Motorcycle camping is a lot like backpacking. You generally want to avoid bulky or heavy items as much as possible. So, in general, you are likely to be carrying an additional 50 pounds or more when camping. Most of this weight goes on the back of the bike, and it definitely impacts how the bike handles.
This report talks about a few ways to move some of that weight to the front of the bike, providing better balance. I am focusing on dirt bikes, but the general concepts also apply to larger adventure bikes.
Tank Bags
Adding a tank bag is an obvious option, but on a dirt bike, you need to stick with fairly small bags. Back in 2013 I posted a report on a few options available at the time. There are more options to choose from now, but in general you probably don’t want anything larger than 10 liters or so. You need to make sure the bag does not interfere with steering, that it allows you to get forward on the seat for cornering, and that it doesn’t interfere when standing. You also need to consider how the bag will sit on your gas tank. Many tanks have tall chambers up front which prevents you from getting the bag up over the fuel cap.
I find the 11 liter AltRider tank bag to be about as big as I like. Even though it has a volume of 11 liters, it is difficult to fully utilize the space since the interior is not rectangular in shape.
AltRider Hemisphere tank bag
Front Fender Bags
A lot of people use a front fender bag to carry a spare tube. I went away from a traditional fender bag for three reasons: 1) the weight on the fender affects handling, 2) the bag can easily fall off, and 3) the bag blocks some of the illumination from the headlight.
I switched to a Dirt-Bike-Gear bag because it avoids all three of my complaints with a traditional bag. It gets the weight close to the steering axis, so it has much less impact on handling, and less blockage of the headlight. And since it attaches to the forks, it will not fall off.
Dirt-Bike-Gear front fender bag
Tank Shroud Bags
If you want to move even more weight forward, a good option is some form of bag mounted to the tank shrouds. But please note these will likely scratch up your plastics. This is less of an issue if you have a tank that does not use the stock shrouds.
Make sure your gear does not interfere with your knees and that it doesn’t block the ventilation ports. One side benefit of tank shroud bags is that they help shelter your knees from brush and rain.
If your primary goal is to move weight forward, you should consider carrying your liquid up front. Water is very heavy, weighing 2.2 lbs/liter. Gasoline is another good option, weighing in at 1.65 lbs/liter. This can easily be a large percentage of your total gear weight.
| Liquid | Liters | Weight (lbs) |
| Water | 1 | 2.2 |
| Water | 1.5 | 3.3 |
| Water | 2 | 4.4 |
| Water | 3 | 6.6 |
| Water | 4 | 8.8 |
| Gas | 1 | 1.65 |
| Gas | 1.5 | 2.475 |
| Gas | 2 | 3.3 |
| Gas | 3 | 4.95 |
| Gas | 4 | 6.6 |
OBR Adv Gear makes some nice bottle wraps and 2 liter bottle holsters. You can buy 1, 1.5, or 2 liter water or fuel bottles that will fit in these carriers. These can easily be attached to your tank shrouds. Other companies also sell bottle holders, but I not seen anyone else that makes a carrier for the 2 liter rectangular bottles. For more details, see my 2016 blog post.
1.5 liter water bottle
2 liter fuel bottle
If you want to carry tools or other gear up front rather than liquid, the Giant Loop Pannier Pockets work really well. I have used them for years and just recently switched to carrying water up front. They are specked at 2 liters each, but they are odd shaped so you may not fit some items in them. For example, a 1.5 liter water bottle will not fit at all, and even a 1 liter bottle will poke out the top a bit. Furthermore, these bags have a zipper access and are not waterproof.
2 liter Giant Loop Pannier Pocket
If you want something a little larger, or fully waterproof, you might try the Giant Loop Possibles Pouch. Their website claims these are 3.5 liters each, but they made a mistake in their math. They are only 2.8 liters, and I can’t even fit two 1 liter bottles in. But they are very well made and very rugged.
2.8 liter Giant Loop Possibles Pouch
To my surprise, a 6 liter Wolfman small Rolie bag may also work, giving you a fair amount of storage up front. These bags are large enough to hold a camp chair or really nice air mattress.
6 liter Wolfman Rolie bag
I am sure there are plenty of other bags available that could work. Hopefully this report will give you some ideas that will help with your next adventure.
Gardiner Family Adventures 