Gear list for Silk Road Mountain Race
For the Atlas Mountain Race and Hellenic Mountain Race, I didn’t have to worry much about gear. I already had the majority of what I needed, and it was just a matter of choosing based on the conditions of each race. I got it pretty right and couldn’t really complain about my setup. But for the Silk Road in Kyrgyzstan, it was a bit different. It was so far off everything I’d done before that thinking about gear sometimes kept me awake. I was determined, however, to take more rather than less.
According to the race manual, I had to be prepared for temperatures of -15 °C. I couldn’t quite imagine riding in that with all my gear. I hoped, though, that I could still sleep and handle lighter frosts on the bike. As for repairs, I couldn’t count on practically anything and had to carry enough capacity to transport food for two days. That was my rough estimate for crossing a 450-kilometer section with no shops.
In the end, I carried more than ever before, and my gear choices were fairly accurate. I could imagine it would be more comfortable with a tent, but it’s not like I was truly suffering. I got cold a few times, but it was manageable, and I had extra layers as a backup. How did I actually do? Check out the Silk Road Mountain Race report.
My rig for Silk Road Mountain Race
Base clothing
This is what I’ll be wearing for the whole ride. I’ll just take off my cycling shoes before getting into the sleeping bag 😉 The biggest change is the shoes. I also bought a new jersey, since all of mine were already quite stretched out.
tretry
Shimano SH-EX700, 710 g
The cycling shoes definitely paid off. I doubt I could have managed without them.
helmet
ABUS PowerDome Helmet, 220 g
bibshorts
Gobik Grit 2.0 Shorts, 198 g
It fits me, and with the thigh pockets, there’s not much in them.
jersey
Castelli Espresso, 112 g
base layer
Castelli Pro Mesh 2.0 Short, 70 g
footbeds
Specialized Footbeds Blue, 68 g
socks
Compressport Shock Absorb Socks, 40 g
Thicker, but it dampens the vibrations to my feet.
calve sleeves
Compressport Calve Sleeves R2 3.0, 36 g
cleats
Shimano kufry, 30 g
glasses
Rudyproject Fotonyk, 29 g
with optical dock
gloves
Castelli Espresso, 25 g
This new model isn’t very good; it came apart on me.
watch
Garmin Fenix 6, 25 g
hat
with meloun from Aliexpress, 25 g
sun sleeves
Aliexpress, 20 g
I didn’t take it off and used it for sun protection, so I didn’t have to bother with sunscreen.
light holder
Lucifer, 20 g
Total weight 1628 g
Extra layers
down pants
Tentock, 269 g
Great item; I grabbed some cheap ones from Amazon and used them in the sleeping bag when it was cold or even while riding.
down jacket
Cumulus Inverse, 225 g
waterproof pants
Gorewear Gore-Tex Paclite® Men's Trousers, 180 g
waterproof jacket
Tilak Vega Shakedry, 175 g
hookie
Nalehko Alpha Hoody 60, 105 g
Another piece of clothing I often used to increase thermal comfort in the sleeping bag. I even rode a few times in it.
shoe covers
Shimano, 105 g
gloves
Gorewear Windstopper Thermo Gloves, 88 g
Temperature-wise, just right. At -6 °C my fingers got a bit cold, but it was manageable.
bibshorts
Craft Greatness Bike bibshorts, 80 g
When my butt hurts, I wear it as a second layer.
knee sleeves
Q36.5 Woolf Knee Warmer, 70 g
Light, basic, but it stops the cold.
warm socks
Specialized PrimaLoft Lightweight, 51 g
I’d probably try to take something warmer for Kyrgyzstan. Fine for the Czech Republic, but…
balaclava
Gore, 51 g
waterproof gloves
Sportful Lobster Gloves, 43 g
buff
Slovakia Divide ;), 35 g
Total weight 1477 g
Sleeping system
sleeping pad
Nemo Tensor Extreme Wide, 694 g
Unfortunately, I punctured it, but that was my own fault. I was sleeping on a huge rock.
bivy
Bach Heads Up Bivy, 648 g
On colder nights, quite a bit of water condensed around my feet.
sleeping bag
Cumulus X-lite 200, 375 g
It’s a custom build; I had it upgraded. Limit around freezing point.
Total weight 1717 g
Hygiene
sun cream
Astrid sun, 47 g
zinc cream
z DM, 28 g
chamois cream
Squirt barrier balm krém na hýždě, 26 g
cleaning gel
Balea, 25 g
lip balm
12 g
toilet paper ;)
10 g
mouth wash
Lush tablets, 10 g
tooth brush
CURAPROX Ultra Soft, 7 g
Total weight 165 g
Electronics and accessories
powerbank
Šolc Powerpack, 271 g
15,000 mAh capacity for light
phone
Google Pixel 9a, 218 g
powerbank
Klarus K5, 156 g
Lightweight, compact with a 10,000 mAh capacity and a numeric charge indicator.
powerbank
Nitecore NB1000 gen2, 150 g
10,000 mAh capacity
camera
Insta360 3S Go, 135 g
tracker
Garmin InReach Messenger, 113 g
navigation
Garmin Edge 840, 88 g
charger
AlzaPower G500CC Fast Charge 45W, 76 g
light charger
Šolc, 59 g
light
Šolc Spider, 59 g
headlamp
Lucifer Mini, 51 g
headlamp battery
186500, 50 g
camera holder
2x Insta360 clip, 46 g
USB-C cabel
2x 90-degree, 34 g
I trust 90-degree cables more; they’re less likely to break.
rear light
Fenix BC05RV20, 29 g
Excellent, simple, USB-C.
camera holder
Insta360 clip, 23 g
powerpack holder
20 g
SD card reader
Insta360, 19 g
USB-A kabel
8 g
spare lens
3 g
USB adapters
flat battery
3 g
fenix charging adapter
Aliexpress, 3 g
I can charge it via USB-C
Total weight 1617 g
To survive
First aid kit and last-resort emergency items. The goal is not to use any of it.
water filter
Katadyn BeFree AC 0,5, 72 g
survival blanket
48 g
desinfection
Jodisol, 15 g
bandage
Sterile elastic hydrogel bandage, 15 g
lighter
BIC mini, 12 g
diarrhea pills
20x Imodium Rapid, 12 g
tape
5 g
active charcoal
10x LIVSANE Active Carbon, 4 g
fever pills
6x Paralen, 4 g
purification tablets
Micropur Forte MF 1T, 3 g
big plaster
Cosmopor Steril plaster, 1 g
needle
1 g
small plaster
COSMUS plaster on sport, 1 g
Total weight 193 g
Tools and spare parts
Tools and spare parts for on-the-road repairs. I noticed there’s no service along the route, so ideally I should be able to handle practically everything myself.
tube
Schwalbe Extralight Tube, 143 g
pump
Lezyne HV Drive - M, 98 g
A compromise between weight and performance
pliers
Leatherman Squirt PS4, 56 g
A very useful piece of gear, but they’re probably no longer sold 😱
multitool
WolfTooth Multitool, 45 g
Only selected bits. Except I forgot one at home 🙈
tubeless repair
WolfTooth chainbreaker + tubeless fixer, 45 g
multitool holder
WolfTooth, 36 g
derailleur hanger
UDH, 26 g
dry wipes
Temca Profix Tiger, 25 g
Useful for everything. Wiping the chain, drying something off, etc.
chain lube
Silca Synergic, 20 g
Very effective lubricant. Well, I took about 20ml, but it wasn’t enough because the fords kept washing it off.
tire levers
West Biking, 16 g
One regular and one thick one for pushing the brake pistons
patch kit
10 g
duck tape
RETLUX RIT DT2 Duct tape, 6 g
tire plugs
big ones, 5 g
tubeless valve
4 g
zip ties
Aliexpress, 4 g
cleat screws
3 g
valve core
Shimano, 3 g
brake pin
2 g
sewing kit
Curved needle and dental floss, 2 g
quicklink
SRAM, 2 g
chrader adapter
Aliexpress, 1 g
tpu patches
Aliexpress, 1 g
Pretty useful; I patched my waterproof pants with them, and they hold.
Total weight 553 g
Documents, money and others
passport
38 g
spoon
26 g
debit card
5 g
money
3 g
glasses cloth
1 g
Total weight 73 g
Bags
vest
Osprey Duro 6, 350 g
posedlová
Ortlieb Seat-Pack 11 litrů, 320 g
downtube
Tailfin downtube pack, 277 g
stem
2x Apidura expedition stem pack, 240 g
I’ll use them to stash snacks
front
Cyclite Handlebar Aero, 208 g
top tube
Ortlieb Fuel-Pack, 148 g
hydration bladder
Force Hydrapak Shape Shift 2l, 139 g
frame
Acepac triangle frame bag, 130 g
top tube
Acepac, 80 g
tool box
Force Tool pouzdro na nářadí 0,5 l, 68 g
bottle
Elite Fly Tex 550 ml, 55 g
stem
Woho stem bag, 50 g
Total weight 2065 g
Food & drink
water
2000x , 2000 g
carb mix
Penco Energy drink, 900 g
food powder
Vilgain, 900 g
peanut butter
Vilgain, 200 g
digestion tablets
Brainmax Digestive Magic, 15 g
Mainly for the first part, when I eat more
probiotics
MOVit Energy Probiotika Extra Strong, 15 g
caffeine tablets
GreenFood Nutrition Caffeine 120 kapslí, 6 g
Total weight 4036 g
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