Personal setups, Ultralight / Singletrack » Lee Blackwell’s homemade rack

bike rack and sleeping setup

My bikepacking started 6 years ago when Steve Becker and I rode a section of the Colorado Trail to Durango. I used an Old Man Mountain rack with Arkel Panniers on my Moots YBB. The whole setup was the best I could do at the time but proved to be heavy and awkward.

Later, with more experience when Scott Morris and I rode the AZ trail I used the Old Man Mountain on my Moots but without the panniers. The load was secured to the top of the rack.

Last year I decided to make my own rack to fit my full suspension Lenz Leviathan. Full suspension bikes are a greater challenge. After several pretty laughable attempts and a few fiascoes during the rides (thanks for your patience Mike and Scott) I did come up with my own design which has worked very well. I did have a lot of fun designing, and testing and refining the rack.

Now in the quest for an ever lighter rig my thinking is to try the new generation of seat bags. It’s in the works. More later..

Lee Blackwell