For those people who like to see what everyone else is carrying. I saw someone else 'rated' their gear. I decided to do that also on my major items, with the thought it might help decide what to purchase.

I did a two month tour of Europe as a teenager. That cured me of over packing. Especially with all of today's fast drying techno fabrics, taking one of everything is easy.

1998 RANS Stratus recumbent bike. Comfort all the way. I might be tired at the end of a long day, but I'm never sore. AAA+

older style BOB trailer with black BOB bag. I'm a definite trailer person. I like that my bike handling does not change and I have one bag to look through for my gear. I did debate on trying a two wheeled trailer, but decided to stay with the tried and true. AAA+

Sierra Designs Lightning tent. I purchased this new for the trip. It was the lightest weight, free standing tent I could find at 3 lbs. 11 oz. It has only one door, but I don't plan to use it with anyone else. There's just enough room inside for my BOB bag to join me. Under the vestibule I tucked my shoes and food, ready for a quick get away in the morning. I did find that at 5'11" if positioned myself straight in the tent that my toes touched the sidewall of the tent. I've never had that happen before. My solution was to put my pad in at an angle. It could be a problem if you are tall and plan on sharing the tent. Great tent, easy to set up. AAA+

ground cloth - I didn't buy the official footprint, just the cheapie WalMart thick clear plastic. I cut it a little big so I had a 'doorstep' to put my shoes on.

North Face 0 degree down sleeping bag - a bit big and heavy, but I'm a cold sleeper. Worth it's weight. AAA+

Big Agnes 2.5" insulated sleeping pad- much research went into this purchase. I had been using a closed cell pad and I knew I wanted something more comfortable for this trip. It took me a fair amount of time to blow up this pad every day. I considered it to be 'lung capacity exercises'. I found my body was a bit to wide for the pad and I had to strategically place items under my elbows so they would be the same elevation as my very tall pad. An A rating.

sleep sack made from an old sheet

travel size pillow with a real pillow case

community soup pot - 8 (?)quart- really big- sometimes we had to carry food for the next day. The BOB trailer people tended to receive the bulky items to carry. They weren't necessarily heavy weight.

two paperback books - one to read - one for a spare

Very lightweight Keen brand clogs

Rain coat and pants - these proved not roadworthy and I bought new ones in Missoula.I bought a Marmot jacket and REI rainpants. the coat sometimes went in my seat bag, depending on the weather.

Wind front vest with mesh back.

One pair of Duofold brand tights

One pair of lightweight off the bike pants

One pair of bicycle style shorts without pad.

One set of Duofold brand wool long johns - top and bottom

One very light weight Duofold long sleeve shirt and a short sleeve shirt

One pair Smartwool socks.

ONe pair thick wool socks.

One long sleeve Alertshirt brand neon orange shirt. I never wore this, but spread it out over the top of my BOB bag for visibility.

One set of underwear - remember that wash and wear idea?

Toiletries

A shop size towel to dry off (get the important parts first, the rest can drip dry).

Four clothes pins and a length of twine.

Alarm clock - lightweight travel version.

Cell phone and charger.

Extra sunglasses and a pair of clear glasses for rainy days.

Helmet with a fabric visor.

Gloves - long and short fingered.

Shimano sandals for riding. I ride only in sandals all year long, even through the Colorado winters. When it gets down around zero I add booties. Otherwise I wear wool socks of varying thicknesses and add a toe cover of Saran Wrap for wind protection. I know, I look like a bag lady, but it works just fine. My toes enjoy the wiggle room. I've had the same pair of sandals since 1999, best shoe purchase I've ever made. Either on or off the bike. AAA+

Angletech 950 cu in seat bag. I've had this bag since I purchased my first recumbent in 1998. I've carried home bags of catfood and watermelons. Very, very durable bag with just enough pockets for your little stuff without being too compartmentalized. AAA+ My seat bag contained:

Jacket/vest, potentially needed clothing for the day, camera, ID, money, chapstick(the SPF kind), sunscreen, kleenex, snacks .

Pentax Optio S4 digital camera with a 3x zoom. very small, it fits in an Altoids box (or my pocket). Great, great little camera. I had set the pixels down for this trip to be sure and have plenty of memory. When cropping the photos I found I wished I had better resolution. I've since set the pixels back up. This camera gets a AAA rating from me.

stuff sack full of tools:

This started out bungied under my seat and ended up bungied on top of the BOB.

two tubes each: 26", 20", and one 16".

patch kit

phillips and flat head screw driver

full set of allen wrenchs

lightweight pedal wrench

adjustable wrench

extra long length spare brake/shifter cable

zip ties of assorted sizes

medical tape (stronger/smaller than duct tape)

little box of extra nuts and bolts

extra cleat

In my fabric fairing/glove box/handlebar bag:

100 oz. Camelbak and a bottle of Gatorade Sometimes snacks went here if my seat bag was full of clothing.

Initially I did not carry a spare tire as I had new tires for the trip. However, a sliced tired outside of Dillon, MT taught me better. I then carried a spare tire of each size between my BOB bag and the BOB. All of these tube and tires sizes are an inconvenience, but worth it, IMO, for the comfort of the ride.

Hmmm, I see I rated all of my big items as A+ or better. I must have done really good research before purchasing. I wouldn't change any of my gear out for something else. My husband will be relieved to hear that after all of the many boxes the UPS man brought to our door last spring!

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