Have you ever wondered what you need for a year-long bike trip through various climates, terrains, and weather conditions? Well we have… we’ve been pondering this question for at least the last year, taking note of all our gear malfunctions and thinking about what is deemed an ‘essential item.’

The bike and its gear

Fortunately, we’ve been able to take our Hase Pino tandem out on several week-long trial runs over the past two summers. The first summer, we only lost a few screws on a pieces where the rear wheel is attached to the frame and noticed that extreme jostling can dislodge the panniers from the bike rack. The second (this past) summer, when we added the BOB Ibex trailer, is when we really started to take note of all the strains that the tandem (and ourselves) endures.

While climbing our first mountain passes between Austria and Slovenia with 10%+ inclines, our physical limit was met. More than once, we resorted to pushing the tandem and all of its gear up the road because our gears couldn’t go low enough. At the beginning of the summer, we already had increased the gear range to make uphill cycling more comfortable, but with the addition of the BOB Ibex and a full load, any incline over 7% became nearly impossible.

After the Slovenia trip, we left our bike at a shop to increase our gear range even more. Now, with a front derailleur in addition to the Rohloff hub, and some pretty freaky looking handlebars, we should be ready to tackle all of the climbs out trip has to offer.

The other addition to Hase Pino is a new internal dynamo in the front wheel, which serves as a front light and battery charger.

Panniers
Although we really love our canvas Carradice SuperC  panniers, we opted for the Ortlieb Waterproof panniers that can also serve as backpacks… we carried small hiking backpacks with us in Slovenia for the Triglav climb but noticed that they took up too much space.  In addition, instead of stuffing our food in an old backpack bungeed to our bike rack, we went for something more stable, so we chose the Ortlieb Trunk-Bag. In the front, we’re using two front Carradice SuperC panniers below my seat, and then two more Ortlieb handlebar bags to quickly access other items.

 

Bike gear – repair kit – 4,1kg

Due to the ‘uniqueness’ of our rig, a few pieces will be fairly hard to come by when out on the road.  This means that we will be taking a few necessary pieces in case of a break-down and to (hopefully) save time for repairs .. ex. not waiting 2 weeks for a special German part to be delivered to us.

  • Disk brake pads  – one pair, these are fairly easy to find – 28 g
  • Chain links x3 – in case we wear out the chain – 12 g
  • Extra screws  – bumpy roads can loosen up things  – 175 g
  • Extra cable for Rohloff – just in case, this is pretty difficult to find at a random bike shop – 375 g
  • Tube repair kits x4 – 73 g
  • Tools – for dismounting and rebuilding the bike, and everything in between – 269 g
  • Small lock – for locking the bike to itself or our tent – 87 g
  • Rohloff oils – oil changes –  199 g
  • Extra 16″ tire – 580 g
  • Extra 20″ tire – 744 g
  • Extra 26″ Mondial tire – 810 g
  • Chain lube – 102 g
  • Screw glue – 8 g
  • Tubes – 16, 20, and 26 inch – 704 g

Cooking gear – 2,7kg

  • MSR XGK stove – uses all types of fuel sources – 341 g
  • Tatonka metal cups x2 – 298 g
  • Tatonka metal bowls x2 – 330 g
  • Large fork/spoon set – 172 g
  • Small fork/spoon set – 149 g
  • Stove wind guard – 75 g
  • Sponges  x2 – 29 g
  • GSI big pot  – 461 g
  • GSI pan – 184 g
  • GSI wash bucket – more to keep everything contained – 84 g
  • GSI plates x2 – pretty useless for eating noodles, but they’ll work as a cutting board – 74 g
  • GSI pot handle – 79 g
  • 1L nalgene – 189 g
  • Opinel knife – 61 g
  • MSR fuel bottle  and pump– to hold all of that fuel

Medicine and toiletries – 1,850kg

  • Medicine box (incl. antibiotics and ibuprofin) – 320 g
  • Wound care – the basics – 170 g
  • Toiletry bag – to contain our lotions and potions – 588 g
  • Asthma, contact lenses, and razor blades – enough for a long time – 320 g
  • Quick-dry towel – 61 g
  • Water purification drops and tabs – 95 g
  • Soap box – 123 g
  • Cassie’s lady bag – 177 g

Odds and Ends – 5,0kg

  • Sunglasses x2, incl. case – one clear, one for sunny days – 332 g
  • Water bottles x2 – 224 g
  • Duct tape – 225 g
  • Lezyne pump – 184 g
  • Lock – 1053 g
  • 5 m cable lock extension – 859 g
  • Sigma headlamps x2 – 278 g
  • Solar charger – 616 g
  • Zipties – 89 g
  • Bear spray – for vicious dogs and humans –  54 g
  • Rope – to tie things –  65 g
  • Bug spray – 87 g
  • Saywer water filters x2  –
  • MSR tent repair kit –  114 g
  • Thermarest mattress repair kit x3 – 38 g
  • Diary – 225 g
  • Notebook – 136 g
  • Deck of cards  – 101 g
  • Presta/schrader adapter – useful at gas stations – 2.5 g
  • Suunto watch – 54 g
  • 10L MSR dromedary bag – as suggested by one of our Warmshowers guests, we screwed some hooks into the back of the front seat to hang the water bladder. This makes water easily accessible to both Cassie and Cedric -325 g

Electronics – 5,840kg

  • Canon powershot – 300 g
  • Sony RX1005 – 299 g
  • Sony camera case – 109 g
  • Cullmann camera case – 100 g
  • Delorme inReach – for SOS calls and location reports – 273 g
  • Anker 10 port USB charger – because everything is charged with USB cables these days – 292 g
  • Dicapac waterproof camera case – for pictures when it rains – 127 g
  • Extra Sony batteries x4 – 92 g
  • Extra Canon batteries x2 – 48 g
  • USB battery charger for Sony camera  – 96 g
  • USB battery charger for Canon camera – 99 g
  • ChipTAN device – a necessity when traveling with German bank cards – 50 g
  • Bagsmart camera accessory case – 176 g
  • Laptop case – to provide some protection and cushion – 275 g
  • Small laptop/tablet hybrid – for writing blog posts and watching Netflix – 1115 g
  • Cédric’s kindle & case – 343 g
  • Cassie’s kindle & case (not pictured) – 343 g
  • Universal UBS charger – charges any battery with any voltage – 60 g
  • Outlet adapter – a must – 112 g
  • Anker battery – 359 g
  • Small battery – to give something an extra boost – 68 g
  • Luminoodle – tent lights – 119 g
  • Headphones x2 – for the plane and video calls – 77 g
  • Camera stand – for action shots – 38 g
  • Burner phone and charger  for foreign SIM cards – 160 g
  • USB cords x8 – 122 g
  • Garmin GPS – so we don’t get too lost – 132 g
  • Sigma tacho – to see if we actually reach 20k km – 40 g
  • Our smartphones (not pictured) – keeping us in touch with the rest of the world

Camping gear – 5,820kg

  • MSR Hubba Hubba tent – for 2 people – 2087 g
  • Thermarest NeoAir pads x2 – for a good night’s sleep – 1210 g
  • Millet Alpine LTK 800 x2 – right and left zippers for extra warmth – 1472 g
  • OUTAD tarp – keeping the tent just a bit cleaner – 488 g
  • Decathlon silk liners – 234 g
  • Petzl headlamps x2 – for seeing in the dark – 153 g
  • Extra tent poles – for the tarp – 143 g

Cedric’s Clothes – 6.3 kg

  • Hat – for extra shade protection – 76 g
  • Socks x3 – 168 g
  • Dex-Shell waterproof socks – 97 g
  • Padded underwear – 111 g
  • Underwear x2 – 136 g
  • Old cycling shirts  – yellow, to get noticed – 329 g
  • Smartwool t-shirt – we’re conducting a year-long test to see if merino wool actually does smell – 133 g
  • Long sleeve Under Armor pullover  – bright orange, to be seen – 248 g 
  • Patagonia shorts – to wear when not on the bike – 117 g
  • Castrelli biking bibs – to wear when biking – 171 g
  • Knee length tights  – man leggings – 178 g
  • Patagonia Baggies Pants – 275 g
  • Buff x2 – to protect against dirt and cold – 70 g
  • Rain/wind jacket – 459 g
  • Vaude rain cape – 375 g
  • Swim shorts – 79 g
  • Decathlon down jacket  – for those extra cold nights – 598 g
  • Old sneakers  – 568 g
  • Crocs – to slip on after a long day of biking – 560 g
  • Keen SPD clip sandals – comfortable, yet more stylish than the Shimano SPD sandals – 900 g
  • Bike gloves – 66 g
  • Warm bike gloves – 160 g
  • Waterproof bike glove layer – 88 g
  • Endura Hi-Vis helmet – comes with a USB-rechargeable rear light – 319 g

Cassie’s Clothes  – 5.7 kg

Compared to Cédric, Cassie is taking more clothing and layers because she suffers from ‘Always-Cold Syndrome.’ This was an area of headed discussion between the two a few days ago, but she managed to get her point across and would like to point out that her gear weighs less than Cédric’s.

  • Underwear x3 – 67 g
  • Nooyme bike underwear – a thoughtful bachelorette gift – 66 g
  • Sports bras x2 – bought off the streets in Viet Nam a few years ago – 144 g
  • Tank tops x2 – 144g
  • T-shirts x2 – 190 g
  • Socks x2 – 53 g
  • Smartwool socks – Cassie wishes she could bring more of these – 80 g
  • Dex-Shell waterproof socks – hopefully keeping Cassie’s feet warm in cold rain – 70 g
  • Buff x2 – 65 g
  • Sheer scarf – sun protection – 45 g
  • Leg/arm warmers – sun protection for when Cassie doesn’t want to wear sunscreen – 109 g
  • Merino long sleeve shirt –  177 g
  • Pullover  – 230 g
  • Zip pullover – 200 g
  • Patagonia Hoodini Jacket – the only protection between Cassie and the wind – 88 g
  • Prana shorts – 145 g
  • Spandex shorts – 107 g
  • Skirt – 145 g
  • Falke knee-length leggings – Cassie’s go-to for biking in mild weather – 181 g
  • Thick leggings – for colder weather – 234 g
  • Vaude rain cape – 336 g
  • Guide series rain pants – 293 g
  • Decathlon down jacket – conveniently pre-soaked in Glühwein from this past Christmas season-482 g
  • 1-piece swimsuit – 126 g
  • Fanny pack – necessary for front seat navigation – 152 g
  • Biking gloves – 57 g
  • Winter bike gloves  – 128 g
  • Sandals – Cassie’s poor Chacos didn’t make the cut – 175 g
  • Sneakers – 350 g
  • Keen SPD sandals – 735 g
  • Endura Hi-Vis helmet – 227 g

Total = about 37,3kg + weight of pannier/bags (total about 40kg)

Pino tandem weight including BOB trailer = 35kg