#LK4Nations — Kit List
One for the gear nerds / curious!
I’m about to ride 1000 miles around the coast of the Irish Sea — solo and self-supported. This will be the first bike adventure in a while where I’m also camping for most of it — and the first ever bike adventure where I’ve had to cram my camping set up into a bikepacking set up, rather than panniers. Quite the emotional process with an XS bike frame!
The real game changer here has been the addition of the rack system from Aeroe (my kit was gifted). This will be the first time testing that out so I’ll report back on that after the trip, but I did do a happy dance when I saw the wheel clearance it gave me! (Usually I have to wrap a couple of bungy cords around my bags to hoist them up and pray for the best… not ideal!)
I’m hosting 4 community rides as part of this trip — come join me!
Right, to the kit details. A few items have been sponsored (marked with *) but nothing has made this list unless I would happily spend my own money on it:
The Bike
Liv Devote Advanced 2* (aka “Raya”, from Raya and the Last Dragon)
Clothes
- 1 x bike helmet & 1 x cycle cap
- 1 x High vis harness
- 1 x beanie
- 1 x SunGod Vulcans sunglasses*
- 1 x Buff*
- 1 x Rapha Cargo cycle shorts
- 1 x bespoke Milltag cycling jersey*
- 1 x Rapha Core rain jacket*
- 1 x Patagonia Nano Puff Jacket
- 1 x Bamboo t-shirt*
- 1 x compression leggings
- 1 x sports shorts
- 1 x sports bra
- 2 x boxers (to sleep in)
- 1 x crop top
- 1 x BAM baseylayer *
- 3 x knickers
- 2 x Bamboo trainer socks*
- 1 x Bamboo 73 Zero running jacket*
- 1 x swimming costume
- 1 x hooded towel poncho
- In case you hadn’t guessed from the above, I’m a proud ambassador for BAM! Comfiest clothes, ever. Added bonus of the ability to be worn for several days at a time without getting too stinky! You can use the code “Kennington” to get 15% off.
- 1 x summer cycle gloves
- 1 x waterproof overshoes
- 1 x leg warmers / 1 x arm warmers (for sun protection as much as keeping warm!)
- 1 x Vivobarefoot shoes,* 1 x flip flops (+ shower cap to pack these)
- 1 x SunGod Classics*
Electrical
- Solar Charger/battery bank*
- GoPro Hero 11
- Headtorch (+ spare batteries)
- iPhone 11 pro + QuadLock bike mount*
- QuadLock Tripod*
- Suunto Vertical Watch*
- Aftershokz earphones*
- Hammerhead cycling computer*
- Various leads to charge the above, kept in a small dry bag. Electric Hook Up adaptor plug for campsites.
Other
- An assortment of voile straps/cable ties.
- Small bottle of washing up liquid + sponge.
- Milton sterilising tablets
- Osprey packable rucksack*
- Chain wipes for the bike. Chain lube.
- Gaffer tape (around my water bottle to save space)
- 1 x mini bottle of tyre sealant, presta valve core removal tool, spare valve cores, Maxalami Tubeless Tyre repair kit, bike pump, multitool.
- Medical kit: KT tape, rehydration sachets, sea sickness tablets, Ibuprofen, sterile wipes, tick removal tweezers.
- Suncream
- Hand sanitiser
- Washbag: bamboo toothbrush, toothpaste, mini bottles of shampoo/conditioner bars, small bottle of moisturiser, face moisturiser, a small tub of chamois cream. Small bottle of perfume (to help compensate for the fact that I’m only bringing one set of clothes each for on/off the bike…)
- Recovery: 1 x tennis ball (for rolling out tight/angry muscles!) and 1 x Sidekick Eclipse muscle scraper* used alongside a small bottle of Weleda’s Arnica Massage Balm* and a tube of Weleda’s Arnica Cooling Gel*. In 2021, I become an official Weleda ambassador… but I was a huge fan of their Arnica range long before that! I use it daily when home. “Laura230” gets you 30 % off. FYI: As well at the 2 products I mentioned here, the Arnica bath soak is bliss!
Camping
- Big Agnes Copper Spur HV UL1 Bikepack Tent*
- Silk liner
- Sleeping bag
- Inflatable pillow
- Therm-a-rest NeoAir XLite sleeping mat*
- Sleeping mask + ear plugs
- 1 x lightweight tarp to use as a footprint under the tent.
Food / Hydration
I’ve got a mix of food things — reusable ziplock bags full of oats and a small plastic food container to eat them out of, reusable ziplock bags full of mixed nuts/dried fruit, Soreen, electrolyte tabs, a bag of dates and basically anything else that I can cram in!
I’ll have a 1.5l water bladder in my frame bag and then an additional 500ml in a bottle.
