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Equipment

Bruce Gordon Rock 'n' Road Tour, 28-38-48 front and 13-34 rear gearing (22 in. low, 100 in. high). Bar-end shifters on standard drop handlebars. Continental Top Touring/Top Touring 2000 tires (700 x 32) Brooks B-17 saddle (broken in) Bruce Gordon pannier racks

Robert Beckman panniers & handlebar bag Cateye CC-AT100 cycle computer/altimeter Shimano M-535 SPD pedals Zefal fenders Visalite headlight, rear flasher

I had only trivial mechanical problems during the 8 weeks. All of this is great equipment and I would recommend it to anyone. Bruce Gordon makes a solid, dependable machine that is as well-suited for touring as any bike I've seen. It rode comfortably and true and gave me no problems worth mentioning. Continental's Top Touring tires are the best bar none -- I had two flat tires the whole trip, only one of them was a puncture and it was into a rear tire that had more than 2,500 fully loaded miles on it. Bob Beckman's panniers, well designed and impeccably manufactured, are in a class of their own. The only problem I have with them is figuring out to whom to will them when I die, because they're certainly going to outlast me. The Cateye CC-AT100 is the first cyclecomputer I've ever owned that endures cold and rain without pitching electronic fits. Bike altimeters have a reputation for skittishness but this one worked reliably and was accurate enough actually to be useful. The Shimano SPD clipless pedals needed a couple hundred miles to break in completely but I loved them after that and am even thinking of replacing the Look-compatibles on my road bike. The Zefal fenders added a few ounces but riding in the rain was much closer to fun without road spray constantly spinning up into my face. They also kept grit and grime off the bottom half of the bike, making cleanup a lot easier. And then finally, that Brooks saddle. It requires a little bit more attention than your standard plastic jobs but you're rewarded with a comfortable, shock-absorbent ride that only gets better as you spend more time on it.

Packing list

Bike clothing gloves helmet glasses-mount rearview mirror SPD shoes 3 bike shorts 4 jerseys (1 wool, 1 cotton, 2 synthetic) arm warmers 3 pr. bike socks lightweight tights Lands' End merino sweater microfiber rain jacket goretex socks wool hat wool gloves thermal underwear plastic rain pants Tools & maintenance Cannondale hex key combo small 15/32mm wrench 8/10mm crescent wrench small vise grips Swiss Army knife tire irons spoke wrench patch kit 1 spare tire 3 tubes cassette removal tool chain rivet extractor chain lube Proofride (for leather saddle) rain cover for saddle clear nail polish spare spokes (all 3 sizes) 6" of old innertube 4' duct tape (around seatpost) cables (1 brake, 1 derailleur) cleanup rag (under seat) spare brake pads zip ties spare SPD cleat screws wash-n-dries

Off-bike clothing khaki long pants belt short pants two T-shirts (one long, one short sleeve) Izod style shirt wool socks nylon shorts (for swimming)  Miscellaneous Adventure Cycling maps misc. state maps reading book spiral notebook microcassette recorder extra microcassettes pen small compass travel case for wallet radio/alarm clock sunglasses glasses strap camera mini tripod film extra bungee cord various rubber bands bike lock toe strap for locking wheel plastic cover for bike pannier rain covers strap-on extra water bottle holders

Camping equipment waterproof stuff sack holding: sleeping bag camping pillow North Face Ventilator tent ground cover MSR Whisperlite stove 22 oz. fuel container with fuel matches 16 oz. pot 10 oz. mug spoon Campsuds scrubber cloth linen towels - 1 bath, 1 face Thermarest pad clothesline, pins flashlight emergency toilet paper water purification tablets Leatherman variable size drain plug emergency food (tuna, dried soup) sugar, creamer packets tea-style coffee bags Toiletries/1st aid toothbrush toothpaste floss soap & case shampoo razor & blades shaving cream hairbrush nail clippers Cutters sunscreen ear plugs bandaids aspirin/advil small first aid kit

The foregoing is what was on my bike or on me when the trip ended, by which point I had things pretty well tuned. Along the way I did send several things home, for example a deck of cards, a book of solitaire games and a lightweight rain shell that I took mostly because I owned it. The only important additions were in Colorado -- I hadn't really prepared for snow, so one cold and ominous morning I bought wool gloves, a hat, some thermal underwear and a pair of plastic rain pants. Also I had got a little too used to my two bike shorts and so I picked up a third pair just to be chafed somewhere new. (Lesson learned: Always carry 3 sets of bike shorts on trips lasting longer than 2 weeks.)

This is a fairly complete packing list. Indeed some might think it a little too complete, and to be sure a person could get by with a lot less -- a change of off-bike clothes is nice but not really essential; a bike headlight can double as a flashlight at night; a truly tough guy can shave with soap (or just water) instead of shaving cream. Next time I will probably cut out the purification tablets, the additional small towel, one synthetic jersey, one off-bike shirt and -- really! -- the Thermarest, which I used once. Other than that, however, I used just about everything on the list often enough to continue carrying it. I doubt I'd pare things down much below that.

A few items turned out to be exceptionally useful, and I won't take another long tour without them:

• Short-sleeve wool jersey -- perfect in cool or wet weather, better than any synthetic.
• Lycra arm warmers -- makes all your short-sleeve jerseys optionally long-sleeved; these go on and off easily and take up almost no space at all.
• Lands' End merino wool sweater -- soft, warm, compressible; great as an additional layer on the bike and for chilly evenings at the campsite or knocking around town.
• Duct tape, wrapped around the seat post. I hope I don't have to explain the benefits of duct tape.
• Goretex socks were nice on the bike in the rain. Also because I had only the one pair of shoes (see below), I would sometimes wear the socks while off the bike even after the rain had quit, to make my soaked shoes feel a little more comfortable.
• A microcassette recorder. A friend suggested that I talk into one in lieu of a written journal. It was a great idea. Rarely at the end of a day did I feel like reducing all the day's events to writing, so the recorder allowed me to memorialize lots of stuff that would otherwise be lost. Better still, I quickly learned how to shield the microphone from wind noise, meaning that I could record on the bike to make observations and describe events as they were happening. Those real-time recordings (all 9 hours of them) carry an immediacy that I never could have duplicated on paper; indeed when I listen to them now, hearing my own voice, I recall with striking precision not only the place I was in, but the feelings I had, when I made the original recording. It's pretty close to reliving the event.

The single pair of shoes was a Shimano SPD hiking/biking model. They were generally quite comfortable, though something different on my feet would have been nice from time to time. Also they weren't the greatest for extended walking (which I discovered during my off-days in Yellowstone) but I would probably do the same thing again unless I planned to spend a whole lot more time off the bike.

Um, what else. Waterproofing! I had rain covers for the panniers, which were useful if for no other reason than keeping the pannier fabric from soaking up 3 pounds of water in heavy rain, but the covers were kind of a pain to put on and so I also kept most of my gear inside plastic bags too. Someone somewhere on the internet suggested using the long tubular bags that newspapers are sometimes delivered in, and it was a great suggestion -- they're lots less bulky than ziplocs plus they fit more easily into one's (primarily vertical) panniers.

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