Maine to North Dakota
(Originally Maine to Washington)
Equipment
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Equipment List This page will detail the equipment I selected for my trip, since my trip will be a solo and fully self-supported trip I won’t discuss equipment or set-ups for other types of cycle touring (such as credit card, van supported, group tours etc..) There are many other pages devoted to those types of touring, please see my links page for further info.
 Chosing
a bike for touring is to a great degree a matter of personal
taste, the prevalent
opinion leans toward using a touring specific bike such as the Trek 520
(my
personal choice.) Its longer wheel base, sturdier frame, extra bottle
cage
braze-ons, full rack & fender eyelets, rugged component group
and
36 spoke
rims make for a much more reliable machine on extended tours than say
an
18 lb
road racer. A quick word about Tents I would strongly suggest that you spend several nights in the tent you intend to take on tour before your tour starts. At first it might seem like a great idea to take the lightest tent possible however this may present problems, particularly on an extended tour. Also concentrate on the durability, ability to breath and it's ability to stand up to weather without leaking. Ask yourself these questions when buying a tent:
 I
selected the
Eureka Apex 2XTA because of
prior experience
with
Eureka's expedition and adventure series tents. While on a week long
wilderness
canoe
trip in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in northern MN we rode out
exceptionally
heavy rain 3 nights in a row, considerable standing water (the tent
floor was like
a waterbed at one point!) and even good sized hail all without a
scratch or single
drop of water due
to leakage.Left Picture with rain fly - Right without A quick word about Sleeping Bags Weight and pack size are show stoppers on a bike tour, these two items alone will quickly disqualify any bag not designed for adventure travel. Think backpacker and you’re on the right track. Also consider the insulation composition, Down is lighter but once it gets wet it loses it’s ability to keep you warm, Synthetics are a bit heavier but will keep you warm even when wet. I choose a synthetic bag by Slumberjack, again because of prior experience with the manufacturers product. In my opinion there are 3 items of particular importance to consider when choosing a sleeping bag, you may have other considerations based on personal taste but these 3 items were paramount, in my decision:
In the table below you will find the checklist I developed for my trip, I used the web to find lists created by others then modified them to suit my own needs. If you are planning a tour, you will of course make adjustments to suit personal tastes and needs but this list should prove to be a good starting point. When all was said and done the equipment below minus the bike weighed in at 53 lbs, (plus an additional 6 lbs for water and 4 lbs for food on the road) 40 - 60 lbs of equipment is the norm for extended solo touring, when riding with others you can share; a tent, camping equipment, tools and spare parts lessening each persons load!
Equipment Checklist
What worked well The Trek 520 and Bontrager Select K tires were solid and proved very dependable. I used a Terry Fly saddle (it worked well but I have since changed to a sprung Brooks Champion Flyer saddle, I wanted to change saddles before the trip but was worried about break in, I found out this was a non issue) and Sidi Dominator Mega shoes, a side mounted Blackburn mirror, plastic fenders and Arkel Panniers. Let me tell you now, Arkel Panniers are awesome! the things are nearly bulletproof and I was constantly thankful that I choose Arkels everytime it rained or each time I opened the things. Using this setup gave me a very comfortable ride and except for a tad bit of saddle-soreness during the first 2 weeks and a couple of forgotten loose screws the ride was uneventful from a comfort and mechanical perspective. (After the flight to Bangor while reassembling the bike in the rain I apparently forgot to completely tighten two front rack screws) The Arkel Panniers, Eureka Tent and Thermarest air mattress worked exceptionally well! The Blackburn rear rack was wonderful. The Polar bottles were far superior to any other bottle I have used. I also brought along a small quality compass placed in the top see-thru flap of my Arkel handlebar bag and I used it constantly, it was a very good choice! The Leatherman was worth it's weight in gold, I used it constantly as well. The Hyrdoseal Sack was also an exceptional choice, I went through 3 consecutive Nor Easter's, meaning 5 straight days of non-stop rain ranging from light drizzle to downright torrential down pours. I cycled non-stop during the day through this rain and the Hydroseal NEVER leaked! The Arkel rain covers worked flawlessly as well! As for cooking, the Brunton Optimus Nova multi-fuel stove worked wonderfully as did the stainless cookware. The Goretex jacket and Pearl Izumi fleece thermal liner proved to be indispensible as did the Amfib cold weather cycling pants. The Dimage camera was a sturdy choice and it takes exceptional pictures, battery life was very good as well. Locktite also proved to be indispensible, I have vowed to use it one every screw during all future tours! Chamois Butt'r, Coppertone Sport spray-on suntan lotion, Deep Woods Off and Mineral Ice proved to be indispensible as well! What didn't work The most dissapointing equipment failure was the Zefal Magnum water bottles, I have searched high and low for an explanation as to why these things dribble on you when you drink from them and I've yet to find an answer, I chucked these worthless things during the second week! I was also dissapointed that my previously tried and true Cateye Astral cyclocomputer died on day 2 in the rain. Another disappointment was a set of brand new Rudy Project cycling glasses that snapped in two at the bridge on a cold morning in Maine. The old style Blackburn front rack was ill fitting from the start and I tried to beef it up during the trip but I have since replaced it with the new style rack. Rain gear was a joke, I found a very light-weight packable rain suit, the top was fine but I shredded the pants within 3 days, generous amounts of duct tape were needed to make it through all the rain, I'm still searching for a quality rain set that doesn't weigh a ton and can pack small. I went through several pairs of gloves, I found that on hot days the mesh backed mountain bike gloves with light padding worked best and on cold days the Trek winter long fingered goves worked best. The dromedary bag was totally unecessary, my original intent was to use it for showering but with very little effort I was able to find a warm shower or a lake to bathe in every day of the trip. The camp towel was also a joke, it was one of those "absorbs 80 times it's own weight in water" deals that feels like a chamois, my dad sent me a worn out (thread bare and thin) bath towel and it worked perfectly, it dried quickly in the open air and packed small too. The Solar charger and hand crank charger worked great for changing batteries for the camera and walkman (with weather radio) but was useless to charge the Sprint LG 5200 series phone once the phone batteries died. I found out later that this is a fault in the LG phone, you must have fairly high current to bring the thing back to life. My Blackberry will work on the hand crank sans a battery but the LG won't every blink! A man is rich in proportion to the number of things Henry David
Thoreau |
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