This gear library spotlight is part of our ongoing work highlighting gear libraries across the country! Check out our Gear Library Resource Hub for more.
Slow Spokes provides resources, community, and experiences for non-binary, trans, gender-expansive, and women riders of all abilities to have safe, confident, barrier-free fun bikepacking in the Missoula area. Slow spokes started in March 2024 with Bikepacking 101 Workshops, started hosting overnight trips in June of 2024, and from the start got working on their gear library. Slow Spokes was started really intentionally; the point of the group was to break down barriers, so they knew they wanted to have a gear library but also provide instruction on how to use the gear as well.
We chatted with Meredith Dahlk at Slow Spokes to hear more about what the Gear Library offers and hear about how having this resource has helped many people gain confidence entering bikepacking spaces.
What inspired you to start your gear library?
We see the gear library as a tool to create an open and accessible space for folks coming together around a shared goal. It’s part of skill and resource sharing. You don’t get a bike and know how to load it up! All of the Slow Spokes organizers actually had varying levels of bikepacking experience when we started, which really helped us bring it back to base level, and understand knowledge that you don’t know at the start.
What type of gear do you lend?
We lend out bikepacking bags, in addition to a whole setup of camping gear, things like titan straps, and we have a bike now too!
Once we built up our inventory of bags, we moved to asking for camping gear. We found that, for example, people may have sleeping bags, but it might not be light enough or small enough to carry on their bike and having lighter and easier gear often makes a first time overnight slightly less hard on the body, and therefore more fun! We also have dry bags for folks to test out things related to what they already have or low-cost solutions.
Is your gear library supported by or run in partnership with any businesses or organizations? Anyone you want to thank?
Freecycles has donated time and space to us, including helping the Slow Spokes community build up bikes for us! Most of our bags have come from community members and donations from brands. And really the Missoula bike community has been so kind and gracious with offering support and spreading the word! Slow Spokes is not just about getting better at bikepacking but bringing people in that didn’t feel like they had a space before, so it’s been really cool to see the Missoula community rally around that.
What is the most fulfilling part about running a bikepacking gear library?
My favorite part is the gear library nights we run before each overnight. Before each overnight, we invite everyone coming on the trip to come to a park, and we ask them to bring what they are going to bring on the overnight. We meet each other, and we talk about things like packing, weight distribution, and where to put things on your bike based on what you need throughout the day.
Some folks are trying bikepacking for the first time, others are trying out a new setup without needing to buy an entire new setup, and others are in the middle. People coming often don’t know each other, but then all the sudden I turn around and see the two folks helping each other, looking through the bags together to figure out what they need. We talk about their excitement — and their worries, trying a new thing can be intimidating! Having this space ahead of the overnight creates a fun and vibrant experience beforehand and sets the tone and brings down some of the worries.
What are the biggest challenges you face in running a gear library?
One of the challenges is finding the balance of being able to offer service and being excited about it and logistically getting gear to people, while still giving our volunteers enough time to get out and ride their bikes! One way we addressed this is by reserving all gear for trip participants on trip weeks, so we’re not coordinating normal lending on top of helping everyone get setup for the trip.
What are your most popular rental items?
Our frame bags go out a ton. They provide an easy place to reach necessities, people often think of frame bags when they picture a bikepacking bike – so it gives the sense that they’re doing the “real thing”, and often folks are able to borrow front or rear bags from a friend, but it’s harder to borrow a frame bag that fits. Our other bike bags like seat post bags also go out a lot, in addition to our tent.
Generally, we see the gear library being used in a lot of different ways, and it’s nice to see people taking it as their own. We have people borrowing who have never been on a Slow Spokes organized ride and now are going on longer trips by themselves and organizing their own groups. Whether or not they are part of our overnight ride community is less important, but that they are able to utilize our resources to break into this and feel comfortable is so exciting to see. After they return from their trips, people send us photos along with stories of what happened and who they were with – and you can tell how much pride they have in the gear and in themselves getting out there!
Find out more about the Slow Spokes Gear Library at https://slowspokesmt.mailchimpsites.com and follow along their adventures at @slowspokes.mt.
