RAGBRAI Day Minus Five

Getting things sorted out for another trip across Iowa by bike.  At this point last year (as we prepared for our first time) I was obsessing over what I didn't know.  This time, I'm just obsessing over what I do.

The car... I decided a while ago that I was done doing expensive work on my Civic Hybrid.  It's a 2004 with almost 230k miles on it, and the hybrid batteries are pretty well done in, so maintaining it didn't seem like a great investment anymore.  However, it still does just fine running around town, so replacing it seemed premature (and expensive).  But... a 2000 mile round trip called for a little preventive maintenance.  So, oil changed, air filters replaced, spark plugs replaced.  New tires will be here tomorrow and brakes will be replaced after tires have been rotated and balanced.  This is supposed to be a bike trip!


So the bike...
Finally replaced the chain ring with the broken teeth, new chains (both the one connecting the chain ring to the cassette and the one connecting my pedals to his pedals), new bar tape (both of us), new brake hoods that aren't all gummed up and disgusting, and we tracked down a new cover for the shifter that had broken off more than a year ago.  I appreciate the guys at A-1 Cycling being convenient and willing to take on projects on short notice, but I miss the tandem expertise (if not the superiority complex) of Mt. Airy Bikes.

So with both vehicles more or less road worthy, it must be time to think about packing.  One of the big stressors for me last year was not being able to find a comprehensive packing list on the web.  I'll post mine tomorrow or the next day, but for now I am breaking things out into categories.  Stuff for when we get to camp; clothes to ride in; clothes for after we get off the bike; shower stuff; first aid stuff; stuff for on the bike.  Here's what the "staging area" looks like so far (and there are no clothes set out yet).