What tent should I use?

[Astroblue]

Hi everybody
I'm hoping to take a long ride to Oregon this year, and I was wondering what kind of tent would fold up small enough to put in a saddlebag or tie to the side of my bike safely (Honda 600rr)? I figure I'll stop at KOA campgrounds or just find an obliging lonely, hidden spot for the night. I used to have a one-man tent, but the poles were very long so I couldn't have taken it anyway.
Any suggestions?
Thanks!

[z_bassman]

Lots of possibilities here.

[squidhunter]

Check out
REI. They give you all the dimensions of the tents they sell, including the "packed size". They also have a decent guide on how to select tents (size, 3-season v 4-season, ect). Just remember that a one-person tent gives you NO room for gear. If you want to bring any gear into the tent with you, you'll need at least a two-person tent.

Edit: For some reason my link didn't come through. Go here for the REI tent selection:
http://www.rei.com/online/store/Sear...acking_2person

[Astroblue]

Originally Posted by z_bassman

Lots of possibilities here.

Thanks so much! That's a great help.

[Astroblue]

[quote=squidhunter]Check out
REI. They give you all the dimensions of the tents they sell, including the "packed size". They also have a decent guide on how to select tents (size, 3-season v 4-season, ect). Just remember that a one-person tent gives you NO room for gear. If you want to bring any gear into the tent with you, you'll need at least a two-person tent.

Not too worried about bringing gear into the tent. I can retrofit locks onto the saddlebags I've got (Cortech). I think one of the local outdoor stores has REI. I'll check it out!

[m0t0-ryder]

I would also suggest you pack a small to medium sized tarp.
Say 8'x8' to 12'x12'.
I personally like the nylon ones because they fold/roll up to a much smaller sizer than the poly ones.

These tarps can have several uses.
- As an additional rain/shade fly to augment your tent.
(I've ran a small rope between my tent and bike and used this to drape the tarp over)

- As a cover for the bike and gear when staying in the tent.

- As a ground cover (for the tent... or if you need to do repairs in the wet)

I personally chose a tent that I could "at least" stand up in.
I got tired of trying to suit up laying down (in my minimalist backpacker tent).
It is nice to be able to stand up (or even sit up) when moving into the tent after a days ride.

Of course... it is very tough finding a tent big enough to stand up in and still be able to pack it small.
My tent "will not" fit in my (Givi) saddle bags when packed.
I usually just strap it across the seat or rear luggage rack (Vstrom).

Another criteria that I had when looking for a tent was one that had a rainfly that goes clear to the ground.
IMO... a rainfly that doesn't go clear to the ground is asking for a wet floor or walls in any significant rain.

Wet floor = discomfort.
discomfort = poor sleep
poor sleep = tiredness
tiredness = lowered awareness
lowered awareness = trouble on a moto

[bosozoku]

Originally Posted by Astroblue

Hi everybody
I'm hoping to take a long ride to Oregon this year, and I was wondering what kind of tent would fold up small enough to put in a saddlebag or tie to the side of my bike safely (Honda 600rr)? I figure I'll stop at KOA campgrounds or just find an obliging lonely, hidden spot for the night. I used to have a one-man tent, but the poles were very long so I couldn't have taken it anyway.
Any suggestions?
Thanks!

What's your tent-budget?. The tents made for serious backpacking and bicycle touring are both small and light.
The bad news is that they're expensive.
The good news is that this is the off-season for camping gear, so you may get a break on price if you go the new route.

The one I use (~15 years old) packs down to about 4" in diameter and a little over a foot long. The external ribs are ~14" when broken down. No worries about snagging anything...I'm a lot wider than that, and have dragged Mr. tent on several CBR900 trips without any problems.
It's supposed to be a 4 person tent, so there's plenty of room for everything.


When and where do you plan to wander about Orygun?.

[the mad otter]

OK...I can't help this one
This is the model that Pashnit Tour leaders endorse!!
Thats Curly, Moe, and Larry (Tim, Tim, and Gary) modeling for you.

[Astroblue]

Originally Posted by bosozoku

What's your tent-budget?. The tents made for serious backpacking and bicycle touring are both small and light.
The bad news is that they're expensive.
The good news is that this is the off-season for camping gear, so you may get a break on price if you go the new route.

The one I use (~15 years old) packs down to about 4" in diameter and a little over a foot long. The external ribs are ~14" when broken down. No worries about snagging anything...I'm a lot wider than that, and have dragged Mr. tent on several CBR900 trips without any problems.
It's supposed to be a 4 person tent, so there's plenty of room for everything.


When and where do you plan to wander about Orygun?.

It's kind of tough finding the right time of year for the weather and avoiding the tourons (Half tourist, half moron!) as well. But I'm hoping for perhaps June or before school lets out. I was up there last August and I'll never do that again! Mainly the traffic around the Bay Area was awful, and when the roads got interesting, inevitably, motorhomes got in the way! You'd think that with the tight budget California has, somebody in Sacramento would've figured out that they could get a ton of money off the old farts who refuse to yield to a mile or two of traffic stuck behind them! One helicopter and one CHP unit per popular windy road would take care of it.
Once I'm in Oregon I'd like to explore the coast road and the roads that join I5from the coast.

[MyLife on TwoWheels]

I use a Texsport one-man tent that I bought on sale at Kmart for $7.99.
It's worked pretty well in four western states.