When preparing for this trip of a lifetime I spent hours and hours going over many lists packing for a round-the-world trip. From books written by cycle tourists to websites and even spreadsheets, people had put together themselves and sent me.
In the end, I took more than I needed and wished I made decisions on the kit before I went. In this blog, I hope to convey a few thoughts on what problems you need to account for and ones you can solve on the way without the need to take everything with you! However, if you would just like the full kit list you can find it here.
We Carry our Fears with Us
I was an assistant for the Silk Road Mountain Race at checkpoint 3 when I was talking to one of the competitors, Doug Dunlop, about the amount he was carrying and he returned with the line ‘We carry our fears with us.’ Doug was a winter cycling specialist and used to cycling in Canadian winters. Whilst, Kyrgyzstan can get cold even in summer, it wasn’t that bad.
The line ‘we carry our fears with us’ got me thinking about how I packed for my World trip. I was trying to think about everything which could go wrong. From my bottom bracket breaking to dealing with a potentially chilly -20C in the Steppe of Uzbekistan.
Yes, I set off with a bottom bracket tool, a heavy one at that, and a spare bottom bracket. The probability of a complete bottom bracket failure, to the point where it needs immediate replacement, is very rare and I did not need this piece of kit. Plus, people will give you a lift if necessary to the nearest town. A lesson I learnt in Turkey when my inner tube and spare failed.
With a little more thought it would have been better to rationalise my fears, put a probability against them and then decide if I needed to carry the extra kit. This would be known as a good old risk assessment! Ah, back to the paperwork we so try to avoid. I guess there is a good reason for it. Whilst I am not advocating we all start completing a full risk assessment before our trips, we could use some of the thinking behind them to alleviate our fears and reduce the amount we carry.
Could we Alleviate our Problem en Route?
The quick answer is yes. In a more globalised World, whether that is for better or worse, it is possible to get parcels sent. Either spare parts or cold weather gear. However, it is often possible to get a lot of spare parts and gear in the countries you need them.
Even in Tajikistan, you can get good quality cold-weather gear or even get it for free from other travellers who no longer need it. The Green House Hostel in Dushanbe has a collection of items which have been left by people. Countries which have certain weather conditions will often have shops where you can get the gear you need to handle it.
Plus, in today’s social media age customer service teams of companies will bend over backwards to help a traveller with any equipment which broke. No one wants to see their products causing issues on social media! Some people will host cyclists from around the World, who will happily receive a parcel for you so you can plan and get equipment delivered.
Reducing the Amount we Carry
When packing for a round-the-world trip you are almost guaranteed to take a bit too much with you.
After a few months of travel, there is a method to help reduce what we carry. It is a similar technique to that of The Minimalists. Find a good clean surface and lay everything you have out. Then split it into three sections, the first section is used regularly, the second are items used once and the third are items which have never been used.
The third group is sent home; unless you are 100% sure that item will be needed. The first is kept for obvious reasons. The second is more troublesome but assessing how often that issue is likely to occur (similar to the ‘risk assessment’ idea from above) can push you to get rid of the items.
Is it Time for an Upgrade?
I spoke about this in a previous blog but you don’t want to make any major changes to kit on your travels so it is best to do all the upgrades you can before. Especially, true if your kit is really old, like mine was!
One area where it might be worth looking at upgrades is electronics. You don’t want to be carrying large amounts of chargers with you. Personally, I switched everything I could to USB-C and bought a suitable plug which could deliver the power output my laptop required (60W). Fewer cables and chargers make for an easier time.
Feeling a Little Lopsided?
Lastly, the balance of your bike is important. No one wants to be dealing with a pull to the left or right for a long-distance trip. There are a couple of ways to do this. The easiest is to just throw things in each pannier/fork bag until they are roughly equal. However, you could find cooking equipment with spare underwear!
The alternative is to spreadsheet it to death! This is my preferred method. Weigh every item and then you can move items around until you get the panniers/fork bags balanced. The advantage is being able to group certain items.
If you want to see my full kit list and a bit of explanation you can find my list here.
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