Oregon Outback FKT Attempt: Gear, Setup, and Nutrition
If any of you follow me on instagram, you know that I did a tour of the Oregon Outback just last week with my partner, Trish. I’ll be doing a short photo narrative of that experience soon, but I decided to prioritize this post as I’m heading right back out to Klamath Falls later today to attempt to beat the Fastest Known Time (FKT) of the route.
For those who don’t know, the Oregon Outback is a 360+ mile gravel and dirt route that goes from Klamath Falls to The Deschutes River State Recreation Area, a park at the junction of the Deschutes and Columbia river.
Until a month ago, the record was just under 30 hours, but a Portland rider just beat the record last month with a time of 27 hours, 27 minutes.
That’s a really competitive time. He averaged over 13 mph for the entire trip, and that includes all stops for food resupply, water, bathroom breaks, gate opening, etc.
Not to totally nerd out on stats, but according to Strava, this rider also only stopped for a total of 1 hour, 27 minutes; pretty amazing considering the need for at least a few water and food resupplies throughout the course of 360 miles.
Regardless, my friend Seth Dubois and I are going to attempt to beat the record this Saturday and I figured it’s been a while since I did a bikepacking setup and gear post (last year for the BC Epic to be exact), so get ready for a relatively detailed breakdown of my gear, my setup, and how I’m going to look at nutrition for a 30 hour-ish ride across the state of Oregon.
Want to follow along with our FKT attempt? Here’s the link:
Trackleaders Oregon Outback FKT Attempt
The Route
Gear Breakdown
Clothing
Body: Pactimo Aero jersey with Northwest Competitive logo, Marmot vest, Outdoor Research Helium II rain jacket.
Legs: Pactimo Tri-shorts, New Balance running tights, Darn Tough wool socks, Pearl Izumi X-Project P.R.O cycling shoes.
Miscellaneous: Hammer Nutrition cycling cap, Bontrager helmet, Smith Sunglasses, handkerchief (to protect back of neck from sun), Giro fingerless gloves, Pearl Izumi full-finger gloves, Specialized sun sleeves.
Bags
Rogue Panda Double-Decker framebag, Apidura Racing Handlebar pack, Revelate Designs Jerry Can and Mag Tank, Topeak seat bag.
Lights
Head Lights: Sinewave Cycles Beacon headlight (connected to dynamo hub to charge electronics), Black Diamond Icon Polar Headlamp.
Tail Lights: Bontrager magnetic tail light (attaches magnetically to back of helmet), Nite Rider Taillight.
Electronics & Miscellaneous
Electronics: Anker 13,000 mAh external battery, Garmin In-Reach Mini, Jaybird Vista wireless headphones, Garmin Fenix 5x (not pictured), Google Pixel 4 (not pictured); cords: USB-C, Micro-USB, and Fenix 5x.
Miscellaneous: Toothbrush (yes, I’ll brush my teeth), mask, TP, mini spray sunscreen, Advil & allergy pills in contact case, chamois cream, iodine tablets, wallet, cuesheet, Quadlock phone case to attach to bike.
Tools
One Up Components EDC pump with multi-tool, electrical tape, 2 ounces of Orange Sealant, Dyna-Plug, Wolftooth Components Masterlink Pliers with 11-speed quicklinks, 1 spare tube, zip ties, Fiber Fix Spoke replacement (I really hope I don’t have to use that).
Hydration
Hydrapak 3 Liter bladder & 500 ML water bottle.
Nutrition
- Hammer Raw Energy Bars x 14
- Hammer Gel x 15 (servings)
- Pro Bar x 5
- Trail Butter blends x 4
- Wild Harvest Fruit & Vegetable baby food blends (great way to get some fruits & veggies) x 3
Total Packed Calories to start: 9,280
Bike Setup
The Bike
- Bike: Why R+ (Version 1)
- Drivetrain: Wolftooth 42 tooth Chainring, Canecreek EE Wings Crankset, SRAM Force Derailleur, Shimano XT 11-46 tooth chainring
- Tires: Rear – 27.5 2.25 inch Maxxis Ikon; Front – 27.5 2.1 inch Maxxis Pace
- Wheels: Rear – Industry Nine 24 spoke UL235 Wheel with i9 torch hub; Front – Velocity Blunt SS 28 spoke wheel with Shutter Precision dynamo hub for charging electronics
- Other Upgrades: Profile Designs ADL Aerobars, 70mm riser bar (to raise aero bars), Syntace P6 Hi-Flex Carbon seatpost
Total Naked Weight: 22 pounds
Bikepacking Setup
For this ride, I plan to go a little heavier on the scale in order to stop less for resupply. In total, I only plan to stop for food and/or water 4 times, which means I need to be able to pack some serious calories and water at each stop.
- First stop: Sprague River around mile 40 and I’ll just fill up on water
- Second stop: Silver Lake at mile 120 where I’ll get both food and water
- Third stop: Prineville around mile 225 for food and water
- Final stop: Shaniko around mile 300 just for water
That being said, it probably makes sense why I’m packing over 9,000 calories and 3.5 liters of water for this ride.
Setup Breakdown
3.5 Liter bladder and easy access to clothing layers 
Hammer bars and Pro bars 
Veggie and Fruit blend packets 
Cuesheet 
Trailbutter packets 
Miscellaneous: TP, sunscreen, allergy pills, toothbrush, chamois cream 
Electronics 
Wallet, less needed clothing layers, phone water protection 
Extra water, pump with multi-tool
I think that’s it! With the Tour Divide, Colorado Trail Race, Oregon Timber Trail, and so many other bikepacking grand departs being cancelled, the bikepacking dot watching phenomenon has been really lacking in my life.
If summer dot-watching is something you also look forward to and you have a hankering yourself, follow along with Seth and I this Saturday as we take on an FKT attempt of the Oregon Outback (link at beginning of post). We’ll do our best to make it entertaining!
Categories: Bikes and Gear
Best of luck! Some friends of mine and I are riding OO next week (at a much more leisurely pace). Be aware that there are reports of a fire directly on the trail at about mile 65 (NE of Beatty). It looks relatively small and doesn’t appear to have grown in the past day. You can find it on this map (the “FA #38” fire)
https://www.fireweatheravalanche.org/fire/state/oregon
Oh man, thanks for the info, Jay. That’ll definitely make things more interesting. 🙂
guys, the track leaders isn’t moving… are y’all pedaling??
Thanks for following along Steven. We both DNF’d at mile 120 after dealing with some form of heat exhaustion. I wasn’t able to eat from about 12pm on and threw up twice in the last 20 miles and Seth wasn’t in much better shape.
I got to Silver Lake around 4:20pm and decided to call it, and Seth arrived a little later and called it as well. I’ll probably give it another go in September once the weather cools a bit.