*** THE GEAR ***
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| MAIRA 2007 |
MAIRA 2011 |
| COMPONENT |
BRAND |
MODEL |
| Frame |
Villiger |
Cabonga DX (2000) |
| Group |
Shimano Deore XT |
Shimano Deore XT – Sachs with27 speeds. Chain
Sachs for 9 chainrings |
| Brakes |
Shimano |
XT V-Brake and Koolstop Medium pads |
| Saddle |
Brooks |
Leather Champion Flyer (the best, as the say) |
| Handlebar |
Modolo |
Yuma Traveller |
| Wheels |
Mavic |
Mavic F519 (front) and AtomlabDHL for downhill
(rear) with 36 spokes |
| Fender |
Generic |
Plastic |
| Tires |
Schwalbe |
Marathon XR 26x1.9 foldable (the most durable and resistant in the market) |
| Panniers |
Ortlieb |
Front and Rear Classic as, Tubular bags M y L, Handlebar Bagl Ultimate 5 Classic L (simply irreplaceable!!) |
| Racks |
Tubus |
Cargus & Tara Low Rider |
| Pedals |
Shimano |
M323 |
| Bottles |
Polar and Nalgene |
2 Polar thermal bottles (750 mL and 500 mL)
and one 1.5 L Nalgene bottle |
| Computer |
VDO 1.0 |
Wired computer with altimeter (fundamental when riding in the Andes) |
| Extras |
Generic |
Pump, mirror, horn, stand, etc… |
| Approx. weight . |
Aprox. 18 kg (40 lb) |
A bit too much perhaps, but as strong as a truck!!! |
CAMPING
| ITEM |
BRAND and MODEL |
| Tent |
The North Face Tadpole 23, “Frog” style |
| Sleeping pad |
Thermarest Ultra Litte Regular 1.5“ (unthinkable not
to have one) |
| Sleeping Bag |
EMS -20 ˚C, Long |
| Liner |
Cocoon, Silk Liner (To enhance the sleeping bag temperature rating or to use as a sleeping bag in warm weather) |
| Paraguayan Hammmoc |
Tukeke (ideal in the forest and tropical areas) |
| Camping Chair |
MEC, adaptable to the Thermarest pad |
| Tarp |
REI, de 3m x 4 m (ideal to protect the bike and myself from the rain) |
| Stove |
MSR Wishperlite International. Multi-fuel, with one 1
L bottle. |
| Water Purifier |
Katadyn, with ceramic filter (Lifesaver!) |
| Kitchen Gear |
Doite, set with 1,5 L pot, frying pan and kettle!! |
| Knives |
Victorinox Swiss tool and Opinel pocketknife |
| Plates |
The ones included in the kitchen set. Just cheap plastic… |
| Mug |
Aladdyn standard plastic thermal mug |
| Silverware |
MEC Stainless steel fork and spoon. |
| Foldable bowl |
Ortlieb (ideal for keeping things on one place and not all over the dirt) |
| Towel |
MSR packtowel XL |
| Personal Hygiene |
EMS (with enough items to be presentable when in company…) |
| Flashlight |
Petzl tikka plus and Mini Maglite |
| Water Bag |
Platypus, 1 x 6 L & 2 x 1 L |
| Mate and 500 ml thermos |
Required!!! A small Argentinean luxury |
| Day Pack |
MEC |
| Misc. |
Drying cloth, sponge, biodegradable detergent, etc…and
the essential wodden hammer for the tent pegs! |
MISCELANEOUS ITEMS
| ITEM |
BRAND and MODEL |
| Foldable Solar Panel |
Sunliq S12 (For rechargeable batteries and MP3 player) |
| Connecting Cables |
The needed ones for the chargers and the solar panel (too many) |
| Battery Chargers |
AA y AAA and Li Battery for the camera |
| Rechargeable Batteries |
AA x 8 y AAA x 6 |
| Pocket binoculars |
Pentax (8x21) |
| Tripod |
Samsonite, (to get he best pictures… but it’s a heavy
luxury) |
| Camera |
Canon PowerShot SD870 IS |
| MP3 |
Creative MuVo V100 MP3 player with portable
speakers (totally necessary for a music addict as I am) |
| GPS |
Garmin pocket (Last minute present. A nice gadget to know exactly where I am lost!) |
| Steel Cable |
Kryptonite…(we don’t want the bike to vanish…) |
| Bike Tools |
Alllen wrench, small headset tool, cassette
tool, screwdriverss, Teflon lubricant (Finish Line), Teflon grease (Finish
Line), etc… |
| Bike Parts |
Extra chain (to alternate), brake and shifters cables, pedal locks, extra spokes, a couple of tubes, an extra tire, wire, duct tape, clamps, extra screws, patches and glue, plastic straps, elastic rope, etc… |
| 1st Aid Kit |
Thanks to Dr. Francois Prevost and the people from the Geriatric and Gerontologic Association of Mar del Plata I have a 1st aid kit so complete that I could almost do a heart transplant on myself!! Hopefully I won’t go that far.I have a bit of everything, enough to be self sufficient in isolated areas. There are antibiotics, anti-diarrheics, antihistamines, anti-inflammatories , etc Plus some creams and treatment against Malaria. Let’s hope I’m only taking them along… |
| Books, maps and notebooks |
Too many!!! Including a “passport” to collect stamps from the places I’ll be passing by. An old tradition from previous trips. |
| Misc. |
Sewing kit, rope for hanging my clothes, bug repellent, solar block, Argentinean flag (It’s been with my from Antarctica to Canada on board of the ship Sedna IV), Mar del Plata flag, lucky charms given to me by several friends and to put on the bike (Tibetan flags, rubber Nemo, Chinese figurine, a pendant with a small frog, a rosary, and old bike license plate, the picture of Santa Anna di Cantalupo in Montreal and even an invisible pendant that weighs nothing and takes no room!!!) and the list continues… |
CLOTHING
| ITEM |
| Cycling Shoes (Forte) |
| Hikking shoes (Salomon) |
| Sandals (Olympicus) |
| Cycling pants, shorts x 2 (Cañete) |
| Short sleeve and sleeveless cycling T-shirts (Cañete
and Sugoi) |
| Lycra arm and leg extensions (MEC) |
| Thermal underwear for cycling (Ansilta) |
| Wind-stopper Cyling Jacket (Sugoi) |
| Tank-top |
| T-shirt “dry fit” x 2 |
| Removable pants rip-stop (Ansilta) |
| Waterproof pants (MEC) |
| Shorts x 2 |
| Fleece Thermal Underwear (Ansilta) |
| Fleece sweatshirt (Ansilta) |
| Light wind-stopper jacket(Patagonia) |
| Ultrex Jacket (Ansilta) |
| Shoe covers (MEC) |
| Fleece Gloves (Ansilta) and lycra Gloves(MEC) |
| Cycling Gloves (Specialized Gel) |
| Underwear (boxer) x 1 |
| Socks x 3 pairs (MEC & Ansilta) |
| Fleece hats and neck-cover (several) |
| Argentinean Soccer Team T-shirt, a great gift!!! |
| Sunglasses: Ryders model Tangent, with exchangeable
lenses |
INCREDIBLE, ISN’T IT?
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| 2007 |
2011 |
