Hopped in my Tacoma last month with way too much crap, and headed out to Belgrade to pick up my new camper. 2.5 weeks and 4,500 miles of road tripping and breaking it in later, definitely learned quite a bit and now begins the long process of dialing in the build to fit my needs!
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Great pictures! Thanks for sharing!
Cheers
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Amazing pics! Thanks for sharing.
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Ah looks lovely!
Curious, what were some of the things you figured out during your trip to get it dialed in?
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WOW, Just WOW!! Someday maybe . . .
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This was my first major trip with living out of my truck. I’m pretty accustomed to having all my belongings on my back or my bike when camping, so I kinda just threw everything I had in my truck for this first big trip as I had plenty room for a change. Definitely whittled down the list of stuff I’d packed to make the next trip that much easier to pack for. I got a lot better at setting up camp and packing up again, kinda starting to figure out what I feel my optimal packing will eventually look like and where I can use some more storage or other improvements (bedding storage under the sleeping platform, maybe some pockets against the front wall along the bottom as I got the window and don’t want to cover it, stuff like that) Realized the hard way, that having to lift my heavy ass yeti over the 2"x4" that I had in the back of my truck for my bikes to mount to was a good way to tweak my back haha. I’m gonna get out for a couple nights over the next week or so with a super minimal setup and test out a cargo net under the platform for bedding and see if that solution works or if it hangs too low like I’ve seen some people on here say. If not, I’ll get something like this Go Fast Camper V.2 Bedding Catch – VRNCLR or con some of my friends that make bags in to making me some stuff or letting me use their machines to try my own.
Few more pics of the rig. It was too much of a mess on the inside to take many interior shots haha, once I dial in my packing I’ll get some better ones.
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Nice pics man!! I accidentally left my camera home and wa relegated to iPhone, kinda sucked…
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Looking good Mike!!
-ben
Doh! Yeah my camera is kinda surgically attached to my hand, definitely would go crazy being out in all those places without it.
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haha yoooo, what’s up Ben!? I’ll definitely be back through your area plenty with the new camper, let’s get out and do some camping and riding and not one bit of trail work or lugging camera bags on rides haha
Looking forward to it!!
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Right on! I’m getting ready for a 7 day trip so it’s handy to hear some feedback. The way you mounted your bike looks like how I’d like to do it, would you mind posting a pick of how its mounted in the truck?
love the photos, Mike! rad to hang when you were passing through Oregon. keep me posted when you’re hitting the road next!
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Yeah here ya go. I have some more wheel bags at work that I forgot to bring home so just ended up wrapping them in moving blankets to keep them from scratching my mtb. I have the bars on the MTB turned to get it a bit more outboard. If I’m using this setup, I’m most likely on a solo trip and chances are high I’d only have 1 mtb, or my mtb and cross bike and I’m not sure how well 2 mtb’s would fit spaced this closely to one another. I also just ordered a 1up and a rakattach, but i really like this setup for the security of having everything hidden in the truck, plus i can lock the racks, and then cable lock my bikes to the bed of the truck. Also getting my buddy Garret at Strawfoot to make me an insulated window covering for the back window that will be great for blocking views in to the bed of the truck.
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Yeah great seeing you up there Patrick! I’ll definitely be up that way again before too long and we’ll actually get a ride in this time haha. My buddy Zach Wick is heading up to visit his brother next week, forget his brothers name but I think you know him.
That’s primo, I think I’ll try that in my build. I like the security of it being inside and to be able to keep it in there at night thanks to the gfc bed.
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Dope man. i am gonna do a little of the same with my bikes when i pick up mine in a week. bought a used camera too, but i’m new to photography so if i can take picks half as good as yours i’ll be over the moon.
on the bike position, why not flip the board around so the forks mount towards the back? Then you could slide the fridge and stuff. Alternatively, some strategically placed L track could be a way to mount. That’s what I did. Also, would you typically enter the tent from the sides or the bed?
my biggest question for you though was how well you were able to stay warm and clean when riding during the cold weather and getting back to the truck. on cold rides where i’m layered up and sweating i usually look forward to my warm shower at the end. i think i’ll just have to find ways to clean myself up without that and then grab showers at the occasional campground.
way to get after it, stoked to see photos from your next one.
Don’t forget to lock the tailgate!! Speaking from experience…
Haha well if it makes you feel any better, photography is what I do for a living so I better be decent at it or I won’t get fun new toys like the camper.
As far as putting them in the other direction, it would be more hassle than it’s worth. My MTB fork has a pinch bolt that needs to be tightened to make sure it’s not moving, plus it’s just a lot easier to get the rear wheel to go to the back than trying to get a fork with no wheel to the back. I’m thinking of doing something like getting a flat piece of metal and having a friend weld some block with threaded inserts or something on it to just screw the fork mounts on to that. Or just getting a newer cooler that doesn’t weigh 30lbs empty like my Yeti haha.
I kinda cheated on this trip, most of my bike riding was with friends along the way in the PNW, and I’d just use their showers after. I did avoid doing a ride in the pouring rain and mud in Montana because it was too early in my trip to cover my living quarters with mud. I do have a rinse kit portable shower though, that I can use to either wash my bike or myself off with hot water if needed.