What's in YOUR bike bag?
<img width="160" height="99" align="left" src="http://www.baltimorespokes.org/images/articles/2005111408462188_1.gif" alt="">-Rita Zeidner on the Potomac Pedalers Touring Club list serve
Here, in response to popular request and in no particular order, a summary.
* * * * * * * *
Peter at minkhollow
Absolute minimum? A cell phone, to call my wife and ask her nicely to come out and pick me up. If I'm riding way out in the country, I stick with my Verizon phone, since they have more coverage, and it has an analog mode. (Don't leave it on -- analog mode runs the battery down quickly.)
If I need to be more independent:
- Small (but powerful) pump that can actually pump up a tire in a reasonable amount of time - Spare tube - Tire levers - All-in-one tool with hex wrenches, screwdrivers, and a chain tool.- Piece of old tire casing to use as a boot in case of major tire failure
I carry more than that, but those are the things I feel I need.
* * * * * * * *
Neal Malloy
Well, since I have non-standard 650 wheels, I carry two tubes (since finding one to borrow after two failures is not likely) and a patch kit. After a broken chain incident I have a chain tool and a quickfix link. I always carry a couple of small half dollar size chunks of old tire which is lot more relaible boot material for tire failures than dollar bills.
* * * * * * * *
Bruce Goldberg
Wow, I never thought about the piece of tire casing. I will add that before riding tomorrow. I always carry two spare tubes in case I run through glass or something else that gets both tires. I also have a tweezer which can be very useful for pulling a small piece of wire or glass out of the tire that might be difficult to grasp otherwise.
* * * * * * * *
Dan Lehman
I have a plastic bag (small, cereal innards) protecting:
spoke wrenches; hex wrenches; pen knife; golf pencil; tube w/some ducTap around it; also: 2 tire levers (not the full set of 3! :-), spare tube (2 might be better), patch kit, [note to self: buy a few new ones, NOW!]
--and inside the patch kit I carry some strips of Tyvek paper (think: Fed.Express envelope material) for making a boot (maybe folded over three times (the stuff is quite touch, thin, light)--, film capsules with: a few thin strong cords; plastic baggies And a REAL(tm) pump--not one of those decorator ones.
* * * * * * * *
[Editorial Note: I think this also came from DL; apologies if wrongly attributed:]
Oh, my: "weight savings"?? What are you saving it for --you can't take it with you. This is a t o u r i n g club, and whatever grams saved by spending more $$ on the latest carbon-fibre geewhizmo to advance your arrival to the parking lot just don't add up, IMHO)
Hmmm, no cue-sheet holder (let someonElse lead), Lance doesn't, afterall; well, maybe a binder clip, if they come in aero Ti,but then there's that paper drag (memo to self: offer origami for aerodynamic cue sheets workshop at Annual Meeting). Drill holes in water bottles for big weight savings (and save time looking for potties, too--just blow by those reSTops). But first one back to the car needs keys, and, dang, those things weigh tons of grams. Carry just one key. Make sure it's the RIGHT one.
Then there are these new-fangled wheels with a deficiency of spokes, but apparenty they are great conversation pieces. Trouble with them is when a spoke breaks, ... . Well, it makes it easier to find which one, but the bike's likely unrideable.
* * * * * * * *
Jim Steenhagen
I also carry a $1 schraeder valve adapter for more flexibility (gas station pump or a bit of extra stem length to pump a standard tube in my semi-aero wheel). I've given up on CO2 since one cartridge isn't always enough and two weigh more than carrying a mini-pump. I go back forth over weight savings from ultra-light thin tubes and mini-mini pumps vs. the time lost fixing flats. What's the consensus?
* * * * * * * *
Sigrid Haine [Editorial Note: Hale to the Chief]:
Having had my share of road rash, I always carry a little bottle of hand sanitizer, bandaids, antibiotic ointment, and a couple of bandages, as well as some Kleenex. I was very glad of it when I decided to try Lance's 100 rpm cadence once on the C&O Canal, which provided some good yucks to the ER staff. I have also dressed my share of skinned knees on others.
PLEASE also carry ID and your health insurance card!!
-------------
Leslie Tierstein offered up an article:
<a href="http://home.earthlink.net/~lmtierstein/stories/tools.htm">http://home.earthlink.net/~lmtierstein/stories/tools.htm</a>;
[EDITORIAL NOTE: I noticed that someone profiled in the above article carries a