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Going to be doing a fair bit of carrying the bike over Easter (yes, it's another West Highland Way trip) and am wondering if there are better ways to do it. It's a 2011 StumpJumper FSR.
At the moment, if I stick my arm through the triangle (awkward) then the shock has to rest on my shoulder. This is pretty uncomfortable cos there's not much space and not sure if loading the shock like this is a great idea. Other option is to bend over like an old woman and carry it across my upper back, which makes getting over walls and whatever a bit challenging.
Someone has surely worked this one out long ago (some sort of carry strap?) - ideas very welcome.
French style. Fork leg and crank. Rest on shoulders, suprisingly comfortable.
depending on your height and the size of the bike, you can hook the nose of your saddle on your shoulder (some extra padding is worthwhile) with the front wheel just off the ground and the rear wheel in the air. Works OK on flat terrain but obviously not too good on steep, scrambly climbs. Otherwise, across the top of your back is likely to be the best option and be prepared for a bit of juggling 🙂
PS - I take it you know about the Conic Hill diversion?
Thanks for those, some way to keep one hand free is what I'm looking for as we've got the dreaded N end of Loch Lomond to contend with, some rocky messing about for some miles.
Ta for heads up on Conic Hill, hadn't checked route status yet - going at Easter weekend, not a great time to do it perhaps.
Looks like we won't be doing Conic Hill then. I'll go back and do it another time. Or maybe not.
Fork leg and crank is the way to do it tbh, once it's up you can hold it there with one hand and it's very comfortable. Just be aware it'll freeze the [i]crap[/i] out of the hand you're using- if you're expecting long carries then having a bit of extra insulation to hand would be good at this time of year.
Like this:
[url= http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8104/8529479638_968304501c_z.jp g" target="_blank">
Cheers for the advice, old woman-style it is!
Does that not put the chainring in your neck?
It puts the chainring near your neck - if it's going to be really scrambly I generally put the chain on the big ring for a bit of reassurance. As others have said I find it by far the best way, it you're wearing a small sack then the downtube rests partly on that.
For me it's also stable enough to take one hand off to grab trees/rocks for steeper climbs. The only disadvantage is on narrow trails, where it can be a bit awkward to get through gaps.
Like this (not me)
[img] 
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It's largely irrelevant for the OP in any case.
My god, it's a STW thread upon which everyone agrees 😆
Fork leg and crank seems to be the best for me too.
I'd have assumed most bikes would be double and bash config if they're doing this sort of stuff on a regular basis, so chainring in the neck isn't normally a big worry (on the assumption that if it's hike-a-bike up, it's usually to access a rocky/techy downhill).
Have a go with some small straps about 18" long.. I carry a couple on some Scottish routes where there may be more h-a-b, like Mt Keen, Jocks road etc. Can strap the bike onto a camel back and have hands free... no dead hands.
I have pics of this but there is white shorts content...
If I'm hike-a-biking I'm usually carrying at least a small pack (as I assume you will be if doing WHW). In which case top tube resting on the top of the pack works very well - can carry one handed, and the advantage over the way round everybody else seems to be suggesting is you don't grab hold of something cold, and the chainrings are nowhere near your neck.
Ecky - plenty of hike-a-biking available for those who also like to ride with a full complement of gears.
I do it a bit like the above pics, but the bike the other way round, so the top tube is across your shoulders - think like doing a back squat, if that's a useful reference for you. You'll have a bag on, so it'll hold it in place a bit, and generally one hand is enough to keep it there.
I go with top tube on the rucksack too, if you have to ditch the bike, at least it hits rubber side down first.
only downside is getting a handle bar in the face, if you're not careful while holding onto the saddle with one hand.
Will try carrying both ways round, think I've been using the top tube method on the few occasions I've done this so far. Funny that I've had the bike for a year and half but never carried it for more than a minute, I need to do more XC routes in the Lakes and Scotland.
Am still thinking about a strap between headstock and seat post/top of rear triangle that would let me carry it over my shoulder though. Bit of elastic sewn into the strap would stop it flapping about too much. Got an old bag strap that would do.
Though I did see a few posts on cyclocross forums deriding this idea. Someone used to sell "cyclocross carrying slings" on ebay, now unavailable - what does that tell us?