What I Brought With Me

I used a full-face helmet with a plastic visor.  My motorcycle boots were made of some sort of flexible but waterproof plastic that sealed with Velcro.  My motorcycle jacket and motorcycle pants were both made of which have some artificial fiber and had impact-absorbing armor in the joints.  They are made of a heavy nylon mesh material that allows air to flow through while riding, to keep you cool in hot climates, a decided improvement over the leather I wore in my youth.  Both come with a removable inner liner to prevent the air flow from reaching your skin in cooler climates.  I brought these liners, but ended up using my external rain gear instead in such conditions.  Thus: A rain jacket and rain pants that I can put on over my clothes, without taking my boots off, which also function as windbreakers.  I kept these on the top of my storage bag so I could put them on quickly when necessary.  I brought two pairs of gloves; lightweight for most of the time, which were not waterproof, and a heavy pair for the cold that supposedly were.  When riding, I used a type of specialized underwear called “Moto-Skivvies” that have padding built in, and felt a bit like wearing a diaper.  I took them off as soon as I’m done riding for the day and put on ordinary underwear.  I do have to credit them, along with the better seat on the NT, with the fact that I didn’t develop saddle sores on this trip, like I did on the RS in 2013.  I brought three pairs.

Motorcycle Clothes.

I brought only one shirt that I rode with, and one pair of socks.  I did not wash them very regularly, and tried to keep another layer between them and the outside world most of the time.  I had three other pairs of socks, shirts, underwear, and a pair of blue jeans, but I only put these on after I took a shower, which I did in the afternoon when I check into the motel.  I could have washed everything more often than I did (most motels have laundry facilities of some sort), but that didn’t happen regularly.  I had a pair of sneakers that I change into after riding.  When I needed a jacket to go outside after a ride, I use the liner of the motorcycle jacket; it looked a little strange but it is supposed to be used that way.  I also brought a pair of thermal underwear and heavy wool socks, just in case it snows. (You never know!)

First, I brought a laptop that I wrote my blog with, and a bunch of accessories.  These include not only the power supply (plug in) and a USB wireless mouse, but also an extension cord with three outlets (this comes in handy in motel rooms where there is only one available outlet) and several other power charging cords.   Second, the smart phone. This is the single greatest thing I did not have back in 1980.  Not only does it give navigation information even when no cell phone service is available (you can’t zoom in on the maps well in this case but you can see what road you are on), but it is terrific for finding motels in the town you are going to and then calling them to see if they have rooms available.  You can also search for museums (and, I suppose, gas stations, restaurants, and so on) this way, all in Google Maps.  I also use it to text my wife when I stop riding for the day, when 3G or 4G is available, to let her know I’ve survived another round. And, of course, it has a digital camera; I moved the pictures I took each day to a distinct file on the laptop via a cable. Third, I have a device called “InReach” that I bought at REI for about $300, and pay about $30/month for the service contract.   Physically looks like a small walkie-talkie, but you can’t talk over it.  It has a GPS receiver, and every ten minutes it sends a burst of data via the globally-available Iridium constellation of satellites to Delorme central in Maine, where it can be accessed via the internet.  I put it near the top of my bag, so it always has access to the sky.  Karen and other emergency contacts can then view the map with the points on it, and see that I’m moving during the day, versus being in a ditch somewhere.  It supports limited text messages via a non-user-friendly interface for emergencies, and it also has a “panic button” that I can push if I crash in the middle of nowhere and need help.  I would turn it off and recharge it every evening.  Truly great.

Electronics.

I did bring a backpacking-style tent and a separate ground cloth.  I also brought a sleeping bag, an air mattress, a small propane stove, and a few freeze-dried meals.  All of this was for backup; I feel like I paid my dues in this respect back in 1979 and 1980, and my plan was to sleep in hotels or motels more or less every night. Shortly after I started – the second day, I think – I knew I had to get rid of some stuff.  I kept the tent and sleeping bag, but got rid of everything else.  I figured that if I got into a position where I needed to use the tent, then the comfort of an air mattress would be a secondary concern.  

Camping Equipment.

I brought a tubeless tire repair kit, a pressure gauge, tire tread depth gauge, and foot pump.  I also brought a few basic tools including screwdrivers, Allen wrenches, a crescent wrench, and vice grips.  I’m not sure why; habit, I guess.  With modern motorcycles, if something went so wrong that I couldn’t drive it to a garage, I’m not sure how these tools would help me.  I did buy and bring a copy of the shop manual for the cycle with me, in case I got to a garage that didn’t have one for this particular model and also no high-speed internet connection.

Some other tool-like items including duct tape, electrical tape, thin nylon cord, a small LED flashlight, and a Swiss Army knife.  All of these came in handy at one time or another.

Tools.

A shaving kit with shaving cream and razors (I want to stay looking civilized in case I get into trouble), toothpaste and toothbrush, a few medications including Advil, some cotton swabs, a comb (I carry this in my shirt pocket so I can comb my hair after taking off my helmet and before interacting with other people), small scissors, and, importantly, sunscreen that I put on my face every morning.  It turns out that some UV penetrates the plastic of helmet visors.

I had a zippered notebook that contained paper copies of my itinerary and maps of the days ahead with notes on stuff to see, etc.  I also used this to carry pamphlets or other documents I pick up on the way.  I also have a 100-page spiral bound notebook that I used for all sorts of things.  I was mostly planning on using it to help me draft my blogs, but I also found it handy for writing down the names and addresses of the hotels I have booked.  I found that I sometimes ended up at my destination but didn’t remember which hotel I booked a room in.  And of course a pen; even in 2015, I didn’t go anywhere without one.

Personal.

Miscellaneous.

I had a pair of prescription sunglasses that were a godsend many times; I carried them in a hard case in my left motorcycle pants pocket while riding, for easy switching.  I had an REI-bought first aid kit.  I had mosquito repellant.  I had a foldable sun hat.  I also bought one of those personal mosquito nets you can put over your head at REI, based on the stories I had heard of northern flying insects in summer.  I brought a pair of binoculars, but they were heavy and I only used them a couple of times.  I also had a Canon camera in addition to the one on my smart phone, but mostly I found that the pictures I took with it were not noticeably better, but the file size was considerably larger.  When it got wet in a thunderstorm in the Everglades and was ruined, I did not replace it.  I didn’t miss it.  I always carried two bottles of water with me (not REI stuff, just 7-11 bottles that I refill with tap water.)  Getting dehydrated on a motorcycle can be pretty scary.