Powered By Plants Cycling - Recommended Pack List

Written By Beth Skogen

The key to a successful RAGBRAI is quality nourishment and proper packing

BIKING

  • Your bike

  • 2-3 sets of lycra shorts, jerseys, sports bra and socks, plus 1 long sleeve shirt and/or tights for cool mornings

  • Shoes, gloves, helmet, sunglasses, cycling cap

  • Two water bottles

  • Patch kit/tubes/tools, chain lube, flashing safety light, frame-fit pump or CO2 cartridges (PBPC will provide standing tire pumps to use at camp)

  • Rain gear or just a hooded rain jacket

  • Chamois cream (anti-chafing)

  • Favorite hydration additive such as salt tablets or electrolytes to add to your water

  • A bike lock if you’d like to lock up your bike, but riders don’t usually have issues with theft or vandalism

AFTERNOONS/EVENINGS AT CAMP

  • A max of 2 bags of gear/clothing

  • Shorts, t-shirts, athletic dress, underwear, sweatshirt and pants for a cool evening

  • Comfortable pair of shoes

  • Wide-brimmed bucket cap/baseball hat to limit face/neck exposure to sun

  • Dirty clothes bag: big Ziplock, Stuff Sack bag or vacuum seal bag to save space

SHOWER + COMFORT

  • Shampoo/conditioner + soap

  • Quick-dry towel and hand towel

  • Shower sandals

  • Toothbrush, toothpaste, lotion, deodorant, razor, other toiletries

  • Wet wipes - multi-purpose use (the unsung hero of RAGBRAI)

  • Lightweight backpack to carry your shower gear to bike/walk to shower. Drawstring backpack works great.

CAMPING

  • Tent gear: sleeping bag, inflatable sleeping pad, camp pillow (PBPC will provide hammers for stakes and camp chairs)

  • Flashlight, headlamp, and hanging light for inside your tent

  • Battery-operated fan is a good idea for airflow at night

  • Bike lock for overnight camping, though in the 5 years of doing RAGBRAI, we’ve never had issues

  • Natural insect repellent (such as Bug Soother): bugs are not a big problem but it never hurts to be prepared

  • Earplugs and/or an eye-mask for a more sound sleep

ESSENTIALS

  • Your RAGBRAI wristbands to wear on your wrist and to have on your bike for the week. Beth will have these for you at camp on Night 0 (Saturday) if you chose PBPC as your team at sign up on the RAGBRAI website.

  • ID card, cash, credit card, ATM card, a small wallet/fanny pack/backpack to carry on your person if you go downtown (Recommend $150-$200 for lunch/snacks/showers)

  • Sunscreen for skin and lips, your prescription meds, ibuprofen

  • A few extra ziplock bags to keep belongings dry

  • Cell phone and charger (PBPC will provide multiple power strips for charging your electronics)

NON-ESSENTIAL ITEMS

  • Bathing suit … you might want to go to the host town’s public pool at some point during the week

  • Camera, Garmin, iPod, other small electronics to carry with you on bike

  • A flat twin-sized sheet if your sleeping bag is too hot at any point

  • Specialized energy snacks or power bars

    LEAVE AT HOME

  • Laptops, Kindles, iPads, and other precious or fragile electronics

  • Expensive jewelry

  • Anything important and/or fragile that is not essential to the ride

TIPS

  • Mark your luggage and belongings so you know they’re yours, we’ll also supply luggage tags

  • Airlines do NOT allow CO2 in either checked or carry-on baggage so it’d be wise to ship cartridges ahead of time or buy them at RAGBRAI

  • Pack each day's shorts, jersey, and socks in a Ziploc or have 3 Ziplocs/Stuff Sacks/vacuum sealed bags to separate dirty clothes, clean clothes and bike clothing

  • Bring bike shoes you can walk in - you’ll likely walk in the pass-through towns

  • Bring one pair of sweatpants - on a cool evening, they’ll come in handy

  • Use a toiletry bag that is hangable

  • Travel-sized containers are better that full sized containers

  • Think about what you’ll need to get the best sleep possible: ear plugs, eye mask, music playing device with favorite sleepy tunes/sounds, a good camp pillow, sleep-aid meds, battery-operated fan, ice bag…whatever works best for you

Beth Skogen
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