Evergreening – Page 13

What to Bring When You Ride Across America

We had a lot of people write to us asking what Brad took when he rode across the country last month. It turns out that a lot of our riders are serious long distance randonneurs and bike-packers, two groups who are constantly scrutinizing every bit of food, clothing and equipment they haul on their adventures. So we asked Brad to give us the scoop on what he took, when he raced the Trans-Am Bike Race.

He said:

For a ride like this that takes in so many climate zones over such a long period of time, it is almost impossible to prepare correctly. I think the eternal question is what to bring. What do you need and what can you leave behind. I went with what I felt comfortable with having and knowing that, if something went wrong, I could fix it, or take care of it. There was the question of how often I would use the things I brought. If I didn’t foresee using them in the space of 24 hours did I really need them? I thought about that and decided having some little extra things would go a long way.

Looking at it now, with 4400 miles behind me, I can see what I could have done without, but I am totally happy with what I went with, too.

I didn’t bring much cold weather gear and got through two mornings 30s by layering up and riding until the sun warmed me. Cold nights I would do the same for sleeping. There were a lot of hot and sunny days, so sun coverage became more important overall than warmth, lots of sun screen and sun sleeves. I knew trying to ride with a killer sunburn would just be miserable.

I worked off a Garmin GPS, but having the maps to cross reference was great. Being able to see what is ahead of you for services gave me nice peace of mind, except when that one store was closed or, even worse, not there anymore.

Getting back to the question of what to bring though, here is the detail on what I packed:

2- Sea-to-Summit 5 liter dry bags.

1- Revelate Designs Viscacha saddle bag

1- Ortlieb handlebar bag

In one of the Sea-to-Summit bags I packed sleeping gear: Nimo bivy, Nimo Astro Insulated Lite Pad, Sea-to-Summit pillow, merino wool sleeping liner.

In the other Sea-to-Summit, I packed odd bits: two spare tubes, patch kit, brake pads, chain quick links, wire connectors, shrink tubing, small first aid kit, soap, baby oil, tent spikes and repair kit, cables for charging, spare batteries, and zip ties.

In the Viscacha Saddle Bag I packed clothing: 3 pair socks from the Athletic and Rapha, two kits, Rapha rain jacket, Rapha brevet vest, Rapha long sleeve brevet jersey, Ibex long sleeve merino wool base layer, Ibex wool cap, Drifters bandana, 1 t-shirt, 1 pair running shorts, 1 cap, 1 pack towel, 1 tube, 1 toe strap, a spare tire that i gave away, and my Spot tracker.

In the Ortlieb handlebar bag, I packed the stuff I wanted instant access to: snacks! maps, sun screen, sun sleeves, camera and charger, multi tool, chain breaker, chain lube, knife, spork, full finger gloves that I lost trying to dry them off from the humidity in Missouri, tooth paste and tooth brush, a tube, a pen, a notebook, matches, external battery charger and wires, and some pennies I found.

Of course, the bike is worth mentioning. I rode a Seven Cycles Evergreen SL with a SRAM Red 22 group, Velocity Aileron rims, Son 28 generator hub front and Velocity hub rear, 700×28 Ruffy Tuffy tires, Super Nova E3 front and rear lights, Brooks Cambium saddle, Thomson stem and post, FSA bars, Garmin 1000, Time ATAC pedals, 3 King Cages and water bottles.

Ken’s Evergreen SL

This is Ken’s Evergreen SL, another great build from Bob at Wheel Werks in Crystal Lake, IL. It’s hard to tell how well the bike came out, because Ken more or less immediately put it through hell (see his comment below), and he sent pictures with it still covered in mud from one of the more intense editions of the Dirty Kanza in recent memory. We love it.

Ken says:

The bike is great, couldn’t be happier. Two days after I picked it up I did a 300k and if performed perfectly in terms of fit and performance. Also did Dirty Kanza 200 a few weeks later, same thing (rider, not so good…19hrs, 59 minutes).

See more of Ken’s photos here.

Outdoors Inc. – Evergreening the Arkansas Dirt

Our good friends at Outdoors, Inc. have been supporters of Seven for a long time, including us in their annual cyclocross race and riding our bikes on many of their personal adventures. This week, we got a note from Joel, their buyer and manager, and also, as you’ll see below, a sharp photographer.

Good morning Seven,

I am sure you get a ton of these type emails but thought I would add to them. I recently moved to Arkansas right across the River from Memphis, and finally got to bring the Evergreen home with me for the weekend. This bike was so much fun. From deep gravel to deep dirt to crossing some drainage ditches, it rolled on through. At one point I was actually in a field with soybeans three feet up on both sides of me.

Thanks so much for working with us. We love being a Seven dealer. Have a good one.

Joel @ Outdoors Inc.

On the Road – Yorkshire and the Isle of Man

It can be arduous, getting away from the shop here in Massachusetts, extricating ourselves from bike building, to the sorts of far flung locales that serve up riding adventure. The village of Clapham in Yorkshire, just outside Settle, is a place we never imagined going to. In fact, we didn’t know it existed, but a few hours from the plane in Manchester we found a small inn, nestled in seemingly limitless green fields.

The Yorkshire Dales offer up these incredible, exposed landscapes, every rise letting you look off to the horizon, all the roads hemmed in by high hedges or stone walls. You come across very few people, but the lush greenery and ever present sheep keep the place feeling very alive.

A Dale is a valley, so you could forgive us for hoping the landscape would be more forgiving than it actually is. Miles and miles of short, sharp climbs on unimproved roads and cattle track make for grueling adventure, but ultimately, it’s so beautiful there, you just don’t care.

After a few days of wandering the Dales, we made our way to Heysham, and the ferry to the Isle of Man. The Irish Sea boiled with windy white caps, and we didn’t hold out much hope for holding down our modest breakfast, but we came through with the help of some strange, herbal remedy and mounted our bikes on the other side.

We had been spoiled for weather so far, the notorious English rain holding back in favor of sunshine, but our time on the Isle restored meteorological balance. We’d opted to camp instead of luxuriating at in inn, so we spent the last of this trip wet through. Fortunately, we snuck in a warm camp meal before the heavens opened.

It was worth it. We’ll be warm again one day. And of all the places we’ve ridden, New Zealand, Sedona, and more, the rolling, roiling gravel and grass paths of Yorkshire maybe captured our hearts the most. We could ride here forever and not tire of the views.

2015 Dusk to Dawn Ride

June’s Dusk to Dawn Ride was another inaugural event for Overland Base Camp, the more organized incarnation of our own Rob V‘s obsession with dirt and mixed-terrain riding. D2D indulges Rob’s penchant for late night adventures, serving up 85 miles of crazy trail sections linked by pavement. A bonfire at the turnaround gave riders an opportunity to refuel.

This style of riding demands a lot (including a SPOT tracker and enough battery to power lights through most of a night on the trail), not just physically, but also mentally. All your concentration is riveted on a patch of light ahead of your front tire, and staying upright depends on reading the line quickly.

This edition of D2D was plagued by downpours, but all the riders finished safely and happily, if not completely exhausted.

Some photos below: