Joe Rass-Court’s Colombian Fastpacking Kit List

We normally associate minimal, lightweight packing with races, but Joe’s bikepacking kit list shows us that fastpacking is a viable alternative for holidays and credit card touring. Over his two week trip, Joe covered 1,800km with 36,000m of climbing, proving that if you’re staying in accommodation every night, you can ride huge distances by travelling ultra-light.

We asked Joe to share his kit list with us and explain why takes a fastpacking approach to longer tours.

Bikepacking Kitlist

Significant Choices

Perfect Balance

For longer tours, there’s a temptation to pack more. But heavier bikes are less fun to ride and I wanted to focus on enjoying my time both on and off the bike as much as possible, riding hard during the day and enjoying staying in hotels at night. With so much climbing, keeping the weight down was extra important and my bikepacking kit added just 2.5kg to my set up, despite containing all my clothes and spares.

Of course, this approach is much easier if you’re touring somewhere with fairly consistent temperatures and you don’t mind adapting your route or when you start and stop depending on the weather (there’s no shame sitting out a rainstorm when you’re on holiday!).

Location, Location, Location

With a fair amount of time spent off the bike in hotels at the end of each day, it’s nice to have some home comforts, like my Espadrilles and electric toothbrush. If you’re not racing, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with packing for the time you spend off the bike enjoying the destination. It doesn’t take much to switch the focus of a trip and expand your horizons beyond the view from the saddle.