Packing For Trips
VOLUME 15
ISSUE 2
February 2013
Club
Newsletter Packing For Trips This important topic has for me, been one of continual evolution over many years. My travels have been "on the road" with no camping, of a duration ranging from overnight to over a month. In the beginning the packing assumed a comforting visit to a laundromat filled with fellow travelers. This morphed into a contin‐ ual quest for lightness that has become a "rule of twos". Essentially two sets underwear, shirts and socks. One of each worn dur‐ ing the ride, the others resting in the case liner. By the way, in the early days I'd just pile stuff into the side and top cases and carry them into the hotel. It was a revelation to learn the benefits of bag liners. Three hangers are a constant: two small plastic with clothes pins are used to hang washed socks and underwear. A thin coated metal hanger is used to hang a "quick dry" shirt. Last year I learned about LD Comfort shorts used to replace underwear. These are worn by many CHP and other motor officers and so have been added to the twos. From that core you can expand: pair of walking shoes, perhaps a light windbreaker or fleece, civilian trousers, sometimes shorts. A light polypro long sleeved pullover used by athletes is packed for cold days. My toilet kit does contain an electric toothbrush and charger, but the minimum of other stuff depending on whether or not I'll be staying exclusively at hotels with soap and shampoo. A cork screw/bottle opener is a mainstay. A plastic bottle of Woolite is always there. The rule of two requires washing shirt, under‐ wear and socks every night to be effective. Most of the time they do dry but an airbag is also included that can be fixed to the pillion seat the next morning. The laptop plus Kindle has morphed into an iPad. The inevitable collection of chargers is shoved into the shoes as is a flashlight and any other things I believe, sometimes on a whim, I'll need. Not a whim is a flask of Irish Whisky and for longer trips often a bottle of Gelson's gin which happily is plastic. The latter has the benefit of limiting space for other less necessary items, it gets lighter, and it can be recycled, hopefully the last night of the trip. Given that many of my trips include the receipt of shirts and other swag, I have, since buying the Ducati, added a Wolfman dry bag that I tie on the pillion seat. It usually starts off reasonably empty. While I bought the optional larger bag covers, I have re‐ lied on the smaller original covers, a continuation of the quest for lightness. The top case I now use more as a supplement to the tank bag for lighter stuff that I may need in the event of rain, cold etc. One item is always my Gerbings heated liner; it is often used even in July or August. The tank bag now used is small, clips onto a mount of the gas cap, and contains a fuse block and adapters for electronics. It is plugged into a special purpose outlet. Logistically the right side case on the Ducati is narrower than that on the left. Half of it has a permanent stash of motor related stuff such as patch kit, electric air pump, chain lube and so on. The liner for that case if unexpanded fits into the outside half. So the liner for the left case contains the iPad, hangers, and toilet kit with the soft things distributed to both with the object being to achieve a balance of weight.
Last year at the Tour of Utah I learned to pack the smaller insert with stuff I'd need at the next hotel in case the van that carried our bulk luggage was delayed; I am a slow learner. Placed in the left case it balances out the small weight of the permanent col‐ lection mentioned above in the right one. This packing regime has served me on trips lasting from a couple of days to almost a couple of months. I'd be remise if I didn't add that I once carried a pistol on a cross country trip, in the legal manner, but felt it took too much space and was too heavy. I do generally have items that could be used for self defense if needed. Thankfully they've never been used for that purpose. I al‐ ways have a couple of flashlights. Having said all that, I'm not always so clever. A couple of years ago I packed extravagantly for a trip that would include a week's bicycle race in Utah, a week's trip to another week long bicycle race in Colorado and then a visit to family. I ended up shipping home a huge box of stuff and yet the bags were full. Amazing. W. David Walls We are the SBBMW Riders group so it is important we attend BMW ral‐ lies such as the Beamer Bash held at Quincy, but even more important is the ride there as we are RIDERS. Our routes of choice cross the Sierras either through Yosemite or over Sonora Pass. Further north bypasses the ride over Monitor Pass, a sinful omission. This particular year Phil and I voted unanimously to wind over Sonora Pass. Crossing the San Joaquin Valley is, well, crossing the San Joaquin Valley. It’s a great place to grow our food and I’m certainly thankful for all those that toil in the fields. North of Merced the ride gets better as we cruise the back roads through small towns such as Snelling and La Grange on our way to Jamestown and our lunch stop at the James‐ town Railroad Museum and historic grounds. Here they have the old train station fixed up, part of which serves to sell tickets for those wishing to take a ride on the old railroad. In addition there is an old roundhouse where they still work on locomotives and nice grounds for various events (a stage was being set up), including picnic lunches. Our destination that night is one of the campgrounds on the Clark’s Fork of the Stanislaus River, hopefully without bears. There is a nature trail just above Donnell Lake off Highway 108 well up into the mountains that we use for a break. At this point we are high in the Sierras and it’s nice to spend forty five minutes strolling the path. The only other people are a couple riding a Gold Wing. The bike they are on is a rental they picked up in Los Angeles. The riders, Brian and his wife, are from New Jersey. They own and publish the magazine Backroads, Motorcycle TourMagazine (backroadsusa.com) very pleasant people. Yes, they get it. There is plenty of light left in the day after camp is set up to hike around and down to the river. No bears visit. Sonora Pass is in my opinion the prettiest of all the Sierra passes. A lot of it is only a lane and a half wide with tight curves and steep grades, perfect. We took it slow in spots to enjoy the views. A group of probably thirty exotic European sports cars found the route equally enticing. We passed them when they were stopped at one of the many viewpoints and they later went by us when we had pulled over.
Highway 395 along the Eastern Sierras always makes me feel I’ve really gone some‐ where and is simply a very enjoyable ride. Highway 89 goes up and over Monitor pass. There is road construction up the eastern side with traffic control which makes us stop while the downhill traffic occupies the one lane. Bummer, sort of. We are the only vehicles in our group so the lady in the “Follow Me” pickup drove what I suspect is much faster than usual or per regulations. We give her a big wave at the end of the lane con‐ trol section which she returns. Our lunch stop is at a gravel beach on the shore of Lake Tahoe. For those of you that expect a verbal description of this day, tough, you owe it to yourself to get out and ride it. We get to Quincy mid afternoon Friday. It’s already been a good rally. Tony Suhrer
Riding off into the sunset sounds romantic, idealistic, but the reality is it can be a pain in the butt. Yes, it is pos‐ sible to block that low sun out of one’s eyes with the left gloved hand. Another similar problem, but more of an issue mid‐day, is riding roads such as Tepesquet or Highway 49 above Downieville that take you from bright sun into fairly dark shaded corners and back again to the bright sun in one quick turn after turn. Those shaded turns can hide debris in the road. The eyes (at least the older variety that many of us now possess) simply don’t adjust that rapidly. The solution for me has been a tinted visor, the blue model that is a medium grey from the inside (think Rusty Wallace). An added bonus to this face shield is the amount of infrared (heat) it blocks. The tint isn’t enough that I can leave off the sunglasses. The combination allows me to flip up the visor going into the shaded turns and have better vision since the pupils were already slightly dilated due to the tinted shield. The sunglasses continue to protect the eyeballs from stuff in the air. I can also comfortably ride directly into a setting sun with both hands on the handlebars as there is enough light blockage to make the sun manageable but still see the surrounding environment. When I first tried on the shield my reaction was aaaahhh; this is like ear plugs for the eyes (but not so extreme). If I had a handsome mug like John Templeton or Harvey then I’d think twice about the shield. When I ride people have no idea what rock star, actor, or famous athlete is riding incognito. Tony Suhrer
In case you didn’t know…
•
The club meeting is Monday, February 18th at Cody’s Café.
•
Feb 14‐18— Death Valley Rendezvous (If you’re reading this, you still have time to make it)
•
Apr 5‐7— MotoGP season begins in Qatar
•
Apr 19‐21—MotoGP Circuit of the Americas in Austin, TX
•
May 23‐27— 49er Rally in Mariposa, CA
•
Jul 18‐20—BMW National Rally in Salem, OR
•
Jul 19‐21—MotoGP Laguna Seca in Monterey, CA
•
Aug 16‐18—MotoGP Indianapolis, IN
Thank you David and Tony for your contributions. Jim Rowley, Editor. Have a story to tell? Want to set up an upcoming event? Send it to me at [email protected].
ISSUE 2
February 2013
Club
Newsletter Packing For Trips This important topic has for me, been one of continual evolution over many years. My travels have been "on the road" with no camping, of a duration ranging from overnight to over a month. In the beginning the packing assumed a comforting visit to a laundromat filled with fellow travelers. This morphed into a contin‐ ual quest for lightness that has become a "rule of twos". Essentially two sets underwear, shirts and socks. One of each worn dur‐ ing the ride, the others resting in the case liner. By the way, in the early days I'd just pile stuff into the side and top cases and carry them into the hotel. It was a revelation to learn the benefits of bag liners. Three hangers are a constant: two small plastic with clothes pins are used to hang washed socks and underwear. A thin coated metal hanger is used to hang a "quick dry" shirt. Last year I learned about LD Comfort shorts used to replace underwear. These are worn by many CHP and other motor officers and so have been added to the twos. From that core you can expand: pair of walking shoes, perhaps a light windbreaker or fleece, civilian trousers, sometimes shorts. A light polypro long sleeved pullover used by athletes is packed for cold days. My toilet kit does contain an electric toothbrush and charger, but the minimum of other stuff depending on whether or not I'll be staying exclusively at hotels with soap and shampoo. A cork screw/bottle opener is a mainstay. A plastic bottle of Woolite is always there. The rule of two requires washing shirt, under‐ wear and socks every night to be effective. Most of the time they do dry but an airbag is also included that can be fixed to the pillion seat the next morning. The laptop plus Kindle has morphed into an iPad. The inevitable collection of chargers is shoved into the shoes as is a flashlight and any other things I believe, sometimes on a whim, I'll need. Not a whim is a flask of Irish Whisky and for longer trips often a bottle of Gelson's gin which happily is plastic. The latter has the benefit of limiting space for other less necessary items, it gets lighter, and it can be recycled, hopefully the last night of the trip. Given that many of my trips include the receipt of shirts and other swag, I have, since buying the Ducati, added a Wolfman dry bag that I tie on the pillion seat. It usually starts off reasonably empty. While I bought the optional larger bag covers, I have re‐ lied on the smaller original covers, a continuation of the quest for lightness. The top case I now use more as a supplement to the tank bag for lighter stuff that I may need in the event of rain, cold etc. One item is always my Gerbings heated liner; it is often used even in July or August. The tank bag now used is small, clips onto a mount of the gas cap, and contains a fuse block and adapters for electronics. It is plugged into a special purpose outlet. Logistically the right side case on the Ducati is narrower than that on the left. Half of it has a permanent stash of motor related stuff such as patch kit, electric air pump, chain lube and so on. The liner for that case if unexpanded fits into the outside half. So the liner for the left case contains the iPad, hangers, and toilet kit with the soft things distributed to both with the object being to achieve a balance of weight.
Last year at the Tour of Utah I learned to pack the smaller insert with stuff I'd need at the next hotel in case the van that carried our bulk luggage was delayed; I am a slow learner. Placed in the left case it balances out the small weight of the permanent col‐ lection mentioned above in the right one. This packing regime has served me on trips lasting from a couple of days to almost a couple of months. I'd be remise if I didn't add that I once carried a pistol on a cross country trip, in the legal manner, but felt it took too much space and was too heavy. I do generally have items that could be used for self defense if needed. Thankfully they've never been used for that purpose. I al‐ ways have a couple of flashlights. Having said all that, I'm not always so clever. A couple of years ago I packed extravagantly for a trip that would include a week's bicycle race in Utah, a week's trip to another week long bicycle race in Colorado and then a visit to family. I ended up shipping home a huge box of stuff and yet the bags were full. Amazing. W. David Walls We are the SBBMW Riders group so it is important we attend BMW ral‐ lies such as the Beamer Bash held at Quincy, but even more important is the ride there as we are RIDERS. Our routes of choice cross the Sierras either through Yosemite or over Sonora Pass. Further north bypasses the ride over Monitor Pass, a sinful omission. This particular year Phil and I voted unanimously to wind over Sonora Pass. Crossing the San Joaquin Valley is, well, crossing the San Joaquin Valley. It’s a great place to grow our food and I’m certainly thankful for all those that toil in the fields. North of Merced the ride gets better as we cruise the back roads through small towns such as Snelling and La Grange on our way to Jamestown and our lunch stop at the James‐ town Railroad Museum and historic grounds. Here they have the old train station fixed up, part of which serves to sell tickets for those wishing to take a ride on the old railroad. In addition there is an old roundhouse where they still work on locomotives and nice grounds for various events (a stage was being set up), including picnic lunches. Our destination that night is one of the campgrounds on the Clark’s Fork of the Stanislaus River, hopefully without bears. There is a nature trail just above Donnell Lake off Highway 108 well up into the mountains that we use for a break. At this point we are high in the Sierras and it’s nice to spend forty five minutes strolling the path. The only other people are a couple riding a Gold Wing. The bike they are on is a rental they picked up in Los Angeles. The riders, Brian and his wife, are from New Jersey. They own and publish the magazine Backroads, Motorcycle TourMagazine (backroadsusa.com) very pleasant people. Yes, they get it. There is plenty of light left in the day after camp is set up to hike around and down to the river. No bears visit. Sonora Pass is in my opinion the prettiest of all the Sierra passes. A lot of it is only a lane and a half wide with tight curves and steep grades, perfect. We took it slow in spots to enjoy the views. A group of probably thirty exotic European sports cars found the route equally enticing. We passed them when they were stopped at one of the many viewpoints and they later went by us when we had pulled over.
Highway 395 along the Eastern Sierras always makes me feel I’ve really gone some‐ where and is simply a very enjoyable ride. Highway 89 goes up and over Monitor pass. There is road construction up the eastern side with traffic control which makes us stop while the downhill traffic occupies the one lane. Bummer, sort of. We are the only vehicles in our group so the lady in the “Follow Me” pickup drove what I suspect is much faster than usual or per regulations. We give her a big wave at the end of the lane con‐ trol section which she returns. Our lunch stop is at a gravel beach on the shore of Lake Tahoe. For those of you that expect a verbal description of this day, tough, you owe it to yourself to get out and ride it. We get to Quincy mid afternoon Friday. It’s already been a good rally. Tony Suhrer
Riding off into the sunset sounds romantic, idealistic, but the reality is it can be a pain in the butt. Yes, it is pos‐ sible to block that low sun out of one’s eyes with the left gloved hand. Another similar problem, but more of an issue mid‐day, is riding roads such as Tepesquet or Highway 49 above Downieville that take you from bright sun into fairly dark shaded corners and back again to the bright sun in one quick turn after turn. Those shaded turns can hide debris in the road. The eyes (at least the older variety that many of us now possess) simply don’t adjust that rapidly. The solution for me has been a tinted visor, the blue model that is a medium grey from the inside (think Rusty Wallace). An added bonus to this face shield is the amount of infrared (heat) it blocks. The tint isn’t enough that I can leave off the sunglasses. The combination allows me to flip up the visor going into the shaded turns and have better vision since the pupils were already slightly dilated due to the tinted shield. The sunglasses continue to protect the eyeballs from stuff in the air. I can also comfortably ride directly into a setting sun with both hands on the handlebars as there is enough light blockage to make the sun manageable but still see the surrounding environment. When I first tried on the shield my reaction was aaaahhh; this is like ear plugs for the eyes (but not so extreme). If I had a handsome mug like John Templeton or Harvey then I’d think twice about the shield. When I ride people have no idea what rock star, actor, or famous athlete is riding incognito. Tony Suhrer
In case you didn’t know…
•
The club meeting is Monday, February 18th at Cody’s Café.
•
Feb 14‐18— Death Valley Rendezvous (If you’re reading this, you still have time to make it)
•
Apr 5‐7— MotoGP season begins in Qatar
•
Apr 19‐21—MotoGP Circuit of the Americas in Austin, TX
•
May 23‐27— 49er Rally in Mariposa, CA
•
Jul 18‐20—BMW National Rally in Salem, OR
•
Jul 19‐21—MotoGP Laguna Seca in Monterey, CA
•
Aug 16‐18—MotoGP Indianapolis, IN
Thank you David and Tony for your contributions. Jim Rowley, Editor. Have a story to tell? Want to set up an upcoming event? Send it to me at [email protected].
