Training Log Archive: danfoster

Fatbike packrafting at Delaney:
55 min - 7.0 km bike from home to a launch spot in the upper upper pond.
28 min - transition to paddling with fatbike on packraft.
15 min - 400 m. Drifting across the upper upper pond, eating an apple, and trying to choose the best worst spot to portage over the beaver dam.
7 min - dragging the packraft across the beaver dam, with the bike still attached. "please don't pop, please don't pop..."
15 min - 850 m. Paddling across the rest of the upper pond to the culvert. Lots of waterfowl, and a pleasant tail wind.
14 min - taking the wheels and frame off of the packraft and portaging up over the road and down the other side, and reassembling the raft in different configuration: a wheel-frame-wheel sandwich.
20 min - 1000 m paddle across lower pond to dog beach.
24 min - breaking down the raft, reassembling the bike, and glaring at the young family that showed up and hung out right next to me while I did so.
14 min - 2.5 km ride back home, to test out how well I could ride with a bunch of wet gear strapped all over the bike.

Overall stats: 70 min riding, 50 min paddling, 75 min transitioning (twice) and portaging (twice).

This is a very silly way to travel around and across a shallow pond, but it did manage to cram an awful lot of adventure into an entire afternoon, without venturing more than a mile from home.

Bought a second set of stock wheels for the fattie, so now I can leave the studded tires mounted for winter. Switched everything over to the summer setup, and am now tinkering with making this the official bikerafting rig. Despite ordering 6 new Voile-style straps, I still managed to come up short strapping everything to the handlebars. Took it for a test spin around Delaney, to test the handling, see if anything shook loose, and to help seal up the tubeless tires. There's definitely some inertial steering/oversteer with a boat and paddles on the bars, but overall it rode really nicely, and was much more comfortable than having the packraft on my back.

Another shakedown ride on the fattie, this time with a wider wrap of the packraft and paddle shafts on the bars, and a PFD wrapped around the rear seat pack. Held together quite nicely, even after I plowed right into a log that someone had intentionally placed across the trail today, in the middle of a rocky water crossing.

Jess excused herself for an inexcusable amount of time to chase several deer, and came trotting back, accepted a treat, and then took off for round #2.

Watched a muskrat in the fading light at the back dam, and then made our way out of the woods by headlamp.