We really wanted to take a picture of the bikes fully loaded, and then another with every single item out. But it always seemed like such a daunting task and by the time we got to Denver we hungrily unpacked for good, without ever looking back. So here is my list of what we carried, entirely from memory (except I had to go back to one photo to get the license plate number):
Simon's typical riding outfit:
bike shorts - thanks, Pete!
short socks, Smartwool - thanks, Wendy!
shorts - thanks Mom!
short sleeve button-up lightweight shirt - old standby favorite
travel shirt ever
Merrell nubuck slip-on shoes - thanks, Mom! These were perfect all-purpose shoes
sunglasses, polarized (Thanks, Wendy!)1983 Fuji Touring Series III, lugged steel, silver
27" wheels, 36-spoke
27 x 1.25 Schwalbe Marathon tires
Shimano 14/28 6-speed freewheel
24/38/50 front chainrings
MKS pedals with toe cages
SunTour rear derailleur (Thanks, Matt!)
SunTour front derailleur
Suntour downtube shifters
Ritchie biomax handlebars
grip tape with Fizik gel underneath
1980s Shimano DuraAce brake levers (thanks, random guy in
South Carolina!)
saddle is ?? (Thanks, Atlanta SoPo Bike Co-op!)Dia Compe center-pull cantilever brakes with Koolstop black pads
4 water bottle cages, 2 attached with hose clamps
small Sigg with Twilight Ale and Green Lakes Organic Ale
stickers (under the downtube)
big Sigg with Obsidian Stout and Black Butte Porter sticker, secured to top tube with small bungee
tall plastic bottle - Novara? (above the downtube)short plastic bottle - Glacier Cyclery, bought at the thrift store
across the street from Glacier Cyclery for 25c (on the seat tube)
front and rear fenders, silverunderseat bag
padlock - Thanks, Colleen!
lock cable
heart highwheel pin Wendy made me in Vancouver
handlebar rack, handbuilt and dipped by Bundy, attached with
zipties
spare small bungees and twist-tieshandlebar bag with Boy Scout sailing merit badge, held down
with small bungee (Thanks, Bundy!)
Olympus waterproof and shockproof pocket camerasunglasses case
sunscreen
headlamp
digital watch (pretty neat idea)
Leatherman (Wendy found it in a field)
folding bike tool with allen wrenches and 2 screw drivers
tiny folding scissors (thanks, Mom, these were essential!)
bug repellent (midsummer only)
butt cream (early in trip only)
book (??, then Rama, then The Mauritius Command, then
Nostromo)
notebook (Take Take Take, thanks Anne)hardcover journal (handmade by Rhiannon!)
pens, one wrapped in duct tape
wallet - homemade with velcro change purse and total zip
closure
phoneepinephrin (for my Achilles heel)
candy and snacks as needed (Mega Smarties when
available)
maps of the daysailboat bead pendant - thanks, Julie!
lip balm
toothbrush and toothpaste
handkerchief - lost and replaced with spare bedsheet rag
front Blackburn lowrider rack, aluminum. Attached braze-ons and
P-clamps, stiffened with hose clamps
front left Novara pannier with Chinese sailboat patchwild turkey feather (lost in transit. it flew)
clothing bag
2 pairs underwear - Thanks, Wendy!
1 pair short socks -
1 pair long socks
cargo pants, REI
swim trucks (Wendy found these on the curb in
Berkeley)
T-shirt, the Nepalese embroidered one I bought at a thrift store in Kauai
short sleeve button-up lightweight shirt - Thanks, Wendy!
long-sleeve button-up lightweight shirt - thanks, John, way back in high school. This
was my #1 sailing shirt and is
still a bug-evasion shirt
sarong from Thailand (used as towel, tablecloth, sarong, weapon, Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal evasion, etc)was my #1 sailing shirt and is
still a bug-evasion shirt
thin brown sweater, embroidered with bighorn petroglyph
(which Wendy also found on the curb in Berkeley)
fleece hooded pullover - Thanks, Wendy!beanie (found at Lake Isabel in Colorado)
fleece gloves - bought in Italy
rain jacket, Pertex, Mountain Hardware
rain pants, Gore-Tex, Mountain Hardware
sun hat with chin strap - bought for $3 in Namibia
toiletry bag
deodorant
nail clippers - thanks, Wendy!
Dr. Bronner's soap, peppermint?
razor
front right Novara pannier with masthead mat knot boutonnière from Laura and Mike's wedding
bald eagle feather (lost in transit. it flew)
Thermarest - a cushy one
sleeping bag, down, summer, REI
4 rain covers (2 handmade by Mom!)
Fussy rusk box (thanks, Lanelle!)
2003 iPod with RockBox (used for music over the
hard passes and to store photos
- see music chosen on other list)
iPod cable and charger- see music chosen on other list)
external AA battery pack for iPod
2-3 sets of earbud headphones
headphone splitter cable
another plastic box
extra sunglasses, in case, in case
eyeglasses with cleaning cloth
earplugs
bamboo spork (thank, Todd!)
bag of patches (sewing projects never completed)
Japanese handkerchief (thank, Onn)
raccon with grocery bicycle from the Beehive
collective
various Kuna patches from Panamarear Tubus rack, stainless. bombproof. Thanks, Jay!
Washington license plate #B19327A, attached with zip ties,
folded as a cradle.
rear left pannier, homemade from my leather bag, secured with leather belt
the library (in a ziploc bag)maps
bureaucratic paperwork
passport
letters (for nostalgia)
letters (for delivery)
other papery stuff
sewing kit (in ziploc bag)
little camera bag, handmade by Mom
small plastic box
several safety pins
several straight pins
one huge sewing needle
a few regular needles
pre-threaded needles in a box
1 roll thread
thimble
buttons
roll of Velcro loops
roll of Velcro hooks
various rolls and colors of thread
electrical bag
Cateye LED headlight (with 2 AA)
2 red blinky lights (with 2 AAA)
superbright halogen headlight (for 4 AA)
phone charger
camera battery charger
USB LED light
quick-grab toolkit, at the ready
tire levers
small pump
self-adhesive tire patches
0-2 spare tubes
rag (some soft shreds of Andrea's Shady-stained
bedsheets)
fast orange hand cleaner in a little plastic tub serious projects toolkit (in a mesh bag)
chain lube ("Rock'N'Roll", picked up at Twin Bridges
bike camp in exchange for butt cream)
Teflon lubewrenches
chain break
spare chain links
4-6 spare spokes
vulcanizing rubber cement and pieces of old tube
sandpaper
zip ties
electrical tape
miscellaneous nuts, bolts, washers, and
doohickies
Thermarest hotset repair kit (found to be way expired when Wendy's pad inhaled 23 cactus needles)
[for future would add hypercracker and big pliers and brake cable cutters]
bag of bagsmesh and canvas bags
harmonica (my mom's Hohner from her high school days)
kite (thanks Ana, it was wonderful! Que cola!)
bag of line
30' of cord for hanging food from bears
miscellaneous bits of cord
webbing
1.0L Nalgene water bottle
toilet paper, at the ready
lobster-on-bicycle flag (from Beehive Collective patch)
mounted on hunting arrow
rear right pannier, homemade from army bag found in SF."The Kitchen", secured with blue webbing
cutting board - doubled as the stiff back of the panniersponge
stove kit in a bag:
MSR Dragonfly backpacking stove
wind/heat shields
cleaning kit (never used)
extra nozzle for diesel and kerosene
Sigg bottle cap
Sigg bottle with attached pump and Coleman fuel or
gasoline (filled at Sandpoint, SLC, Needles, Moab)
lighterMSR gold coffee filter
bottle of Sriracha hot sauce
bottle of olive oil
bottle of sesame oil
bag of spices
sesame seeds, black
sesame seeds, white
sea salt
black pepper
chipotle powder
cumin
anise seed
oregano
orange peel
???
Jetboil 1.5L insulated cooking pot
small (1.0L?) cooking pot
2 mugs
spare 27" tire (my Schwalbes presumed to be from a bad
batch)
flip flops with integrated bottle openers! Thanks, Karen!small duffel. "the food bag", secured atop license plate cradle
with with old tube
titanium spork (thank, Richard!)Emergen-C drink packets
solar panel and AAA/AA charger with homemade
phone/USB cable (velcro'd to top)
trash pocketa few pieces of lightweight tupperware (thanks, Denise
and John!)
"bag of bags"plastic bags
a fine load of food
occasional spare 1.5L water bottles for long desert
stretches
With all of the above mounted on the bike (except for me in my riding clothing clothes) and a dwindling food load, the Fuji weighed 85# without water and 95# with full capacity liquids. Yes, it felt very heavy. I would definitely tighten up the ship for future tours!. But you should feel my thighs! (If you are clean and attractive)
Speaking of clean and attractive, now we address Wendy's gear. She'll have to speak for herself on the details of her personal stuff, but here is what I can account for:
Wendy's typical riding outfit:
bike shorts
short socks
short sleeve shirt
Gore-Tex hiking/trailrunning shoes - her classic red pair with holes in them
sunglasses
1999 Cannondale aluminum touring frame, forest green
700C 32-spoke wheelset, with Mavic rims and MTB hubs (?)
Schwalbe Marathon 700x32 tires (began with used pair, replaced with new in West Yellowstone, MT)
pedals with toe cages
Avocet women's touring saddle
samurai sticker
fenders, yellow, Planet Bike
3 water bottle cages
silver Klean Kanteen on top of downtube
green Klean Kanteen on seat tube
small plastic Glacier Cyclery bottle underneath downtube
center-pull cantilever brakes with Koolstop orange pads
straight, wideish bars
Ergon shapely bar-ends with parallels
Alivio brifters , installed by a friendly guy in Kyushu, Japan
handlebar bag mount
handlebar bag
passport
wallet
pen
journal
book
lip balm
folding knife
sunglasses case?
front above-wheel Jandd rack
front left pannier, adapted by Simon from army bag, with heart-pocket added by Wendy
fragile food
snacks
water purification drops
first aid kit
-
-
-
front right pannier, vintage blue denim, built in SLC
secret things like charms and hexes that girls hide from boys, which I'll never know about
rear burly Jandd rack
REI Halfdome 2+ tent, with ground cover, stakes, and rain fly, secured with bungee
Thermarest, nice and cushy, secured with bungee
rear left pannier, Kootenay, made in Canada
clothing?
pack towel, orange
???
rear right pannier, matching the left
flying, calling monkey
sleeping bag, REI, down
???
In Mancos, CO, with dwindling food supply, the Cannondale weighed in at 73# dry and 82# with an overfull supply of H20.
just in case you decide to go looking for it - its a hypercracker - not supercracker. and it won't do your freewheels any darn good. cassette only.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the correction, Ship Shape. I'm planning to modernize those wheels with 700C and a cassette.
ReplyDeleteholy carp! I will copy this and keep it for future reference! Thanks for the detailed list, and double thanks for the continued inspiration. :)
ReplyDelete