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And if you find that you need a tool you don't have, just borrow it from AustinBike! He has a great "loaner" program...

We've sold our home and will traveling with our 3 kids(6yo,3yo,1yo) for an undetermined amount of time. I have a list already of what I need to take for working, riding and getting out with all the kids. We will be staying at AirBnB's so a lot of the basics will be covered. What are some necessary items yall travel with if you're going to be away for awhile? Hoping to get some ideas for things I haven't considered Our vehicle is a Honda Pilot with a Yakima Skybox 21 and a 4 bike rack(which I need to purchase still). First major stop is CO, then UT and who knows

Oh, and the most important tool for me is an Amazon Prime membership. The secret is that you do not need to buy every single tool right now. What you DO need is the ability to have what you need delivered in 24-48 hours consistently. Get the basics then be willing to overpay a tiny bit to get stuff delivered as you need it. There is no need to put out the money today for something you may need once a year. But the stuff you will use every week now to get set up and then worry about all the specialty tools as needed. This is especially true for the folks that only get to ride on the weekends. Knowing you can order something on Sunday night, have it in your hands on Tuesday and be back in business for Saturday morning is great.

Forget the bigger car. Just leave the kids at home. (Just kidding. I'm sure your kids are cool.)

You might want to consider a bigger vehicle for a family of 5 if you plan to spend a lot of time on the road. Each family member will have around 2 suitcases\bags, plus some totes for food\random stuff and an ice chest. Your 2 younger kids will need more stuff like cribs\high chairs. And kids will be fighting in the backseat even more so if they are crammed together. A third row is a great way to separate the kids. A used suburban or expedition el would be much more comfortable for the amount of gear you need to take. And the bigger vehicle will handle the extra weight much better. You might want to try loading up your pilot (family included) to see how much room you really have to work with.

Never really had the opportunity to do this kind of traveling, but one thing that came to mind is that you might find yourself needing your important personal documents at some point over the course of a year (SS cards, birth certificates, immunization records, passports, etc.). A good fireproof, waterproof lockbox might be a good purchase.

if you get a truing stand then you will also need spoke wrenches, a spoke tension meter is handy small and large torque wrenches pedal wrench or larger allen keys than typically come in most sets (e.g. 8mm) Chain breaker, I also use quicklinks and have a quick link tool and spare quick links there is also a tool to measure chain wear for shimano cranks there is a small plastic tool that is used to remove the bolt that holds the cranks together (crank arm installation tool) Bottom bracket tool - there are a couple of sizes. My park bottom bracket tool has the crank arm install tool on one side For brake bleeds and shimano brakes you need a 7mm allen which doesnt seem come in most sets, make sure the kit has the funnel. I use it a lot I use a hayes disc brake tool which has two very thin sheets that go between the rotor and the brake pads to align calipers. There is a park rotor tool for bending the rotor derailleur hanger alignment tool, spare derailleur hanger mineral oil for shimano brakes very large socket for the fork nuts (e.g. 24mm, 26mm) Air compressor for seating tubeless tires. I keep spare stans valves. I also use a basketball pin inflator to remove grips. You blow compressed air under the grip and the grips come right off/slide right on. I have a presta valve connector for my compressor I use a little presta core tool for removing the core out of presta valves. I use a stans syringe that has a presta screw at the end to inject sealant cable/cable housing cutter. I like the park one 1mm allen head - this is used for example on the barrel nut of a ks lev dropper bost a set of picks for pulling retaining springs vice soft jaws for when you cant get hub endcaps and the freehub body to come off I have a special clamp for the brake hose to make it easy to tap the brass barb fitting on the end regular grease fork oil I have dt swiss grease for dt swiss hubs Some different grease for i9 torch hubs slick honey rock and roll gold for the chain I make my own sealant pedros tire levers alcohol for cleaning rotors and brake pads. generic degreaser (e.g. simple green) lots of shop towels nitrile gloves I use cloths, but the oil comes off in the washer which is bad. spotlight to see what you are doing There are additional things that are pretty rarely used: various presses for headsets and press fit bottom brackets For crown race I just use 1.5 inch PVC and a cap so I can hit it with a hammer

Pilots are actually very roomy and (I think) they all have a 3rd row of seats. We just bought a used Pilot a few weeks ago and love it so far. With the 3rd row folded down, you can put a lot of stuff in the cargo area, not to mention the added space of a cargo box on the roof.

bring one of these

Congrats on the long trip--that sounds amazing. Sometimes you just need to gently wash off your bike, gear or kids at the trail-head, and when you're traveling a water hose isn't always available. A simple pump sprayer would be handy. Few things would mess with your big trip more than getting bikes stolen. And I'm forever removing my chains if it looks like I'm driving through rain. But with the pricey enclosed Black Box bike hitch rack, neither of those would be huge concerns. Depending on the 4 bikes you're looking to take (a couple of kids bikes?), you may get all 4 of them in the box. This video shows a 3 bike configuration.

Extra pair of reading glasses if you are an old man like me. Cable cutters for shift cables, a sharp utility knife for brake cables. A rubber mallet. Extra spokes. The biggest pain in the ass is breaking a spoke and needing to go all the way to the shop to pick up one. Rim tape. Valve core stem remover. I have a Stan's remover, ~3-4" long that is great. A spanner for crank bolts. An Icepick. I use this when I am trying to clean dirt out of things, like cleat bolts. A speaker so you can have music. Seriously, this helps you relax and stay focused. A bottle opener.

This thread made me look up a video my buddy made of a bikepacking trip we did in Big Bend Ranch State Park back in 2010. From talking to and trying to get info from the rangers and Mike Long at Desert Sports, I think we were among the first to do a big multi day ride out there. We had to make our own gps route from the topos. That was a total blast.

Not only are they reasonably priced and competent, BUT, Don Banker mows the single track trail corridor that runs along the train track behind his shop. Not just behind his property but almost the entire length of the segment. He's been doing this for a long time. Next time you're riding to Mary Moore Searight yell across the fence, "Thanks Don!"

https://www.outsideonline.com/2415650/rockymounts-bike-racks-coronavirus-pandemic

There is actually three sizes of bottom bracket shells I'm aware of for one piece cranks. The Ashtabula or American, a "mini" American (common on cheaper kids bikes), and Look makes one for their CARBON FIBER ONE PIECE CRANKS. There are also square taper bottom brackets for Ashtabula bottom bracket shells. Related reading: http://www.gsportbmx.co.uk/support/rideuktech/bottombs.html http://www.gsportbmx.co.uk/support/rideuktech/bbs again.html http://www.gsportbmx.co.uk/support/rideuktech/bbs again.html And a video: https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://m.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3Dw2p7VJuZA2c&ved=2ahUKEwik7_GwpfbqAhVCSK0KHX-KARMQwqsBMAB6BAgKEAM&usg=AOvVaw25m3U7DmV-Xl5cMjZIhSA7

Yes! Maybe BBSP will be the Christmas vacation then.

It's definitely interesting how it affects people so differently. We have to remember that this thing is only months old, and we really don't understand it yet. That's why we shouldn't scoff at the scientists and disease experts when they can't clearly explain something or some of the details aren't 100% accurate. The anti-mask conspiracy theorists want to throw the baby out with the bathwater if one data point doesn't make sense to them, but these scientists are the best we have, doing the best they can.

hitting home now. we'll see if their tune changes https://apnews.com/8173fe14f7cf7095ced3b55fdc65581e https://www.politico.com/amp/news/2020/07/29/louis-gohmert-who-refused-to-wear-a-mask-tests-positive-for-coronavirus-386076

My kids are much older than 5 yrs now (18,16 & 11), but we've been using Warda as our go-to camping spot for years. We always camp right beside Turkey Tank Pond. Often times there is a canoe onsite and my kids have swam in the pond with no issues. Likewise, we've caught many fish in the same pond. Besides MTB riding, the ranch is also good for hiking. The Bluff area has great terrain for exploring but it might be a bit much for a 5 yr old YMMV. We've even brought BB guns and done some tin-can shooting. In short, we really love the place and have found it fun for family, friends and cyclists alike. Later, CJB PS- as far as riding goes, there is a good amount of trail that is ok for a beginning. This is especially so with the trail system towards the front (right) of the ranch.

Thats only if you are doing it wrong. Up until about 5-6 yrs ago, nearly all my bikes have been worth more than the cars I bought. 😉

On that note, if you need a straight-shooting car mechanic, look up Banker. He's near Mary Moore Seawright Park.

This makes me so glad I do all my own wrenching on both bikes and autos.

Must have been around '88, me and 2 buddies went there to do some fishing (i.e. drinking) and grilling, old Reimer kept hammering into us 'No Camping', 'No Camping', we assured him we weren't going to camp. The fishing/grilling/drinking was great. Unfortunately, my buddy decided to shine his headlights into the river to attract fish. Long story short we lost track of time and the battery died. 3 of us slept in an old Celica. The youngest was still in High School and it was a school day, of course we had no cell phones. We wake up the next morning to Reimer's F250 grill about 2 inches from the open window of the car. HE WAS PISSED!! BUT, he had to give us a jump so we could leave. Heh, good times!

Come and listen to my story about a cat named Seth A poor mountain biker, almost sold his bike for meth, And then one day he was shootin down a trail, And up through the brush appeared a wooden tail A whale tail that is, wooden kicker, texas gnar Well the next thing you know seths the trail steward The mountain bikers said "Seth build some trail downward" Said "the fall lines are where the trails ought to be" So they loaded up the tools and built the pussy

There was an old trail in Travis Country. It has rocks, bumps, and chasms a-plenty. It will grate you like cheese, but when when discussing it, please: confide location with the cognoscenti.