BRAN Gravel: Gear Choices - Part 1

Earlier this week I went over the bicycle choice for the Bicycle Ride Across Nebraska's gravel route. BRAN gravel will be a unique experience and the bike one chooses can be a critical part in enjoyment level of this ride. In case you missed that post you can go back and read it by clicking HERE. 

This post will be covering choices in gear besides the bicycle for this ride. Things like jerseys, shorts, outerwear, casual wear, nutritional supplements, and tent/camping gear. BRAN is a tenting ride, no motels in these small villages! So, a bit about camping gear is also included in this post. 

In fact, let's kick things off with the home for the week. My tent was chosen for a few reasons. One, it isn't too big. Yes.....that's intentional. Maybe you've heard the saying that a bigger purse, or a bigger garage, just means you have more junk inside of it. Smaller things force intentional choices, and really, you'd be surprised how little you can get by on. Plus, you don't have to worry about so many things needing packed, and where they get packed. I know I've come home, unpacked, and found stuff I never used and forgot I was toting around! 

Sierra Designs Full Moon 2

Camping: For a tent I wanted something light, easily set up and taken down, and packable. This is exactly what backpacking tents do well. Plus you can get several different sizes and with several different price points. 

I wasn't needing to save every ounce here, because our gear is getting toted by a touring service from place to place. So, ultra-lightweight tents were unnecessary. This is also very good because those tents cost an arm and a leg! 

I ended up with a two-person Sierra Designs Full Moon 2. Two person? Yes. My advice is to always buy a tent made for one more person than you need. This extra room will be very much appreciated, trust me! The Full Moon 2 isn't the lightest tent, but it is a solid choice. I have an older one of these and it did really well in wet weather, wind, and in every other way. It was easily set up and taken down. This new one will be even better, I am sure. 

So......why not use the old one? Great question. I lost the poles somehow that hold it up, so..... Yeah. A bit embarrassing!  

Now with a bike packing tent you should also use a ground cloth. You can buy one, but a great hack which is cheap, or free, is to find a partial sheet of Tyvek insulation wrap. (Or a similar material). This stuff is like a lightweight, thin tarp. It is very tough, and will not let moisture pass through to the floor of your tent. 

Thermarest pad

I also bought a brand new Thermarest Basecamp sleeping pad. I have an ancient one from the early 1990's which is getting a bit long in the tooth. But these things are the bomb for sleeping in a tent short of carrying a heavy inflatable mattress. Thermarest pads keep you insulated from the ground, which is important so you won't get hypothermic from heat loss to the ground. 

I already have a very lightweight sleeping bag which is all I need to stay warm at night down into the 40's, if it even gets that cold this year. And even if it does, I can wear some clothes to bed to insulate myself more. 

Finally, a little inflatable pillow is going along to cushion my head. Besides this, I won't need anything camping specific. All meals will be purchased or provided so no cooking to be done on this trip! 

One could go ultra-lightweight with their camping set up, but since - again - gear is being carted for us, I see no need to go spend the kind of money it would take to get lightweight, competent gear. But you do you. Maybe you'll use ultra-light stuff for other trips. Then I can understand the need there. 

One more word on tents: A full rain fly is nice if we get a wind driven rain storm. So, this is something to think about when buying a tent. 

Clothing: With no laundry service on route you can do one of two things. One- Pack seven days of stuff. This isn't a bad idea, but it is a LOT to pack for. Two: Pack for three days, wash your kit when you take a shower, and hang it out to dry on your tent fly ropes. (Or suitable hanging situation)  

I'm going with option two. Then I will have a pair or two of shorts, a few t-shirts, socks for the week, and a pair of sweat pants for cooler evening in the tent. I'll bring a light jacket or hoodie, and some casual shoes. I love the stuff Twin Six does for riding wear and casual wear. Check them out HERE. 

I use clipless pedals, so I'll have the cycling shoes, a helmet, jerseys, bibs, and riding shorts. Or I may just bring inserts and shorts. Probably the latter.  I like to wear a bandana on my head to keep sweat out of my eyes and protect my head from flying insects which could get into the vents of a helmet. Generally speaking one would also want to consider sunglasses, but in my case I haven't been yet able to afford prescription eyewear. A great sunglasses brand which won't break the bank is Tifosi Optics. 

Shoes are kind of a big deal, so I will spend a little more time on this. I would strongly suggest your carbon fiber soled racing shoes stay home. Unless you cannot get anything else, then yeah. But suffering on boards with no flex will fatigue your feet, calves, and shins if you have to do much off the bike stuff. Getting a shoe with a little flex is something to consider here, and definitely think about some shoes comfortable enough to walk around in. 

You'll be spending the better part of seven days in those shoes, and if you cannot wear your super-stiff, super-racy shoes for more casual riding because they make you hurt, then this ride will be a lot less fun. 

Saddles are another super important subject when it comes to longer rides. Everyone is different and so my choices won't reflect what works for many. Here's a few things to think about though. 

- Proper bike fit has to be done before any saddle will work properly. A great saddle can be a hurtful thing if your bike fit is poor. Check with a local bike shop or bike fitting professional if you need assistance here.

- Once your saddle height and fore/aft positioning is squared away, then you should determine your sit bone width. Most quality saddles are designed with certain sit bone measurements in mind. Wilderness Trail Bikes and Ergon have online saddle width calculators so you may want to search those out and see where your sit bones measure out for reference in the future. 

-It is a journey. There is no "easy button" when it comes to finding a perfect saddle, but if you have the fit dialed, and you know you sit bone width and have chosen a saddle width accordingly, that's half the battle won. And there is one more important thing to do when seeing if a saddle will work......

- Use a chamois creme and quality shorts with a pad insert. Big, BIG game changer here.  Your interface with a saddle is two sided. The saddle and the garment that comes in contact with that saddle. Chamois creme is the secret to keeping those shorts slipping and sliding against your body where it needs to be doing that. Better this than a hot spot, chafing, and saddle sores. Check out Chamois Butt'r for a great solution here. 

See Guitar Ted's "Top Ten Recommendos"  for more on what works for him. 

That's a long enough post for this time. I'll post up again this weekend with anything I'm missing here. Got questions? Hit me up in the comments or email me at g.ted.productions@gmail.com.