I would like to make the blog a little bit entertaining for anyone brave or fool-hearty enough to spend their precious time reading it. I would like to make it educational for any prospective bike tourists looking for specific tips, critiques or reviews about our route and/or equipment performance. And lastly, my mom wants to know where I'm at at all times, as any good mother would. Mom, don't worry; your piece will be easily accomplished from the phone - I think.
I spent a couple of hours in the laundromat yesterday getting the sleeping bags spruced up for the journey. I tried to make a somewhat informative post, but it just didn't want to get done. I had to switch out clothes to the dryer, the phone locks the screen, my fat finger hits the wrong pinpoint on the screen, and poof! Message Lost! So once again I'm back to my biggest gripe about smart phones which, as we know, really are pretty powerful handheld computers. Why can't a fairly computer savvy average joe like me simply connect a bluetooth keyboard to his smartphone? It's ridiculous! I would like to think that this may be the last time you read my complaints on the topic, at least on the blog; however, I find it so idiotic an oversight on the developer's part that I am likely to mention it again, although I will try not.
Yesterday in the laundromat, I was attempting to post about a few items of equipment.
Sleeping Bags - North Face polarguard bags rated to about 20° - 30° F. I prefer synthetic to down for most applications because it doesn't mind getting wet quite as much. The performance review was in years ago: you can't do any better than a North Face Cat's Meow bag for 3 season use. It is a bit heavier and bulkier than down, but if it gets wet (as it's likely to do at some point on this trip) it will sun-dry a whole lot faster, and won't loose it's loft. If down gets wet, you're off to the laundromat for a good tumble dry to breaak up the clumps of feathers.
Panniers - KoKi Escape II (rear) and KoKi Rover I (front). What I really like about these panniers is the rubber sole on the bottom. I've had other panniers in the past, and the wear and tear from setting them on the ground has always eventually worn small holes in the bottom. The Koki's have a very durable rubber sole that goes goes up about an inch all the way around, so no corners or seams to wear out by abrasion. What I'm not sure of yet is the mounting. The panniers mount very securely, but stick up about 2"-3" from the top of the rack's platform, rather than mounting flush with the top of the rack, as my previous panniers did. In the past I had one platform that I could load something wide onto, now I have a gap to fill. It will probably take a few days to really figure out how to best carry the tent, sleeping bag, and pad, but I hope that I'll figure out something that is well configured and becomes routine. The other thing that is a plus with the KoKi's is their volume. They are cavernous. I doubt that we'll have them filled to capacity most of the time, and that is a good thing. It would be nice if we can carry a loaf of bread without pulverizing it. And I'm sure that while we're crossing the desert, we'll have them filled up with as much extra water as we can fit. The performance review for the panniers will have to wait a few weeks, until they get some real use, and I get to know them better. They are half the price of Arkel panniers, so that is definitely a plus.
Handlebar Bag - Arkel small handlebar bag. After looking at reviews, I ponied up the dough and went for the Arkel bag. I decided on the small bag, because, if anything, I anticipate having almost too much room in the panniers, yet I still wanted a handlebar bag for the small things that I'll be reaching for a lot. I think that the size is just about right. I don't think that I would want a larger bag even if I thought that I'd be pressed for space. Along with the bag, they included a sample of fabric with a small slice in it, and a tag that says, "Tear Me." Well, I was willing to rest in the security that my manliness is not dependent on being able to conquer each and every challenge that presents itself. In other words, I was not able to tear the fabric even though it had a pre-made start, and I put in a forthright effort. Someone might be able to tear that fabric, and that someone might even be me, but it is very tough stuff indeed! Lots of reviews have been written about this bag, I'll add one here somewhere down the line.
That's enough for now. I had a few witty observations from the laundromat, but they got lost in the shuffle. For now, I'm blaming the phone/keyboard situation! Maybe next time.
Dale
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