Flashback Fridays: Early 90s Dirt Touring & Bikepacking

It's no secret that people have been loading their bikes with overnight gear and heading into the wilderness for quite some time.  Just take a look at this Pearl Pass post here and you see that bringing the keg to the woods is an integral part of mountain biking's history - some even claim it's the reason for its very birth.  Regardless, the need to get out there, and stay out there, has always been there.  These photos verify that too, though they're later - maybe 91 or 92 based on that yellow and black Hardrock loaded up against the wall, sporting some nice WTB Specialized tires too.

Large water bottle, semi-adequate sleeping provisions, sweet early 90s Nikes that I want, and... the rest is simple, pedal into the woods and stay there.

Head scratching and squinting around here seems to conjure some notions of some friend's ranch in Buena Vista (for some unknown reason resistingly pronounced B-Yune-Ah-Vistah) and then mountain bike assisted camping.  Sounds good enough for me.  There were colorful characters:

If you're not gonna wear mom jeans... wear mom sweatpants.  Better yet, wear turquoise ones revealing purple socks and white high top Reeboks that I feel like were only worn by hot chicks wearing leotards performing that forgotten pastime called calisthenics.  Man, I really miss the late 80's / early 90s

But there were the same things prevalent then to what kinda sorta plagues bikepacking now.  The head down, is my rig gonna hold up and is this really a good idea moment of wonder beforehand:

The maybe if I ride in a quick circle in the parking lot that means my bike will hold up for the whole trip rumination:

Or maybe he's just checking out those sweatpants.  They could almost be referred to as Hammer Pants, something I call the Trail Boss because he pedals too hard for me to keep up.

And there's the quintessential park the truck now it's real, we really have to leave and I hope to see my truck again some day moment:

So for 2015 you should go and sleep in the woods and you should pedal your bike to get there.  Take the mountain bike or throw some Nano 40s on the cross bike.  Who cares, just get there, it's something WTB's been doing since day one.