Cycling in Melbourne Australia

Sports Bag for Cycling

Hi, my name is Maggie and I'm a third year Industrial Design student at Swinburne University. I am currently doing research on competitive road cycling (I plan to design a sports bag specially catered to that field).

If any of you would be so kind to to spare some time to answer 10 questions, I will be eternally grateful!

Thank you guys so much!

1. What are the items that you would need to take with you on a 180km race?

2. What are the bare minimum items that you ABSOLUTELY cannot do without?

3. How much water do you need per kilometer? (or for an average 180km race?)

4. What is the age group for male/female cyclers who still cycle competitively? (Take a guess?)

5. Where or How, do you prefer to wear your bag? (Shoulder, waist, attached to bicycle, others)

6. If you have an existing sports bag, are there any improvements you’d like to be made on it? If not, what are
the good features (that you like) of the bag?

7. Do you personally prefer hard shell or soft materials on your bag?

8. How much money are you willing to spend on your bike, equipment and accessories?

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font-family:Gautami;mso-fareast-font-family:Gautami"">Ignore"">9. How would you rate these factors in regards to the relation of importance to cycling performance/speed, and time
(out of 10)?

Weight: ( /10)

Clothes: ( /10)

Equipment: ( /10)

10. If you need fast access to anything in your bag while you

are cycling, what item(s) would that be?

Once again, I greatly appreciate your willingness to cooperate and to share information for my research and I assure you that no names or personal information will be
distributed without your permission.

Sincerely, with thanks,

Maggie

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Steve Jay on March 18, 2010 at 5:32am: Redesign the mussette?! Unthinkable! :-); ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Maggie on March 18, 2010 at 8:25am: What's a bagpipe got to do with anything? lol; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Cory on March 18, 2010 at 11:05am: Err... I don't carry ANYTHING on my back if I'm riding those sorts of distances.

Mussettes are good for short distances/light loads. Otherwise, some sort of rack is in order.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Maggie on March 18, 2010 at 12:28pm: So how would you stay hydrated and energized? Do you guys take breaks within the race?; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Cory on March 18, 2010 at 1:35pm: Most 'races' have points where extra drink bottles and supplies can be taken on (generally within a musette). Most frames can easily carry two bidons (drink bottles). Sometimes more can be mounted.

If its a social ride (such as Around the Bay in a Day, which is not a race) there are designated points where you can refill your drinks etc. (I think every 25km, but certainly bigger ones every 50km). Other than that, you can fit quite a bit into your jersey pockets. I also use something like this on occasion http://www.trisports.com/benbakis.html; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Maggie on March 18, 2010 at 5:33pm: Wow, that's really interesting.
So far I've been going about the research thinking that you would actually wear a bag carrying everything you need (keys, wallet, phone, gps) when cycling. I have to alter my designs a little now I guess. What about the bags with hydration bladders? What do you think of those?; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Maggie on March 18, 2010 at 5:38pm: Have you seen anyone wear a bag when they're cycling those distances at all?; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Cory on March 18, 2010 at 6:57pm: They're good when MTB by yourself. Not so much when racing. And yeah - good for long distances.

But the less you carry on your body the better. It's more comfortable on your tail. Also, you stay cooler that way (can get very clammy under any back pack, no matter how well it ventilates).

Keys/money/phone can be in jersey pockets. GPS often mounted on the handlebars.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Maggie on March 19, 2010 at 12:37am: For protective reasons though, would you prefer a hard shell or a soft shell bag?; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Drevlin on March 19, 2010 at 10:17am: I've got one of these I use for commuting. It's got this semi hard casing.

I would never carry it for a long ride, especially one that's supported. Usually you can fit all of your gels/bars in your jersey pockets. All your repair essentials in a saddle bag. Water you just fill up along the way.; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Maggie on March 19, 2010 at 10:37pm: Gels? Why do you guys carry gels? And about the water, where do you put the bottles? Or do you just drink and leave?; ▶ Reply to This

Permalink Reply by Drevlin on March 19, 2010 at 11:21pm: Energy Gels / Bars that's what we eat along the way to make sure we have enough energy along the way. I think as a general rule of thumb, 1 gram of carbs per kilogram of body weight per hour is what you need to take in. That's a lot of food!

As for water, I've got two bottle cages on my bike which I have 2 x 750ml bottles that I refill along the way. I think for a ride around 180KM expect around 10L water (everyone is different) you really don't want to be carrying that much around.

Hope this helps.