Pannier question

[mjr]

Aerodynamics make a difference out here in the fens. Panniers are often as aero as an sail. So I prefer rack-top, handlebar and saddle bags, baskets and collapsable panniers to the rigid panniers.

[foxyrider]

but i do know my dynamo drags more than 20-30kg of pannier+tent weight ie 28ft in every mile roughly isnt it? so thats still not a huge amount of drag.

You should probably get a new dynamo then

How much weight? Glad I'm not lumping that lot around

[fluffybunnyuk]

i think thats the difference between me and fat commuter. i avoid riding hard until im up to speed.im very careful about gear ratio and my knees preferring higher cadence and lower gear. i start off from traffic lights about 40 inches working up to 63 inches. i find higher ratios not worth the drag unless i have a following wind when i can hit 80 inches.

if you need to ride hard maybe the backpack is better.

20-30kg is quite light. tent+cooking gear+clothes+sleeping gear+food+entertainment+bike spares. the nasty one is water...i usually try to lug 4-8 litres (1kg=1litre) on top back to the campsite.

as mjr said the fens is evil... theres nothing like a fens wind, and bad road surface after a long day to heighten the dispirited feeling.

[Flinders]

I think that I'm getting more used to the panniers now. After the first few days of using the bike with panniers, my knees hurt. They're getting better now but I have been doing some of the exercises that the physio recommended a few years back.

My riding style is that I tend to ride hard. I never get out of the saddle when riding, even when going uphill. When I leave the lights, I am hard on the pedals and will keep accelerating until I am travelling at a comfortable speed. I think that the panniers are making a difference to this initial acceleration - and mainly just the moving off from rest - say zero to five mph. It's similar if I'm riding at, say, 10 mph. Put on a spurt of speed and that jump from 10 to 13 (ish) isn't as instant - the bike feels much more rigid.

I may try the rucksack again for a day or two - see what it is that I prefer (or not).

Thanks for all the input.

Sorry if this is a daft suggestion, as I don't know how you gear,and you'll almost certainly be fitter than me. But when I carry a heavy load on the bike in panniers (including sometimes in the region of 5 pounds of camera gear and/or even a paintbox and easel), I drop a gear or two lower than I generally would before stopping, helps me get going after, and helps me keep balanced when starting up.

[[XAP]Bob]

something else i thought of .. i use a touring bike which seems a bit longer than other bikes, maybe it helps with weight displacement. i know its designed to carry loads so actually is "a little wobbly" unloaded. cant say for shorter bikes.
but i do know my dynamo drags more than 20-30kg of pannier+tent weight ie 28ft in every mile roughly isnt it? so thats still not a huge amount of drag.

Depends on the dynamo - but a decent hub dynamo will be less than that (assuming a 100kg total load at 15 mph IIRC)
Lighter rigs and or slower riders will suffer more for the dynamo.

[The fat commuter]

Sorry if this is a daft suggestion, as I don't know how you gear,and you'll almost certainly be fitter than me.

I wouldn't be so sure.

But when I carry a heavy load on the bike in panniers (including sometimes in the region of 5 pounds of camera gear and/or even a paintbox and easel), I drop a gear or two lower than I generally would before stopping, helps me get going after, and helps me keep balanced when starting up.

When I put my new back wheel on last year, I got a new cassette to go with it. It's an 11-32, seven speed. I think the original was an 11 - 28. When I set off from the lights, I'm usually on the middle front ring and the second sprocket on the back. I get a few revolutions of the pedals before changing up. The difference between sprocket 1 and sprocket 2 is quite large and I think that sprocket 1 will be too low a gear. Going onto the smallest chainring would mean a very quick change up to the middle ring just after setting off. I do need to put a new cassette and chain on - I will likely go back to 11 - 28.

I am wondering whether the reason for the deadness of the bike with the panniers is because when the load is on my back, I can use my arms slightly. Maybe I rock slightly back and forth as I pedal hard so that on a down stroke the backpack moves back by a few inches - making the bike feel more sprightly.

[[XAP]Bob]

It is very likely