Torsten FrankTo tent or not to tent (at the Silk Road Mountain Race) - that is the question.
A few ponderings alongside some photos of my really lovely camp in Kyrgyzstan:
https://www.instagram.com/p/DOEJqnQjEvf/
#SRMR2025
#SRMR2025cap201
#silkroadmountainrace
#bikepacking
#ultracycling
#weitradeln
#Kyrgyzstan
#Kirgisistan
#sleepkit
#tent
#bivy
#MSRHubbaHubbaBikepack
#HomeIsWhereYouStakeIt
Torsten Frank on Instagram: "Faff Master Super Scenic Camping Spots of the Silk Road Mountain Race. Loved how the scenic side of using a tent and my luck with the weather turned out! But really need to think about the whole tent isssue. It adds sooo much faff! (And weight and volume). Yes - it's more cozy than a bivvy and the MSR Hubba Hubba Bikepack performed well. The vestibule helps keeping your stuff dry (even prevents freezing in mild minus temps). The whole tent certainly adds 1-2 degrees more comfort range to the whole sleep setup, too. Also quilt/sleeping bag has more room to fluff up, adding even more potential warmth. But would I really have missed it? Maybe if it had rained on me for hours and also in the morning? But unmounting and then packing everything in the rain would add sooo much more time in it than just stuffing the bivy and go... @adampalin had I nice idea as I just saw after jotting down my first notes on this: https://www.instagram.com/p/DNS62EMs34K/ That's a cool idea! Actually I arrived at the exact same idea: somehow having just a rainfly or singlewall tent just in case. A webbing for a set of poles of e.g. your naturehike tent sounds like a great idea! What was/is your take on sleeping outer shell for the SRMR? A tent? A bivy? Something inbetween? #SRMR2025 #SRMR2025cap201 #silkroadmountainrace #bikepacking #ultracycling #weitradeln #Kyrgyzstan #Kirgisistan #sleepkit #tent #bivy #MSRHubbaHubbaBikepack #HomeIsWhereYouStakeIt @silkroadmountainrace @msr_gear"
38 likes, 4 comments - torsten_frank on September 1, 2025: "Faff Master Super Scenic Camping Spots of the Silk Road Mountain Race. Loved how the scenic side of using a tent and my luck with the weather turned out! But really need to think about the whole tent isssue. It adds sooo much faff! (And weight and volume). Yes - it's more cozy than a bivvy and the MSR Hubba Hubba Bikepack performed well. The vestibule helps keeping your stuff dry (even prevents freezing in mild minus temps). The whole tent certainly adds 1-2 degrees more comfort range to the whole sleep setup, too. Also quilt/sleeping bag has more room to fluff up, adding even more potential warmth. But would I really have missed it? Maybe if it had rained on me for hours and also in the morning? But unmounting and then packing everything in the rain would add sooo much more time in it than just stuffing the bivy and go... @adampalin had I nice idea as I just saw after jotting down my first notes on this: https://www.instagram.com/p/DNS62EMs34K/ That's a cool idea! Actually I arrived at the exact same idea: somehow having just a rainfly or singlewall tent just in case. A webbing for a set of poles of e.g. your naturehike tent sounds like a great idea! What was/is your take on sleeping outer shell for the SRMR? A tent? A bivy? Something inbetween? #SRMR2025 #SRMR2025cap201 #silkroadmountainrace #bikepacking #ultracycling #weitradeln #Kyrgyzstan #Kirgisistan #sleepkit #tent #bivy #MSRHubbaHubbaBikepack #HomeIsWhereYouStakeIt @silkroadmountainrace @msr_gear".
