Ice cream and Coke?  Is that really what you should eat for proper nutrition for a 16 day race??!

If he ate that all the time, probably not, but sometimes calories are more important than what they come from. Jill Horner ate a lot of candy during her ride. If you're feeling a bit down on energy, some quick sugar can do wonders for the system.

I bought some of these but have not really had a chance to use them yet. I'm planning on giving them a shot during the relatively safe confines of RAGBRAI this summer. I'm not planning on putting a ton of weight in them (5L OR Durable Dry Sacks like JReeves with spare clothes, etc in them), but it will be interesting to see how they fare. Hoping to toss some gravel into the three day ride out to the start to give them a bit of stress.

As I write, I'm thinking that's not a very fun/exciting race from a TV-watching viewpoint, but SUPER fun and exciting from an adventure-of-a-lifetime (and Spot-done watching) viewpoint.

You notice how often we see live start to finish coverage of a 2 hour Marathon or a long TDF stage.

Well, not really. Depends on which way you are going. Just like last year, current winds will slows you to a crawl going north. Fixie Dave sounds like he is waiting for it to settle down.

In my mind he's making a good call. Seems like a good time to take a rest. Looks like he's scored a nice hotel bed for the evening.

I'm a little surprised that we're 3 days into Montana and nobody has mentioned mosquitoes yet!

Last year when I arrived in that region (NoBo), I changed my overall objective from 'not being eaten by a grizzly' to 'not being eaten by mosquitoes!'

Those things are voracious!

I wonder if the relatively cool temps and the rain have kept them under control?

Nick - Thanks, I'll give that a try. The hubs don't have a lot of miles on them, so I'm surprised they are as loud as they are. I did go with the higher tooth count ratchet, so I wonder if that's part of the noise issue.

I have two year old DT Swiss 240 on my Dos Niner (with the pawl upgrade) and King's on my Salsa La Cruz. The DT's are a LOT louder than the King's. My understanding is that DT have gone to a different design with their new hubs and it is apparently a lot quieter than the model I have now.

Two toe straps and about 30 seconds of work with a gas stove, a pair of pliers and a nail.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/zenbiking/4533008046/#in/set-72157623822527872

Didn't have any issues with bottles getting launched.

I think a lot of what to use is going to depend on where you are at and how long you will be out. Heavy tree cover and overcast skies are going to have a big effect on a solar cells output. I have one of the Powerfilm panels, and used it for a couple of years when doing loaded road touring. I kept it spread out on either my front or rear rack and plugged into my GPS. It worked pretty well, but there were days when the sun didn't come out at all, so that killed it's usefulness.

For a shorter trip, you might want to look at one of the high volume lithium packs like this one on Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/New-Trent-iCruiser-IMP1000-Blackberry/dp/B003ZBZ64Q). It could be charged in a convenience store or restaurant along the route.

General consensus is to put your heavier items in the frame bag and low so the weight is centered better. Most people (myself included) tend to put their clothing and lighter stuffable items in the seat bag since it hangs back over the rear wheel. If packed well, things tend to stay put fairly well.

Any recomendations for where to get good bags this time of year (saw revelate had a few key pieces out-of-stock until spring 2012)?   Porcelain Rocket?  Others?       

I can vouch for the quality of the PR bags. Right now my kit is actually a mix of PR and Revelate as I managed to pick up a used sling locally. Email Scott and see what his production backlog is like. It varies some, but he's very responsive.

FWIW, I haven't ridden the GD myself, but it sure seems like pushing a bike on sections is hard enough, let alone trying to deal with the extra weight and the complexity of the BOB and it's hitch. Also, if something were to happen to the BOB skewer, you'd have no easy way of towing the trailer.

I've had the same issue as the OP and your method is exactly what I've started doing, especially when it's cold and I've got the hood cinched up.

You use it comforter style, or do you head straight for the vicodin???

No offense taken. I do shift a lot during the night. I know that I tend to roll inside of the bag itself, rather than rolling it with me. Guess my subconscious needs some sleep training.   I tend to not sleep too soundly when camping for whatever reason. I know this last time I didn't have a pillow or anything under my head so that might have made some difference. Guess I'll have to keep sleeping in it and see if I can get used to it.

The overquilt method in the hammock has worked well, and that's what I normally do now in the hammock. Not sure how to address this when I'm in the bivy. I might try the overquilt method some night to see how it works.

I finished an S24O this morning and as I was thinking through the night's events, I'm beginning to think that I am just not getting along well with my mummy bag. I've used it a number of times over the last two years and each time I come back a bit frustrated. I tend to be a stomach sleeper, and I usually flip from side to side throughout the night. I am getting a bit tangled in the bag, especially if it's zipped all the way up. Has anyone else had this issue? If so, are you just dealing with it, or did you change bags or try something else?

I haven't used any of their tires, but I can tell you that they had a booth with a number of their tires on display at QBP's Frostbike vendor show this year. They also had an inexpensive 4.0" tire that was somewhere between a Nate and a Husker Du in terms of block size and number.

I'm personally a big fan of wool. It doesn't hold body odors like synthetics and it's still somewhat warm even when it gets wet. Available in a number of weights from various mfgs like Ibex, Icebreaker, smartwool and others. Over the past few years I've picked up some heavy to mid to lightweight long sleeve baselayers on sale at various places locally and over the internet.  I also have one short sleeve wool t-shirt and I want to pick up a one or two more for this summer.

The latest version of Google Maps for Android also lets you pre-cache map areas of your chosing.

Knowing more about your bike and usage would help. The generally accepted best practice is to keep all of the heavy stuff off of your back and hang it off the bike frame somewhere, preferably low enough to not cause the bike to be top heavy, but not so low that it interferes with maneuverability.

That said, if you can find a used Ergon BC3, it has a fairly high capacity and is based around a frame that transfers the weight to your hips rather than your shoulders.

Steve

My pinky fingers and ring fingers are still slightly numb, and I attribute a lot of that to the weight on my shoulders. 

Jerry,

Some completely unsolicited advice. Apologies in advance if you have looked into this.

I had similar issues after TransWisconsin in 2010, only it was my entire hand and I was unable to grip anything solidly unless I was looking at it. I had good luck eliminating the issues with visits to a local sports massage therapist and an acupuncturist. If you still are having numbness issues, I'd get them looked at. Relief might be closer than you think. FWIW, your numbness is due to irritation of the ulnar nerve, which can get irritated fairly easily as it runs around the inside of the elbow joint.

Steve