Bonneville America Forums Forums Rider Safety Forums Riding Technique Wadda you pack for an epic distance ride?

I'm planning an epic distance [that is to say "epic distance" for me as others here are real road warriors ) (4200+ round trip miles) to the California coast, LVNV & Sedona (to the SWTF rally) for mid May to early June and I'm in the process of gearing up for the ride.

So...I thought I'd ask what all would consider "essential" gear to pack along (that is to say outside of the obvious stuff....rain gear, protective jacket/pants & other, tools & etc.)?

Any/all comments & recommendations are appreciated!

Two of the unusual things I pack is a small bunk of "ratcheting tie straps", the little plastic ones, and five or six middle sized hose clamps, the old fashioned band type, which can be fitted together making any sized band. Together, these two things can temporarily repair many things on the road.

Gallon size zip lock bag to put all reciepts in.

1.Tool kit;2.Tire repair kit;3.extra plug;4.Pint of brandy.
Have a great ride.

Baby wipes.

Gold Bond or Monkey Butt powder

Rich, Dennis....I'm pretty well covered on tools & keep about a dozen zip-ties in my kit along with some electrical tape and spare fuses & an extra clutch cable. But the hose clamps, extra spark plug and tire repair kit are great adds!

Mike...I got the zip-lock bag thing covered in my camp possibles kit.....

Matt .....baby wipes????

Dave....definately! I even invested in some wicking (like bicycling) shorts & both shearling & beaded seat covers to fend off the dreaded monkey butt. I tried Rich's cut-off sweats trick too & seemd to work okay....

Thanks for all the tips guys & please keep em going.

Baby Wipes are good for wiping yourself down (as in you get sweaty and grimy) when you don't have the option of a shower. We had some troops in the middle east our office sent supplies to, and beside candy, baby wipes were the most requested item.

...righto....I shoulda figgered that out!

OH! forgot to add I carry a bit of scotch with me too.....a draft of Belvenie at camp does much to cheer a tired soul..

8/10/12/13 MM sockets and keys and small plyers, credit card, phone and charger set up on battery, 1 plug, 1 extra fuse each size, zip ties, tape, small flashlight (pen light or something)lighter, few small pieces of shrink tubing, D-tool, extra oil cap. Nice thing is if you are out with a few riders everyone can carry something a little different so that you cover most if not all the bases and not have to individually carry a ton of stuff. Very worst case, small tent and credit card :-)

Mike B....since this is for the most part a solo adventure...
I got the phone charger wired into the aux circuit & watertite handlebar mount case set up on BB last weekend....& have the tent & sleeping bag/pad covered in my camping kit. Since my camp stove is multi fuel I'll also have an extra 32 oz. of gasoline in my saddlebag.

My tool kit has a full complement of the necessary tools (incld torque wrench & blue locktite, fuses, & misc.) to do just about any road maintenance/repair that may be required, save for the D-tool (I'll add that too ) & an extra oil cap (don't have one on the spares shelf tho but can't imagine losing it unless someone wants to try and steal the thing....in which case I'll have a .45 deterent that's very convincing)

Rich.....yep it works fine & I'm not surprised.....preventing the dreaded monkey butt is all about wicking moisture away & ventilation afterall

Personally I figger you're a pretty sharp guy....I mean who woulda thunk to put an elevator in their house? (and a finely crafted piece of work at that too!)

I kinda hate listening to a trip in the making like this. Just makes me wanta go along. And that's true of EVERY trip I hear of on here! Adventure, new scenery, strange food, and all on a motorcycle! What could be better?

After meeting Stacka at last year's Midwest rally I got to thinkin that I ain't getting any younger & if I wanna travel now is the time to do it.....Well, that & I really gotta go see my Dad & his 80th Birthday & hate flying. And hence all the planning/ reservations & gear questions here.

In any event I plan to meet up with the BA mems for the SWTF on my way back home & that should be really too.....

Tire repair kit is a good idea. Sun Screen, drink holder, stay hydrated. Clothing items for sun and weather. Other than that whatever you would take in a car. Point it west and sit there.

Oh! throttle lock. If you don't have one that one Eddie sells for 20 bucks works great.

Ron, I got the throttle boss thang covered. Picked up a small Kuryakyn boss before the midwest rally last year & like it pretty well. Sunscreen is already in the "tool bag"/ fork mounted catch-all. Also got a drink holder gifted to me by a fellow biker bud before the Bikers for Babies ride last year....

Still waitin for the repair kit to show up from BikeBandit...

Ya know....the longer this thread gets I just may be better off trailering (GOD FORBID!!!! ) my BA to the coast....

Well, it seems that (thanks to everyone's recommendations here ) I have got alot of the stuff either, assembled & ready to go, or am waiting for it to be delivered from vendors.

Got all my reservatons booked for motels/camp sites on my itinerary.....

Now just waiting for Spring to arrive.....

I plan to load up Black Beauty when things warm up a bit & make some "slab" runs to the Lake & back so I'll get reacquainted with riding the concrete ribbon. About 70% of my planned route (round trip that is to say) is along I40.

If anyone has any additional suggestions / comments please feel free to share.....

coil and ignitor.

If you don't have one, does someone here have a gremlin bell they can fire over to Karl? I wish i had one to send to ya.

Jim, the coil recommedation is a good one since I toasted one last year after the midwest rally & I just happen to have one on the spares shelf.

The ignitor is a good suggestion too, but a spendy one (Bike Bandit wants right at $600.00 for one) just to have for the trip.....guess I'll take my chances...

Ain't that part of the adventure?

I always have found it interesting that if we were taking a car someplace we would not take a spare fuel pump or main brain. It always makes me wonder why we would ever tolerate such sorry workmanship in our bikes to need to pack electrics.

Typical Triumph, you just gotta love em.

Mike you crack me up.....got a gremlin bell & seems to work pretty good....maybe that's the ringing I heard when I last went out for a ride....

Ron, you got a good point. Now mind you, I have confidence that ol' Black Beauty will make the trip fine....but in true boy scout fashion it does make sense to be prepared as much as one is able to. I don't think that the Triumph brand scooters are crafted poorly at all. To the contrary I have seen plenty of "HD" brand bikes that seem to be so popular suffer more issues on the roads. And find that my BA runs relatively trouble free for the most part....

But $hite does happen & Murphy can sneak up when ya least expect it.

Money; credit cards, checks, cash.

Chad....yup greenbacks, plastic, checks & etc. will be in easy access all the way. Also, adding a roadside service & trip interupption rider to my MC policy.....it pays to have the bases covered ya know!

Now....I'm all for puttin ol' Murphy to an end, but as you all know well enough he does make his own rules.

Thanks to all for yur comments/recommendations. I think I am pretty well covered for my trip now thanks to all your colloective guidance. Here's the gear I have assembled for the trip:

Epic SW Cycle Ride: Gear / Packing Checklist
RH Saddlebag: / LH: Saddlebag:
Tool Kit & Torque Wrench / FroggToggs Rain Suit
Clutch Cable / Fleece Sweat shirt/pants
Flat Repair Kit / Face Mask & neck warmer
32 oz Fuel Bottle / Neoprene gloves
Bike Lock / Mid Wght & Winter gloves
Bike Cover / Helmet Collar
Jacket Liner /
Extra Bungees /
Maps & Hotel/Reservation info in ziplock bag/

RHSB Rear Pocket: / LHSB Rear Pocket:
Umbrella / Riding Glasses

Fork Tool Bag:
Riding/Fingerless gloves
First Aid Kit
Spare Flashlight
Sunscreen Spray
Chain Lube/Wax
Ear Plugs

24in Duffle: (rear fender/luggage rack mount):
Tent - Eureka Apex Solo
Sleeping Bag - Marmot 20deg
Stove - Whisperlite International Multifuel
Cookkit - MSR Titanium
U-DigIt SS folding trowel
TP & baby wipes
Food Bag w/2 days freeze dried entrees.
Shave/Possibles kit &
Additional Clothing for 3 days
Ball Cap
Nikon Coolpix 2100 camera & spare batt

I didn't see a flask anywhere

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I didn't see a flask anywhere

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Yep Bill, I missed it sure.....it's stowed in the duffel bag w/ the camp gear (& full of Belvenie 14yr). I figger if I have a hankerin for a taste of the barley while on the road there will be a road house somewheres along the route. Mind you I'm not given to drinking and riding.... just not prudent ya know.

But, like in the old west at the end end of long day on the trail a taste of the spirits does much to wash away the dust.

Monkey butt powder.

Three (3) things :
1)credit card 2)cell phone 3)AAA membership card

P.S. and some cigars !

Acid is a new cigar company but they make some nice cigars if ya like aromatics. If not I know a guy down here who obtains very nice toby and rolls them himself.
I personally prefer to smoke my pipe. I keep a few cobs in the saddle bags and a nice english blend along with. I have a Chippendale billiard that I will some times bring on the bike. I dont much like risking expensive pipes being damaged from being on the bike.

Chad, part of this trip is about ending my tobacco habit of 40+ years (at the admonition of my "hopefully soon to be permanent" better half)....The only way she will commit to tie the knot was if I quit .....and after dating her for 9+ years my tobacco habit seems to be the only remaining stubling block to an otherwise perfect relationship.

So.....got the nicotine lozenges & chewing gum for the first couple of days rides, then I'll switch to the patch for the remainder of the trip & hopefully will end up tobacco free by the time I get home again.

Mind you alcohol does bring out the hankering for tobacco in me with a vengence & I imagine that I'll likely enjoy a smoke during/@ the SWTF.

With only 5 days to go before I set out I have to admit I'm getting a bit anxious.....

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Any recoms on other cigars that I should try?

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Knowing better than to hijack - But unable to resist (sorry). I find the Arturo Fuente 'Hemingway Short Story' to be a fine companion to any scooter trek that is long enough to contain an arse break.

CAO Brazilia or Rocky Patel Vintage, there are so many good ones out there, it's hard to recommend just one.