Dragon Rally & winter camping

[ajmes1]

Hey all,


Hope you've had some well earned beverages over the festive period.


Looking forward to the new year, i'm going to be tackling the dragon rally in february with the Mrs.


For those that don't know, it means camping up a mountain, in february!!


What advice does the masses have on equipment? Mainly sleeping bags as we are due an upgrade on ours! We don't have a lot to spend, £30-40/bag. What have other people used? I know the rally is only 1 night but a good decision on bags now means we can go camping for longer periods in the summer (which is the plan).


Got the tent sorted, and seen some lightweight camp beds which are essentially heavy duty lilos.


we did john o'groats to lands end in August, so she knows the rules when it comes to packing light!


Any advice would be great =]

[RobG UK]

Get some decent sleeping bag liners.  Ones that wick (is that the word).  They are a lots easier to wash than the bag itself.

[nick crisp]

Love to help, but I threw money at the problem  :lol

I agree with RobG, fleece liners are pretty good and shouldn't break the bank. I once camped at the top of a wooded hill on the Wye Valley walk and awoke to find a few inches of snow everywhere - with a cheap synthetic sleeping bag and a fleece liner, I simply didn't notice the cold that night. Take full thermals too - comfortable to sleep in and a big difference. And some thick, warm socks. I've also used a woolly hat in the bag on really freezing nights. Also, wrap whatever you're using for a pillow in a fleece layer (I use a fleece pullover) - it doesn't absorb much moisture and is far more comfortable than any materials that will get damp with condensation and your breath.

If you have a Go Outdoors store nearby, I recommend purchasing a discount card - only £5 for a year, and you'll recover that on the first largish buy you do.

I personally use a lightweight air bed on a foam cell roll mat - air beds get cold from the cold ground, although some now have an insulating layer inside (but those ones tend to be expensive too). The foam mat prevents that.

I hope some of these suggestions help 

[heath]

Having done the dragon more then once I would say you need a good sleeping bag liner also a bivvi bag which the sleeping bag goes into.
I'd say some chairs as there really isn't many to go around, also a little wood burner to keep you warm when outside the tent.and plenty of beer tokens and take some food as the food wagon on site is shite.
And a must is some good water proofs it's really wet in feb at a dragon lol

Gutted I'm not doing it this time round ( but that's another story )

[Phil]

Love to help, but I threw money at the problem  :lol

Throwing money, thats what I've just done  :lol

I'll be doing a lot more camping on the bike tours next year, so have gone out and bought a new tent, bag, stove etc.

I did a load of research and looked at a few bags, I quite liked the Vango Nitestar 250.  Then realised there is a GO Outdoors place in Poole and how much smaller the Ultra Lite 600 packed down to so bought that for twice the price.
The GO Outdoors discount card needs careful use, some of their stuff is over priced to start with if you shop around you can find some things cheaper elsewhere, but there are some real bargins. They have got loads of stuff in their stores to tempt you.

The fleece bag liners sound a good way of extending the range of the bag, then you leave them at home in the summer.

I'm now looking for somewhere to go to try it all my kit out before April and fancy somewhere more exciting than the back garden.
Whats the Dragon Rally?

[Kosmic Kartman]

"Whats the Dragon Rally?"

The Dragon Rally is not for the faint hearted. It's usually pretty cold due to the time of year. The rally is held by Conway MCC and is (was when I did it) an invite only rally.

It was one of the first rallies I did with my bike club. I left London in sleet and arrived at the campsite in about 2 feet of snow.

[chris.biker]

I think solving the problem with money is a good idea. Find the nearest B&B is my answer. :eek

[nick crisp]

I think solving the problem with money is a good idea. Find the nearest B&B is my answer. :eek

You can't be a proper biker until you've camped up a mountain in freezing February and thrown up all over your sleeping bag following loads of beer, several acid tabs and a good pork roast; how could that not be fun?!  :lol

[midden]

[quote author=chris.biker link=topic=11144.msg119031#msg119031 date=1388511960]
I think solving the problem with money is a good idea. Find the nearest B&B is my answer. :eek

You can't be a proper biker until you've camped up a mountain in freezing February and thrown up all over your sleeping bag following loads of beer, several acid tabs and a good pork roast; how could that not be fun?!  :lol
[/quote]


sleeping in a 10p public toilet followed by a stint on a lloyds bank exterior windowsill in winter doesn't count either i suppose

[nick crisp]

sleeping in a 10p public toilet followed by a stint on a lloyds bank exterior windowsill in winter doesn't count either i suppose

Did you have the bike next to you? 

[midden]

[quote author=midden link=topic=11144.msg119048#msg119048 date=1388514558]


sleeping in a 10p public toilet followed by a stint on a lloyds bank exterior windowsill in winter doesn't count either i suppose

Did you have the bike next to you? 
[/quote]
Good question...........um  no

[nick crisp]

[quote author=nick crisp link=topic=11144.msg119049#msg119049 date=1388514789]
[quote author=midden link=topic=11144.msg119048#msg119048 date=1388514558]


sleeping in a 10p public toilet followed by a stint on a lloyds bank exterior windowsill in winter doesn't count either i suppose

Did you have the bike next to you? 
[/quote]
Good question...........um  no
[/quote]

FAIL.

[ajmes1]

All good suggestions!  I hope the porta crappers are ok as I could be sleeping in them!


I saw the nitestar 350 but might plump for some heavier liners for my existing bags. The ultra lite was another one I saw.

You can't be a proper biker until you've camped up a mountain in freezing February and thrown up all over your sleeping bag following loads of beer, several acid tabs and a good pork roast; how could that not be fun?!  :lol

I very much like the sound of this!


I'll certainly be taking pictures to document the travels!


Phil, dad's done the dragon rally 10 years on the trot. It's a rally organised by Conway mcc ( as kosmic kartman explained) but is now open for ticket holders. The location changes yearly, you basically just turn up at a rendezvous point.

[ajmes1]

Sorry to drag up a bit older thread but some pictures from the dragon rally this year:

















Very wet and windy in all (As you can see by the flattened tent!!) but the saving grace was that as it was on a touring park this year, and as such had a bar onsite (which ran out of beer before 10pm)


Bring on next year!