[jyl]

Anyone riding this?

On the Portland Wheelmen bus from PDX to SEA. Bikes loaded in a following truck. Lot of fancy new aero carbon. My 30 y/o Peugeot looks pretty modest in this crowd.

I think I'm prepared. Been riding for a couple weeks now with my bike set up and my saddlebag packed exactly as they are right now. Sort of the "don't change anything at the last minute" idea. Got my spares and toolkit, energy bars, rain jacket, battery to drive the iPhone for a weekend, credit card and cash.

Wasn't sure what spares and tools to carry. Settled on a few tubes, patch kit, old-school Silica frame pump, spare shift and brake cables, tire levers, a couple Allen keys, screwdriver, itty-bitty adjustable wrench (one of these days, I'll get around to replacing every hex bolt on the bike with an Allen head bolt), spoke wrench, Swiss Army knife, and a spare set of pedals. Yes - I've had the binding mechanism fail on clipless pedals. I figure the aid stations on the route probably have cables etc, but not pedals.

My bike is modest and so, frankly, has been my training. I've been riding at least 100 miles/wk for the last month, and that - plus some padded shorts - will just have to do.

One thing I've left to chance is the mid-point lodging. I couldn't decide where to stop. I figure I'll decide tonight, throw my bag in the appropriate truck tomorrow morning, and then just hope I can find a patch of ground in the afternoon for my tent.

Anyway, if there are other PP'ers riding, I'm on a white Peugeot with orange and black bar tape (think Tony The Tiger) and black saddlebag, with a headlamp on my white helmet. Say "hi" and give me all your water!