BIKEPACKING 101
Interested in bikepacking but not sure where to start? We can help! This 6-WEEK COURSE will teach you everything you need to know to give you the confidence to launch your next adventure. And when we're done with the coursework, we'll put it into practice with a GROUP BIKEPACKING TRIP in the Cherokee National Forest!
The WEEKLY CLASSES are all online via ZOOM starting April 9th and running through May 14th. The BIKEPACKING TRIP is a couple of weeks after classes end on the weekend of May 30-June 1. The 6-week course is $300, and the bikepacking weekend is free! Registrants will also receive discounts from our partner outfitters. The course is limited to 25 people and registration closes March 31st. Check out the details below and REGISTER HERE!
ONLINE CLASSES
We've designed the curriculum to cover everything you need to know, from trip planning to gear selection to food choices to packing it all up! All classes will be held via ZOOM on WEDNESDAY EVENINGS starting at 7:30 p.m. eastern. The main class will take roughly an hour followed by a Q&A session for however long it takes to answer everyone's questions. Check out the topics and class dates below!
1. RIDE/ROUTE PLANNING
-
Goals
-
Region & Climate
-
Pace
-
Duration
-
Remoteness & Resource Availability
-
Budget
-
Mapping
-
GPS and Navigation
2. BIKE & GEAR CHOICES
-
Bike Frame & Handlebar
-
Suspension
-
Tire Size
-
Gear Ratio
-
Brakes
-
Bags, Racks & Straps
-
Water Carrying
-
Spare Parts & Repair Kit
3. SLEEP SYSTEM
-
Daytime & Nighttime Temperatures
-
Rain, Storms & Forecasting
-
Layers & Quick Access
-
Tricks to Staying Warm & Drying Gear
4. FOOD & FUELING
-
Preventing the Bonk!
-
Calories to Food Weight & Volume
-
Recovery
-
Dos and Don'ts of Cooking
-
Carbs, Fats, Energy & Mental Clarity
-
Protein
-
Taking Care of Your Gut
5. PACKING YOUR BIKE
-
Bags vs Racks
-
Straps & Their Utilities
-
Weight Distribution
-
Front-End Tactics
-
Keeping Layers Accessible & Dry
-
Dos and Don'ts of Gear Placement
6. THE FINAL CHECKLIST
-
Putting It All Together for a Final Check & Shakedown
-
Transporting Bike & Gear
-
Final Weather Checks
-
"You Pack Your Fears"
GEAR UP!
Beyond providing you with a complete list of everything you'll need for your overnight adventures, we've also partnered with our friends at SOUTH CITY STICHWORKS to offer you a 15% discount on their full range of highly durable made-to-order custom gear to help get you started! Nashville outfitter CUMBERLAND TRANSIT has also generously offered the same discount to make sure you have everything else you need!
PUT IT INTO PRACTICE
After taking in all this knowledge and loading up on all the right gear, we know you'll be itching to get out there! So we're inviting everyone to join Andrew for a gravel BIKEPACKING TRIP in the Cherokee National Forest east of Chattanooga (and just south of the Smoky Mountain National Park) MAY 30th to JUNE 1st. To be clear, this is not a guided or supported bike tour, as you will be expected to find your own way and provide for all of your own needs. After all, the whole point of this course (and bikepacking in general) is self-sufficiency. As such, there's no charge for the weekend and everyone is invited!
DETAILS
We'll provide full details and route maps to everyone who registers, but here's a quick look at the itinerary. The trip includes two nights of camping, with a primitive campground Friday night, May 30th, and a campground with amenities Saturday night, May 31st. We've also built in as much flexibility as possible, with options to add a couple of nights of camping or take off early if you can only do one night of camping. The only thing we can't modify is the amount of climbing on the Friday and Saturday routes. While there's no avoiding the mountains, all of the climbs are doable with proper gearing and a steady pace!
START/FINISH
Our launching point for the bikepacking trip is INDIAN BOUNDARY CAMPGROUND near Tellico Plains, TN. It's both a first-class campground and an amazing playground with a beautiful lake (with paddle board and kayak rentals available), a beach, and a 3-mile rec path that goes around the lake. Beyond the amenities it has to offer, starting at Indian Boundary allows us to jump right into the woods without dealing with traffic or civilization. It also gives you the option of tacking on some extra days by camping Thursday or Sunday night.
FRIDAY, MAY 30th
We'll set out from Indian Boundary Campground mid-morning and work our way to a primitive campground in the Bald River Gorge Wilderness, with a short detour to check out the 90-foot Bald River Falls! While the ride distance is relatively short, only 27 miles, it will be slow going as we'll have almost 3,000 feet of climbing to tackle with fully loaded bikes.
SATURDAY, MAY 31st
After fueling up and packing up Saturday morning, we'll warm up on a short climb before dropping down to the Tellico River for a resupply at the Green Cove Store & Lodge. After this pit stop, we'll get back to work with a steady 10-mile climb up to the Cherohala Skyway, where we'll bomb back down to Indian Boundary for a second night of camping and a celebratory dip in the lake! It's a big day on the bike and a fitting finale to the adventure, with 30 miles and over 4,000 feet of climbing.
SUNDAY, JUNE 1st
If your legs have had enough from two hard days in the woods, you can pack up and head back to civilization Sunday morning, but if you need more, you can explore the Citico Wilderness on a beautiful loop straight from Indian Boundary. Like the first two days, Sunday's 26-mile loop has plenty of elevation gain, with over 3,000 feet of climbing. However, unlike the other two days, there are a number of ways to shorten or increase the mileage and challenge. It's one of the most scenic rides in the national forest and well worth sticking around for!
YOUR INSTRUCTOR
Before moving to Nashville, ANDREW DRURY cut his offroad cycling teeth riding and competing in the icy outback of northern Michigan, where he fell in love with both the experience of self-supported endurance adventures and the thoughtful preparation for those challenges. While he has taken on marquee bikepacking races like the Tour Divide, he does it for the love of the sport, not a paycheck. Like the rest of us, Andrew has a day job and a family life, which means the training plans he prepares and the advice he shares come from a balanced perspective and a healthy understanding of time constraints. Fortunately for us, Andrew's day job is managing Nashville's go-to outfitter store, CUMBERLAND TRANSIT, so not only does he know how to physically and mentally (and emotionally!) prepare for the challenges of bikepacking, he also knows the gear needed to make it all work. For this Bikepacking 101 course, we've asked Andrew to put all those pieces together in an easy-to-access and easy-to-understand format that will give you the knowledge and the confidence to take your bike on the path less pedaled!
