which included sleep equipment.

[@kamiln2603]

Wouldn’t URS be better option for such long race?

[@tristantakevideo]

It would’ve been for this race, but I was so impressed with the Kaius after racing it at Badlands last year, that it was the bike I opted for this time round. I wasn’t unhappy with it at all, but the URS definitely offers more comfort for multi-day events.

[@johnmoran959]

Curious what is your height ?

[@tristantakevideo]

I’m 172cm

[@kevinmcilduff6037]

Chamois cream? What size of 2L tub are you using? 😂😂 Jokes. But seriously what did you use and, I assume, product sachets only. Thanks.

[@tristantakevideo]

No chamois cream for me..the Attaquer All Day chamois + the WTB SL8 saddle work perfectly, thankfully.

[@Carftymk]

how tall are you again for that size 51?

[@tristantakevideo]

I’m 172cm.

[@ammanuelroberts5965]

when do you sleep?

[@tristantakevideo]

I slept on the grass by the side of a climb a couple of times. I documented this in the main El Piri film if you're keen to see.

[@lenolenoleno]

Not sure why you think a 50/52t cassette couldn't be worked with that derailleur, Garbaruk has an aftermarket cage that works (or just buy a SRAM AXS Eagle derailleur) + a 10/52 or 10/50 cassette. Also sounds like the Kaius wasn't the best choice for this ride, the URS with a higher volume faster rolling tyre would have been a better bike.

[@tristantakevideo]

Good to note for future events 🫡

[@ChapatiMan]

Did you sleep??

[@tristantakevideo]

A couple of times. You can see when and where in the full El Piri film if you’re interested.