24 days and change…

RAGBRAI 2013 will be starting really soon now. Okay, it’s 24 days and change from now, but I really do need to get cracking. Cracking on what you ask?
I’ve still got some riding to do. This week I’m trying for 130 miles, next week it’s 150, and then…ouch, 175. I’m not sure I’ll actually get to those numbers, but I am over the number of miles I’ve set myself as a goal for the entire run up to RAGBRAI. I think my low end was 1475 miles leading up to RAGBRAI and I’ve ridden 1600+ since I started tracking back in mid-March.
My bike? Actually I’m pretty good there. I’ve recabled my Friday and put on new brake levers. The rest is really just cleaning and lubing and frankly, there’s not a lot to do there either. Thank goodness Bike Friday’s are darn near bulletproof.
Clothing? Nah. I’ve discovered that for long rides one needs to be really comfortable and I’ve got plenty of comfortable riding clothing. I don’t wear cycling specific clothing, but I do like long sleeves to keep the sun off, longer shorts or knickers – same idea, and this is important, everything must breath and dry quickly. If I cycled in colder climes I’d probably go with wool which doesn’t exactly dry quickly but does breath and retain heat. I don’t want to retain heat. I want cool. I’ve found that there are any number of synthetics that do a pretty good job. They do stink up after a while, but hey, after a few miles in the hot sun no one notices.
What then? Shopping for stuff…
The stuff I need is the stuff that makes life just a wee bit more tolerable on the road. Think a bit of toilet paper ‘just in case the Kybo is empty.’ Think wipes for the glasses because nothing you carry is giong to be dry or clean within a day. Think salves and balms and Band-Aids for the odd aches and scrapes. Think your favorite soap because it’s really nice to clean at the end of the day. Really, really nice.
Basically I’ve got to do a wee bit of shopping and then pack. I’ve found it’s a really good idea to pack up early, give it a couple of days, and then see what’s missing. Inevitably, even if I’ve used a list, something is not there – batteries for the fan, whatever. Since I’m not carrying my own gear it’s okay to have a bit too much, as long as it all fits and isn’t overly heavy (so the Porkers can lift it into the trucks without too much work – they’ve a lot to do in little time every day – bless ’em).
And yes, it’s a great idea to re-up those prescriptions…something I think I should do soon. Thanks for reminding me. I did pick up my vitamins already (I’m multi-vitamin sort and don’t have bottles and bottles of pills and potions).
Perhaps I’ll post a list later, mostly in case I do this again…which is, of course, quite possible.
Aloha!