Tag: Gear
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GearAdvent Day 12: Fenders with Benefits
Just like I didn’t think I was a front rack guy, I didn’t think I was a fender guy. But the Kona came with fenders standard, and I am so glad. I run with them on most of the time, and it’s worth it just not to get that skunk stripe up my back if…
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GearAdvent Day 13: Charging
Since I am counting on my phone for a lot of things, including maps, it’s important to prolong battery life between charges. I took a tip here from an online commenter that suggested getting two 10,000 mah power banks instead of one larger one. Two can be charged simultaneously, plus if one breaks the other…
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GearAdvent Day 14: Lights
For lights I chose the Lezyne Macrodrive 1400+ headlight and Strip Drive rear light, which come together in a kit. My darling bought these for me for my birthday. The wheel of time rolls on. I engineered a way to mount the headlight on the front of the Tubus Tara by using a GoPro mount…
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GearAdvent Day 15: Bert Back Rack
This is my back rack. His name is Bert. Bert works hard and doesn’t make a fuss. Bert is a Chromoly Pannier Rack from Tumbleweed Cycles. Bert gets 11 stars. I was able to delay buying a back rack for most of the summer because I could strap my tent to the back of my…
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GearAdvent Day 16: Pompitude
Bike pumps have come a long way since Hans and Franz made their SNL debut in 1987. Men of a certain age, my age, have to make this joke. With apologies, it’s just required. With that out of the way. Ahem. On the road you have to be able to fix a flat. These days…
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GearAdvent Day 17: Racks and Bags!
At this point we have covered most of the basics for day rides, so now let’s get to the fun stuff. When it came to choosing the first rack and bags, I have to say I stumbled over a solution that I had never considered, with my very old fashioned cycling background. A rack on…
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GearAdvent Day 18: Komoot!
Navigation is one of the first things I needed, especially help finding good rides close to home. For Couch-to-Bike-Camping I had to overcome a lot of years working from a chair, and my physical fitness had deteriorated. I found this app called Komoot which seems to be a bit of an underdog here in the…
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GearAdvent Day 19: Tool Transport
My choice of tool bag for 2024 might be controversial: After exhaustive research, and reading many reviews, I settled on the Ziploc 120 Snack. I shopped for tools and tool kits, believe me. There’s all manner of cool, light, bikepacking tool setups out there from OneUp, Bontrager, Crank Bros, Park Tool, Mineral Designs (RIP). It’s…
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GearAdvent Day 20: Phone Mount
One of the things I think it makes sense to buy first, even if you aren’t doing multi-day trips, is a phone mount. Phones work quite well for a bunch of tasks including discovering routes and trails, navigation, and obviously finding services and communicating with other folks while riding. These days they can even substitute…
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GearAdvent Day 21: Pedals and Shoes
Many of the mid-range mass produced bikes these days don’t come with pedals, I gather because pedals and compatible shoes have become a personal choice for a lot of folks. I went pragmatic with this piece of gear as well, cannibalizing pedals I had purchased several years ago for my old Cannondale road racing bike.…
The Pragmatic Cyclist 