7 Essentials for Bike Rides

October 11, 2021

When you’re planning a bike ride for a reasonable distance, it’s beneficial to prepare ahead of time. There are certain essentials that for long bike rides that should be on-hand and ready to go. Here are the seven items it is wise not to forget.

1. Bike Lights

A powerful led bicycle light is vital to keep you and your bike out of difficulty. While you may plan to head out in the daytime, should you get lost or have a flat tyre, you could lose the light.

At which point, a strong light that won’t die on you becomes important. There are ones that provide multiple hours of use from a high-capacity battery.

Recharging is often possible through a rapid USB Type-C port. This ensures, even if the power runs low, a power bank can recharge it (no need to carry spare battery replacements that can easily get lost).

The rear light is equally important to let other drivers, motorcyclists, and cyclists know that you’re on the road. It’s important to have it situated high enough to be spotted by car drivers who sit higher. Also, don’t skimp on the size of the light because it must be large enough to get spotted quickly.

2. Air Pump

If you get a puncture from a rock or a nail on the road, an air pump (or a gas canister) will be necessary to pump up the replacement inner tube.

A gas canister performs the inner tube inflation in mere seconds. During use, it’s best to protect your hands from CO2 because it’ll be powerful. However, if you’re not comfortable using a gas canister, then stick to an air pump instead.

3. Spare Inner Tubes

Trying to find a hole in an inner tube is not something to do at the side of the road with the light failing.

Carry several spare inner tubes on the ride. Should you get a flat, then with the right tools, you can remove the inner tube, replace it, and reinflate it. This avoids calling out an expensive Uber or local taxi to reach the nearest bicycle workshop.

4. Tyre Levers

These handy tools create a gap between the rim and the tyre rubber. From there, a second one can move around the rim to free the tyre from its regular position.

Once the inner tube is replaced, it’ll be necessary to put the tyre back into the right spot. Don’t use the levers for this because they risk breaking the new inner tube, which would be disastrous.

Carry several of these levers. They can be made from plastic and occasionally snap.

5. Bike Luggage

Bike luggage bags can go over a rack at the back or front, directly onto the bike frame, or on the handlebars.

Think about the weight distribution. Packing heavy items toward the bike’s rear can cause the rear tyre to get stuck on muddle ground more frequently.

It’s always best to travel as light as possible. Purchase items along the route on a multi-day trip. This means you won’t need to peddle as hard to pull the weight of the bike, filled packs, and you down the path.

6. Waterproof Attire

Weather predictions change and are notoriously unreliable. So, even if it says that the outlook will be clear skies all the way, don’t count on it.

Staying dry and retaining body heat is necessary to stick to your planned route. Owning some waterproof clothing can save your bacon when dark clouds are looming overhead. This includes the gear that allows you to push on through the rain to reach your next destination, rather than needing to get off the road or the bike path in a downpour.

7. First Aid Supplies

Either purchase a ready-made first aid kit or put together what you see as the necessary items.

You may be the steadiest, more reliable cyclist out there. But you never know, you may need to manoeuvre out the way of a wayward car and go for a tumble as a result. When you’ve packed disinfectant, cotton swabs, and plasters at a minimum, you can patch yourself up.

Conclusion

Lastly, if you can bring along a water bottle with a built-in purifier, that may allow you to fill up at brooks or streams in a pinch. Do be aware that some flowing water is marked as unsafe even when filtered, so research ahead of time if you might run low on drinking water and are miles from a shop, garage, or cafe.

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