Gear for a winter motel trip.: Not much is needed. I am aiming for less than ten pounds.

Read below for the short version of the story.

I'm getting efficient at traveling with less and less. On a recent overnight trip to Aspen, I weighed my bags (including the bags), and they weighed nine pounds. This included my MacBook Air. I'm trying to convince myself to leave it at home. My phone will do just about all the computer does. I'm fooling myself. The computer will go. I might skip that second pair of underwear to compensate.

My hands are the first to get cold. I believe I have all of the options covered here. I have too cute flowered gloves for only $9.99 The fuzzy black gloves are Possum Down Gloves. The yellow gloves did not make the cut. They are my fancy $85. gloves I bought under duress in Lake Louise. They are supposed to be water repellent. It never rained again that trip.The Gray over mitts are REI brand Event waterproof mitts. They should also be good for the wind. They are new and untried. The black gloves are useless Outdoor Research gloves with over mitts that are supposed to be "highly water resistant". That is a total lie. These gloves are why I bought the expensive gloves in Lake Louise. They are good only for cool weather.

Jacinto has been wearing wool clothing lately. He is very happy at riding a tough 50 mile ride, coming home sweaty, and his clothes don't stink. He is a man with a mission. His goal for the trip is to have one set of on the bike clothes and not wash them for the entire trip! Oren said his goal is to stay upwind of Jacinto.

I am bringing one complete set of long length winter riding clothes - long sleeves and tights. I wonder if I would even wear shorts on this tour? Spoon and I agreed that it's not a question of at what temperature could we wear shorts, the question is - at what temperature will the tights be uncomfortably warm?

I have both a vest and a jacket to layer over my winter clothes if needed.

I have one complete set of off the bike clothes, including socks and underwear. Some things just need to be fresh to feel good.

My off the bike shoes are Skecher Go Walk. They are squish able for packing and are real shoes for walking vs my previous off the bike 'shoes' of dime store flip flops.

I take the smallest sizes of all toiletries, counting on motels for resupply. The electric toothbrush stays at home. Sunscreen is usually the big bottle, but Jacinto carries that because he's the last one to get up and ready to ride.

I have the most minimal of tool kits. I have two tubes and a patch kit. Allen wrenches and a small adjustable wrench. I have a set of spare BeBop cleats. There's no chance of finding those on the road. They were never a popular pedal and now the company is defunct. Anything else, I will hope the guys have one or I will be heading for the closest shop. I don't anticipate any issues. My mantra is leaving home with a ready to ride bike and I should be good. It's like taking a long road trip in my car. I'm not a mechanic, but I take the car to a professional before hitting the road.

On our last couple of tours we have carried a folding tire. See the photo below. Only 40 minutes after it was installed, it exploded. Now we don't have a folding tire. Jacinto says he'll never use one again.

Those who have read my previous journals know how much I like Spiz meal replacement. I've always said liquid calories are easier to offload during the day than solid calories. Ahem. I've changed my diet over the past few years, eating far fewer carbs. Each summer I've slipped right back into my (high carb) Spiz habit. All of this fall I have cycled without drinking Spiz. I'm going to give this tour a try without any Spiz. That is a huge statement for me.

I carried three pounds of Spiz on our last tour. Jacinto carried another three pounds for me, and Jim Fitch brought me yet another three pounds. That is plenty of effort and weight for a specialty food. By not carrying Spiz, I will free up all sorts of weight in my bag. I've already warned Jacinto that I will be eating even more food in town. I have been known to order two meals at once. I say it's in self defense because he always orders his meal with the plan of eating some of mine. But there are many days that I want to eat all of my own food, so I will order a second meal and place it between us as a defense system. He says I completely over exaggerate the situation. Ask anyone who has toured with us. I speak the truth. It's wisest to not get between a cyclist and their food source!

That was all a long way of saying I won't be carrying three pounds of Spiz, but I"m going to start the trip with some salted nuts and a few bars. I have two current favorite bars: Caveman Bar and the Bobo Lemon Poppyseed Bar. The Bobo Bar is made in Colorado (yay!), but is pretty high carb. It's a special treat to have one.

Many years ago my go to food on the bike was the classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Those were the days - back when I ate wheat.

My well used Shimano sandals were new in 2008. Nashbar sandals seem to have a good following and they were on sale $29., including shipping. At that price I will give them a try. I don't think it matters which brand. Bicycle sandals are very dorky. So are recumbents and helmet visors. All I need is a pocket protector with a few Bic pens!

Bebop pedals are my pedals of choice. They have gone in and out of production a few times over the years. Currently they are not being produced. This is my second to last new set of cleats. It's a momentous occasion.

Using Bebop cleats means doing a little shoe modification. The Spyderco Knife made short work of the job. The knife lives on my bike. It was a Christmas gift from my son. They are made in Colorado. You can walk right in to the factory and have your knife sharped for free while you wait!

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Mike AylingWhat happenec to the photo of the folding t(y)re?
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3 years ago

Kelly IniguezTo Mike AylingMike,

I had to think about that for a minute. Definitely I remembered the photo. I believe what happened is that the photo was a link to a journal page on that other touring website. I've inserted a fresh photo here.

Thanks!
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3 years ago