Gear, Old and New
With cycle touring and camping you can assemble a basic kit fairly quickly and easily. But then it seems there is always some little or big thing that would make the whole experience better. And of course things wear out and need to be replaced. Some people might be set against blowing money on new doodads. Others, like us, revel in finding some new enhancement for our favourite gear. In earlier days we used to get an enormous kick from visiting MEC or REI or Decathlon and many other retailers. A trip to the REI mothership in Seattle was almost a sacred pilgrimage. In fact in something like 1978 I slept under a bush with my bike in a park in Seattle, to be at their front door as soon as REI opened in the morning. That time I bought a blue and red fanny pack. Forty three years later I still remember standing waiting for the door to open, and treasuring that pack.
As the years have drifted by, we sometimes pass by MEC without going in. I am fond of saying that we have already bought one (or two) of everything they have to sell. That is no doubt a misleading statement, not in least because they probably stock 30,000 items. Also when I looked around to see what we might have that is new for this trip, I had no trouble noting a lot of stuff. It's right in front of our noses. For example, here is the cockpit of Dodie's bike. That's a new, more capable, waterproof phone and mount, beside the display of a newly added electric assist system.
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Or take this view of our electronics kit. There is a computer, two phones, two power banks, an mp3 player, and one of three red flashers that are all new. So actually the greatest part of the kit is new. That's normal for electronics, which is always advancing.
Here is another something new, to us. It's a water purifier. We have grown tired of continually buying and discarding plastic water bottles in Mexico. Lots of people like this "Sawyer" system. We'll see how we get on with it.
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3 years ago
We steered away from SteriPen because of reports of them quitting while out on the trip. We take it yours has held up? How much water are you making for a day?
3 years ago
Finally, it looks like Christmas in this photo! There are new rear panniers, because we left the other ones in Germany. There is a new yellow helmet for Steve, maybe because the old one was worn out, and maybe he just likes yellow! The Icetoolz allen key set has long keys good for reaching tough spots, and the clip keeps the keys super findable and organized. Admittedly, we do have a giant box of other allen keys collected over the years!
And the Blackburn strap on front rack? Could maybe be good as a smaller substitute for the low rider front rack and panniers. Maybe! We bought it just for the hell of it.
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