Bike Packing, before, during and ........yippee, road trip!

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Packing for vacation is such an expression of individuality.  A warm, friendly reminder that some things in life are still one's own and belong to none else.  
I'm not just referring to the goody's or the goody bags but the method and thought or even pace at which a person packs for a reasonable amount of time away from home. 

I have a better understanding now of the gals I live with and am more accepting when the girls pack so much stuff that I can get tired just looking at all their junk.  That's what it looks like to me and thank goodness they don't pay any attention at all to my stuff. How could they, they're too busy being lost in wondering if they brought everything.  While I get to do other things other than......worry.

Here is a list I have come up with for road trip bike packing.  That is to say, packing a bike and stuff in or on a car for a road trip vacation.
1. Bicycle of choice.  This can be a difficult one for me sometimes because I own several bikes and often I am unfamiliar with the area I'm going to or what other types of activities I might be enjoying.  

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Also, a very important consideration is how is the bike is going to be transported. Inside a vehicle or trailer, no worries.  A good quality hitch rack, alright.  However, there are some rather shoddy, very questionable quality devices meant to be rigged to a vehicle with straps, bungee cords and whatever else might make the bicycle owner feel more comfortable like.duct tape and baling wire. Photo of one of my many goofy thrift store "bargains" affectionately referred to as another "jickey doo da".   

I feel a bit silly about this as Jenson USA regularly has very good sale prices on these products.  Click on of the banner ads if you're looking for a great deal on a quality bike carrying unit for your vehicle.



2.  Food and Water.  I'm currently packing for Arizona in July, easy, bring plenty of water, make lots of pictures. Besides regular water I like coconut water, it is a good way to hydrate without all the synthetic junk of some other products. Also, I read somewhere that putting one pinch of

quality sea salt per gallon of water provides electrolytes. Another product I have had good experience with is Sportea. Food, here is some good quality Trail Mix though a bit pricey it packs a lot of nutritional value per ounce.  Food is another very individual thing and this isn't a nutrition blog. 
     A)  Hydration Pack, one that is made to be worn while cycling, particularly nice when bike has only one water bottle holder and for sheer convenience. Snacks, camera, small repair tools, spare tube, etc. depending on the size of the pack of course.  It's also nice to have an insulating sleeve on the hose just before the bite valve which helps keep that first drink from being too hot.  Both Nashbar and Jenson USA offer excellent sales on these items.  I have provided links somewhere on the right of the page.
     B)  Insulated water bottle full of ice and whatever I may want to put in there, example Sportea that fits in bike bottle cage.

3.  Climate and Season.  For packing clothing and this vacation is Arizona in July, not a lot of bulky clothing required.  Nice, it's not like going ice biking in Colorado in January, eh?  However, I have from experience learned to appreciate long sleeves while riding with a stiff head wind with the sun baking my arms and hands red.  I stopped and put on long sleeves, it also helped my hands some.  Bike gloves and sunscreen, yes!  Got mine this time around.  Helmet and visor, sunglasses, full brim hat or sun hat, two t shirts, two short sleeve button shirts, one light weight long sleeve shirt.  One pair bike shorts with padded liner, two pairs cargo shorts, swim trunks, one pair pants, two pair grundee undee's, one pair of flip flops, one pair closed toe sandals.  One small travel towel and a lightweight rain shell jacket.  
   

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 A)  Roll top ditty sacks.  These aren't totally water proof but do the job. I pack one sack layered with t shirt, shirt and so on.  I put the long sleeve rolled up and placed in bottom of hydration pack.  
     B)  Delta Compact Panniers for putting the ditty bags in.  I really like the quick and easy convenience of these little goody bags referred to as panniers.  I use them as front panniers on my touring bike and rear panniers on mountain bike for every day use and bike travel such as this.  

4.  Camera.  I like the old tried and true Nikon Coolpix 995 with filter kit, wide angle and telephoto lens adapters.  Not so small that I feel clumsy with it, yet compact enough that it isn't cumbersome to pack.  A fun and affordable high quality camera that can be found on ebay very reasonably priced.

Sleeping arrangements have been provided for so I won't discuss tents, sleeping bags, etc. However, I always travel with my very lightweight Guide Gear 40 degree sleeping bag and Thermarest pillow, kind of a Linus thing.  That's right, one of the things I appreciate most about us bike folk, most of us are kids at heart, having fun, exploring, etc. 
Happy Summer Vacationing,
Cheers!