Where'd that week go?

    I don't know where I've been for the past week, but it must have been important because I didn't write a thing.  It was probably a relief to those of you who come by on a regular basis.  I know it's a lot of information to digest all the time and it must have taken some pressure off to have nothing new to figure out.  You were probably thinking; "Thank God, he didn't throw anything new at me, I have enough trouble figuring out the earlier gibberish."  But I want to thank both of you for hangin' around.
     I realized lately that I have become something of a weight weenie.  I discovered the website of dubious value; "Weight Weenies."  It's a little paradise of a database listing both the advertised and real weights of everything of any importance in the world-bike parts.  That didn't really change me, and I'm really not sure how I found it.  I have had a lot of people ask about my bikes, the Hillborne in particular, and I had no answer except to say "about, maybe 25...or so, I think."  It's hard to make a roadie respect you when they can tell you the English and Metric equivalent weights of their socks.  So I took the bathroom scale out to the garage to end this internal controversy nobody cares about.  Now rather than classifying my bikes by something as silly as usage, "fast, fun with no destination," "around town" or "damn near anything," I can simply say

21,

26,

30,

and "I'm afraid to find out!"

  Then everybody will be happy and think I know what I'm doing.  I may even convert that to metric to be really impressive.  

    Actually I got into a real weight discussion on one of the touring forums.  People were into a deep discussion about ultralight touring.  The focus seemed to be reducing the gear to essentials (which I pretty much believe I have done over the years) and getting the rig and gear below 70 lbs.  Now that's already much more than I use, even with the Hunqapillar under me.  They did have a couple of suggestions I liked.

One was the Hennessy Hammock

which weighs a third of my tent, and sleeping in a tree looks a lot more comfortable than the ground.  I decided, since nobody I know is stupid or crazy enough to travel with me, it would be a good idea.

I do admit, it looks a little like a burrito for a bear, but there again, life is full of little trades.

It would also make sense to downsize from the two burner stove I carry.

I like it a lot, but the fuel is becoming an issue, and I rarely actually need two burners.

Between the two changes I could save nearly 6 lbs which is 10%.

Now that's being a weight weenie, we're talking lbs not grams, that's what real cycling is about.

Now if I did something about my fat ass and improved the power to weight ratio, 

the Continental Divide would be a breeze.