I'm leaving in five more days, making today Day -4.
In this blog post, I want to log and consider the things I still
have to do before I leave, and things I've already done in the
last weeks in preparation. Think of this as a to-do list that
I wrote to myself a month ago, and already partially completed.
Pictures might come later this week.
I originally intended to write a post about the bike itself and
the logistics of flying with a bike, but I think that these
things are better left for the Day 0 blog post, and for a rest-day
later on in the trip.
Done: fix the back wheel's flat spot by replacing the wheel.
Unfortunately, the replacement wheel has an opening that is
only large enough for a Presta valve.
Done: get a bike box. This was really hard for some reason.
I was sure that MEC would have them, but since they just changed
locations, they had no bike boxes. Luckily, Urbane Cyclist
had one in their basement.
Done: realigned all breaks and gear shifters. This
was very much needed. I also got new break-pads.
Done: cleaned the bike, including the back cassette
(aka gears). This was oddly
theraputic.
Done: repaced the back rack. The old one broke. The new one
can carry something like 30kg
Done: replaced the drive train. Still not sure
why.
Done: bought a new water-bottle to replace the leaky
one.
Done: got an American SIM card with infinite data. It's
offensively expensive, and possibly unnecessary. But the
alternative is much worse.
Done: got new shoes, and wore them for a week to wear
them in.
Done: streamlined the blog-writing process. A lot
of this is behind-the-scenes for the website, but the main
changes are that my blog is now mobile friendly for those of you
reading it on the toilet in the morning. Oh, and get ready
for some awesome maps.
Done: bought a frame bag. Still need to test it.
Half-done: uniformize the inner-tube valves. Currently,
my front wheel is Schrader, and my back wheel is Presta.
For the sake of only having to carry one type of inner-tube,
I got myself a little piece of plastic that converts a
Shrader opening into a Presta opening. What's left is to get
a new inner-tube.
Half-done: finalize bike-bag decisions.
Not done: I either need to buy a sleeping bag, or
decide that my blanket pouch from
last year is good enough.
Not done: make sure that the bike fits in the bike box.
This one's a big deal. If the bike doesn't fit, I'm going to
have to buy a bike in Miami, which would suck.
Not done: pack everything to make sure I don't need
new panniers. I can do this relatively last minue.
Not done: I still don't really know how to transport
5 bike bags on a plane without checking them all in.
Done: I will fill up old duffel bags, and leave them
in Miami
In the ideal scenario, the "pack everything" item on the list
will be done on Tuesday afternoon, leaving Wednesday to
finish off the list.