We didn't start out looking for Surly ECR's for our touring bike setup. Quite the opposite. Having heard great things about Surly bikes, we were looking at road touring bikes, like the Surly Long Haul Trucker. That's before a trip to Tapanga Creek Outpost, outside LA, shifted our focus to bikepacking and sensible off-road mules like the Surly Troll. Built around best practices such as internationally available 26" wheels and easy-to-service rim brakes, the Troll is a practical bikepacking bike setup choice for international trips that venture beyond-the-beaten path.
But a demo day spent on a Salsa Fargo 27.5+ further evolved our thinking. Riding the gravel roads and single track trails in Asheville's Bent Creek was a dream on the Fargo's beefy 27.5x3" plus-sized tires. Aired down to <20psi the Fargo smoothed out rough tracks and crawled over roots and loose rock like a mountain goat. We were sold. Sold enough to forgo some of the Troll's practicalities in exchange for the excellent grip and comfort 27.5 +/29+ wheels provide. After all, when compared to our Land Cruiser, which was built around best practices for travel across remote Africa, a bike is dead simple. Without much effort, I can think of a host of workarounds for any wheel or brake related problems we may encounter in some remote corner of the globe.
The more challenging problem was finding a bike with plus-size wheels that fits Sheri's minus size frame. Size proved a problem with some of our other top choices like the Surly Ogre, Salsa Fargo, and Bombtrack Beyond Plus (a gorgeous bike we find particularly alluring) either too big or (in the case of the Fargo) just not quite right.
Enter the Surly ECR. It is a proven go-anywhere touring bike that's seen service from Africa to South America and beyond. The Surly ECR sizing is perfect for both of us, performs well when loaded up like an African bush taxi, includes enough braze-on's to carry anything and the kitchen sink, and features a versatile rear dropout that can easily accommodate desirable upgrades like a Rohloff hub. For us, the perfect bikepacking bike.
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Table of Contents
Surly ECR Build Highlights
After extensive research, we opted to custom build our ECR's. Highlights of our build include:
- SRAM GX Eagle 12 Speed drivetrain, which gives a low gear of ~18 gear inches. Perfect for anyone interested in riding up a wall or for those of us in such bad shape we need the extra help to make it up a downhill street.
- Son 28 Dynamo hub with Sinewave Reactor USB Charger to power our iPhone and other USB devices
- WTB Scraper 40 rims fitted with 29x3.0 Maxxis Chronicles (Jim) and 27.5x3.0 WTB Ranger Tough (Sheri) set up tubeless
- Supremely comfortable 710mm Jones Loop H-Bar (710mm) - a great bikepacking handlebar
- Brooks well-proven touring saddles: Brooks B-17 (Sheri) and Brooks C-17 (Jim)
Below, you'll find detailed photos of my 29+ ECR (size: MD) as well as Sheri's 27.5+ ECR (size: XS). The images are broken into two parts. The first part provides detailed shots of the base bikes before we installed all the bikepacking/touring specific kit like racks, bags, bells, and lights. The second part provides a detailed look at our bikes ready for travel.
Note that both bikes are virtually identical so to avoid redundancy all photos are of the Surly ECR 29+, except where there are differences in the build (i.e. photos of Sheri's 2.5 SG Jones Loop H-Bars, WTB Ranger Tires, etc.). Each photo includes a caption, which describes what's being shown.
Also, when researching bikes, there was a lot of discussion about fitting Tubus Vega Evo racks and the info I found showed the Tubus Vega with 29x3" Surly Knards on 35mm rims and Tubus Vega (old version) with an extension bracket. That said, we've added a handful of detailed photos of the Tubus Vega Evo fit with 29x3" Maxxis Chronicle Tires on 40mm rims (the racks fit with even more clearance on Sheri's 27.5x3" WTB Ranger Tough on 40mm rims). Hopefully, this offers up some additional insight for anyone considering the minimalist Tubus Vega Evo for their Surly ECR rear rack.
Surly ECR - Bikepacking Setup
Our bikepacking setup is built around bikepacking-specific bags that keep weight as low, close to the bike's centerline, and inside the wheelbase as possible. Except for the fuel tank and feedbag, we chose roll-top waterproof bags to keep our gear dry and limit the need for field repairs. With the exception of our Rogue Panda Roll Top Framebags, which were made custom to maximize usable space, we selected off-the-shelf bags from proven brands including Ortlieb, Revelate, and Salsa.
To achieve our goals, we made a last-minute change in our luggage setup. Rather than going with our Porcelain Rocket Seat Packs, as shown above, which would be our choice for shorter, more off-road oriented trips, we opted to add Tubus Vega Evo rear racks and Ortlieb Gravel Packs. For extended travel in Europe, this bikepacking setup does a nice job of towing that coveted line between livability and minimalism. Compared to the Porcelain Rocket Fusion Seat Bag, the Gravel Packs offer 12 liters of additional capacity per bike, excellent bag access and removal, and versatile space for storing bulkier items like our 12" MacBook, DSLR, and cook kit. Plus, the Tubus Evo Vega Rack offers an additional attachment point for a dry bag or other items, which is useful when carrying extra food/water for extended backcountry rides.
Luggage Setup (Sheri):
→ Ortlieb Handlebar Pack (Size: Md; Vol: 15L). See the latest price.
→ Ortlieb Handlebar Accessory Pack ( Vol: 3.5L).
→ Rogue Panda Roll Top Frame bag (Size: Custom; Vol: ~6L). Note: if you don't need a custom fitted framebag, check out Ortlieb's framebag. Click here for the latest prices.
→ Tubus Vega Evo Rack
→ Ortlieb Gravel Packs (Vol: 25L/pair). See the latest price.
→ Salsa Anything Cages HD w/ Salsa Anything Bag (Qty: 2; Vol: 9L)
→ Feedbag
→ Salsa Anything Cage w/ 40oz Klean Kanteen (Qty: 1; Vol: 1.25L)
→ Lezyne Power Cage w/ 26oz REI Coop Water Bottle (Qty: 2; Vol: 1.6L)
Luggage Setup (Jim):
→ Ortlieb Handlebar Pack (Size: Md; Vol: 15L). See the latest price.
→ Ortlieb Handlebar Accessory Pack ( Vol: 3.5L).
→ Rogue Panda Roll Top Frame bag (Size: Custom; Vol: ~6L). Note: if you don't need a custom fitted framebag, check out Ortlieb's framebag on Amazon. Click here for the latest prices.
→ Tubus Vega Evo Rack
→ Ortlieb Gravel Packs (Vol: 25L/pair). See the latest price.
→ Salsa Anything Cages HD w/ Anything Bag (Qty: 2; Vol: 9L)
→ Feedbag
→ Salsa Anything Cage w/ 40oz Klean Kanteen (Qty: 1; Vol: 1.25L)
→ Lezyne Power Cage w/ 26oz REI Coop Water Bottle (Qty: 2; Vol: 1.6L)
→ Fuel Tank
If you're thinking about setting up a bikepacking rig, particularly an ECR, we hope you'll find the pictorial useful. Now that we're on the road and using the bikes daily I can say they've exceeded expectations both on-road and off and the Tubus Vega Evo racks have worked out well on both bikes.
For further reading on what we carry on our bikes, click here to see the post on our complete bikepacking gear list with detailed photos and packing list by category.
The Base Bikes - Surly ECR Specs and Photos
Surly ECR 29+
Surly ECR 27.5+
Surly ECR Bikepacking Complete Setup Photos
The is an outstanding write up. Thank you so much. I’ve been agonizing over bike and setup choices for building my bikepacking rig. Been looking at the ECR. After your review I’m dying to get out and demo one. This is a gorgeous bike build. Happy travels.
Thanks Mike! We can relate to agonizing over bike choice and setup! We love our ECR’s – very happy with our choice. Hope you can find a demo soon. They were perfect bikepacking bikes and now we are in Truckee, CA using them as mountain bikes. They’re working out very well, lots of fun in store for the summer! We’d love to hear which bike you decide to buy.
I ended up going with the Wednesday, purchased frame, custom build. You can check out the latest winter bikepacking pictures on Instagram @gravelwestvirginia Thanks again for a great article.
Concur…what an informative and interesting write up supported by great reasoning and images.
Thanks for your efforts
Thanks Alan!
Thanks for the write-up! I’m also currently in the midst of a hunt for a plus size bike frame that fits my “minus sized” self, so it’s great to read about your experience with the ECR.
I’d love to know Sheri’s inseam if you know and are willing to share. This is the main thing giving me pause regarding the Surly ECR–I have a 27.5” inseam, and the measured standover height of the ECR is about an inch higher (726 mm=28.6 inches). I am also small with a short reach (5’1.5” height, 4’10” wingspan) so am worried that even if I can get by without the standover clearance, the bike as a whole might be just slightly too large. Unfortunately, it doesn’t look like I’ll have an option to try it in person anytime soon.
Would love to hear any thoughts you have–thanks for taking the time to write this up and help!
Thanks Etha, we’re glad you found the post helpful. My (Sheri’s) inseam is 28.75″. If yours is 27.5″, that might be a bit of a problem. When we were searching for bikes, we were able to find a Surly Demo Day within driving distance to test the bike. Look up their demo days (assuming they’re still having them with Covid) and see if you can find one near you. It’s difficult for those of us who are “height challenged” to find a good fit! Best of luck – I know how frustrating it can be. Let us know if you have any other questions.
Nice Bikes! You made good choices for your build. I ride a Surly Big Dummy and have some Jones bars on it. Love Surly’s bikes and hope to add a Surly Ogre to the stable one day. Thanks for the article is was a nice read.
Thanks! We love these bikes – and the Jones bars. Surly Big Dummy is great – we have a friend that bought one so he could give locals a ride when he travels :). Glad you enjoyed the article!
Jim, this is incredibly useful thank you so much for this write up!! I absorbed every word. I am planning on doing the Tahoe Twirl next August and have been looking at the ECR’s very closely. I love the Jones bar and your custom set up. Your ride is SICK!!! 🙂
Thanks, I’m glad it’s helpful to you! We love our ECR’s and the Jones bars are great. Good luck with your bike decision and have fun next August in Tahoe!
Hey Sheri,
Thinking of purchasing the ECR and debating between XS and S, My inseam is roughly 28.5 in and im 5ft 2in. I know you mentioned your inseam previously but wondering if you could share your height and if you ended up test riding both XS and S, why did you end up going with XS?
Appreciate the help! Excited to ride the ECR 🙂
Hi Rafaela. I’m 5′ 3″. I test rode both the XS and S ECR and the S felt a little too big – I felt a bit too stretched out – and I wanted a little more standover height than the small offered. I was a little nervous that after riding the XS, it would feel too small (I was only able to test ride them for about an hour). But it’s a great fit and I love it. It seems that an XS would be right for you; I hope you can find one to test ride. Let me know if you end up buying one and how you like it. Good luck!
Hi, thanks for this write up. I am considering this exact combo for rear rack and panniers (Tubus Vega and Ortlieb Gravel Pack). How bad was the rattling of the panniers off-road? Thanks!
Hi Cory. The rattling of the panniers was not bad at all off-road. We were expecting rattle and as a precaution brought small rok straps and actually never needed to use them. We really liked the combo!
Hi. I am considering xs Fargo versus ECR (I am 5’2”). I toured Kyrgyzstan and Great Divide on a drop bar Salsa Travel Vaya with 26” wheels (international set up). I want bigger tires because of the terrible roads. My concern is weight of bike. The Salsa Fargo is lighter. The mtn climbs were challenging too. Also, how practical is travel with tubeless? I want to bike the Pamir Highway next. Thanks!
Hi, sounds like you’ve had awesome travels on your Vaya Travel! I can’t compare the weight to other bikes, as we only traveled on the ECR, but we both loved ours. The tubeless was awesome – would never go back. I loved the tires – they’ll go anywhwere. We pack light, so weight wasn’t an issue. I’m on an XS with 27.5 x 3 tires. The biggest downside that we talk about is that running those tires makes the bike a lot slower than if you had smaller tires. They definitely aren’t fast. Oh, and with the low gearing of our Sram Eagle drivetrain, hills weren’t much of a problem (with the super low gearing).
I have been going back and forth as I have a Karate Monkey with very nice 27.5 + and 29 wheels that span a huge range of situations. But I just did the
Appalachian Gravel Growler on a modified Soma Wolverine Gates belt Rohloff bike running Rene Herse 55 front and 48 rear. The bike did well but I want to run 2.3 front and rear with fenders. Considered custom but when I read Logan watts epitaph for the ECR yesterday I decided to go for it. Hopefully I’ll get one of the last batch.
Enjoyed reading your take on this and seeing your nice photos.
I think you’ll like the ECR. Enjoy!
Hi, it seems the rear rack doesn’t have much clearance on the 29X3. Was that an issue when encountering muddy ground or when the panniers are rattling on bumpy roads?
Great article BTW, very helpful!
No, we didn’t have a problem with clearance!
Thank you so much for sharing this break down!
I also have a minus size body frame and managed to get my hands on a Surly ECR. I was curious about what type of rack would fit the dimensions of this bike and now I have a perfect solution. I really appreciate it, I am excited to get my build started!
This has been so interesting to read because this winter i built my own bikepacking rig around a Surly Ogre, very similar to your build. I would really like to know how the bike handled with the Salsa Anything fork bags because I am considering using 4 fork bags, 2 Revelate and 2 Alpkit. This is because i am not using panniers at the back. The plan is to have one of the bags for my cookset, once for food, one for waterproof clothing, one for my tent flysheet and footprint when wet. I am a little concerned that it might be too front heavy though with my Ortlieb handlebar roll containing my sleep system and shelter. It’s not too late to change for smaller rear panniers though as my big trip is not for another 4 months. What do you think?