Here are all the details you could ever want to know on what we brought, what we tossed along the way, what broke, and what we absolutely couldn't live without.

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Bicycles

We ended up considering the Rivendell Atlantis, Koga-Miyata World Traveler, and Surly Long Haul Trucker. All three of these frames are designed for touring and the biggest difference among them is that the Koga-Miyata is an aluminum frame and the Surly and Rivendell are steel frames. There are varying opinions on steel vs. aluminum for a touring frame. Some claim that a steel frame is better because it can be repaired by a welder anywhere in the world, but others dismiss that as a myth. Sarah and I are both tall, and all three bikes in our size use 700c wheels instead of 26" wheels. Wheel size is another point of contention among the touring community. Some claim that 26" wheels are more common in developing countries and thus are easier to get repaired or replaced. In the end, we made our choice based on convenience and price. The Koga-Miyata was available only in Los Angeles and was hard to find in our size, so Sarah got a used Atlantis from Elliott Bay Bicycles and I got a Long Haul Trucker from Counterbalance Bicycles.

In outfitting the bikes, we again focused on durability and comfort. On a touring bike, wheels take the most abuse so we went with heavy-duty, hand-built wheels. Sarah has DT Swiss TK 7.1 rims and I have Mavic A719s. Both are laced to 36-hole Shimano Deore XT hubs. Both bikes also have primarily 9-speed XT drive trains with v-brakes for stopping power. In terms of gearing, we have a 26-36-48 up front and an 11-12-14-16-18-21-24-28-32 in the rear which gives us a minimum of 21.9 gear inches for those steep New Zealand hills and we went with Shimano bar-end shifters for their simplicity. Last but not least, Sarah has a Terry Butterfly saddle and I have a Brooks Champion Flyer.

Racks

Panniers & Bags

Jandd Handlebar Bag Review This bag is nice and roomy - we can even fit our laptop into it! The mounting bracket is very sturdy and getting the bag on and off the bike is a breeze. It is a bit difficult to mount the bag initially so it is horizontal; it involves adjusting three nylon straps, mounting the bag to test, and then readjusting as necessary. Our biggest gripe with the bag is that Jandd claims the bag is "stormproof" but after about 10 minutes of rain the bag becomes very damp. Not good when you are storing your camera, journal, and other delicate items inside! The other problem with the bag in the rain is that the map case instantly becomes fogged and wet inside. This makes the map unreadable and soggy!

Topeak TourGuide Bag Review Sarah's bag is fairly small and to make matters worse it has much less room inside then you'd expect when looking at it from the outside. Inside the bag, there's a ton of unnecessary padding. The padding also gets wet in the rain and is very slow to dry out, resulting in a smelly handlebar bag. The clear map case on this bag is not sealed, making it useless in the rain. To make matters worse, the carrying-handle on the bag blocks your view of the case when riding. The bag does come with a yellow waterproof shell that you can put over it when it starts to rain, but unfortunately this shell doesn't actually repel water at all! The bag gets just as soaked under the waterproof shell as it does without it.

Tires

Panaracer Tires Review We had an extremely bad experience with these Panaracer tires. Only 30 kilometers into our trip on our first day, Sarah's front tire flatted and we realized she had a huge cut in the tire. The tire was already trashed! We replaced it with a Vittoria Ranndoneur. Then at 2500 kilometers, my rear tire developed a strange, double-humped bulge. Finally at 4000 kilometers a third tire was cut by some glass and we didn't feel comfortable riding on these tires anymore so we switched over to 700x40c Schwalbe Marathon XRs that we ordered online from Wallbike and had shipped to Bangkok.

Notable Spare Parts, Tools, and Accessories

• 1 700x32c Panaracer Pasela TG Folding Tire

• 1 Topeak RoadMorph Pump

• CrankBrothers Multi-19 Tool

• Stein Hypercracker Mini Lock Ring Tool

• Topeak Modula XL Bottle Cages

Tent

• Even though we are only two, a three-person tent would be the minimum size to use since we will be living in the tent with our gear for a year.

• The larger the vestibule the better. With a spacious vestibule, we can cook under it if it is raining and keep our bikes under it for safety and protection from the elements.

• We wanted a superlight tent that we could set up easily without stakes and that had a natural color in case we need to free-camp somewhere.

The Haven 3 met all these requirements and is pretty light at 6 lbs, 9 oz. We also got the gear loft to make living with our gear and each other easier.

Sleeping Bags, Liners, and Pads

Cookwear

Other Notable Camping Gear

• 1 WhizAway Whiz Freedom

• 2 Petzl Tikka Headlamps

WhizAway Whiz Freedom Review Only one word can describe the WhizAway: amazing. This is one piece of gear I'd actually cry if I lost. It is a flexible purple plastic funnel that a woman can hold against her crotch and pee standing up like a man! It is amazing for road side pit stops, nasty dirty squat toilets, and for peeing into a bottle if circumstances require. It is fairly small and made of rubbery plastic so it is easily shaken dry and folded up for easy storage. I really couldn't live without this!

Petzl Tikka Headlamps Review These headlamps were a surprise hit in the useful gear category. We weren't originally going to bring these but ended up getting two and are so glad we did. They're perfect for setting up or taking down a campsite in the dark. Everything you look at is instantly illuminated by the headlamp, and you almost forget it is dark out. They're also perfect for reading in the tent at night. After using the headlamps, we cannot imagine trying to read while holding a flashlight!

Notable Clothing

• Patagonia Wool 2 and Wool 4 Shirts

• Löffler Cycling Underwear

Patagonia Wool 2 and Wool 4 Shirts Review We absolutely love these shirts. They are great as a layer in cold weather, but the Wool 2 is amazing on its own in hot weather because it is so light and breathable. You can also unzip these shirts at the neck if you get too warm. The natural anti-odor properties are astounding; you can wear one for a week straight and it will still smell fresh and clean! In New Zealand, I literally wore my Wool 2 day and night for a couple of weeks straight (check out our New Zealand pictures) and it did not smell. We fell so in love with these we were fantasizing about a complete outfit made out of the Wool 2 material. The only negative is that the shirts are a bit delicate and ours have developed a series of small pinprick holes, but they are still very wearable.

Notable Health and First Aid Items

• Four month supply of Malarone for the malarial regions in which we traveled

• Azithromycin for diarrhea or bacterial infection

• Tamiflu for Avian Flu

• Chlorine Dioxide Water Purification Tablets

• We have been immunized against MMR, Polio, Hepatitis A/B, Japanese Encephalitis, Typhoid Fever, Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis

• We were insured through World Nomads

Laptop

Camera

Radio