Well the ride has finally come to an end I have had a day to sleep in my own bed and use my own shower 
. I am going to share my experiences and things I learned on the trip with you best I can. I will keep it short as I know most people prefer to see pictures and videos and probably don’t read my blabber
Here are links to the official site, pictures, and route
* First of all, I took way too much stuff. I pretty much followed the BAK checklist to a T. Knowing what I know now I would have only taken about half the stuff. Maybe later I’ll make a BAK survival guide for first timers.
* Must haves, as far as stuff I did use and would never attempt to ride again like this with out #1 would be chamois butt’r or equivalent. This stuff saved my ass so to speak. Riding gloves (2pair) I lost mine on day 4 and I am still dealing with hand numbness. Also I guess there is some stuff called body glide, I didn’t have but sure wish i did. This prevents the chaffing on your nipples from jerseys or wet shirts over long runs or rides. 3 days I wish I would have made it a point to find this stuff while I was out.
* Lots of people slept in tents, as well as in the gyms. I paid for every other day inside and out. I had originally planned to sleep outside in my tent the whole time but after 2 or 3 nights in the rain (4th day of trip) with my tent leaking (infamous pink tent) I actually just threw the damn thing in the trash so I could quit lugging it around. After this I crashed in hallways where permitted and the final 2 days I slept in the gyms. Next time I ride I will pay for indoor sleeping the entire time and use hallways and gyms again it was actually quite nice since I hate bugs and they seem to love me.
* Privacy was a pretty big concern considering the amount of people involved in such a feat as this. Imagine only a few (pardon my language) crappers available with no doors. Oh and the bonus to this is there was a line. Not only is there no door but you have people in view waiting on you to hurry lol. This is because everywhere we stayed was a school and it is quite normal for them not to have doors on the crappers. Showers just the same, it was but-hole to elbow in most of the places. People bumping into each other and the awkward excuse me’s. Oh and of course the line of guys waiting on their turn. We quickly learned a few ways around this. Don’t always take the first restroom you see, many time the handicap restrooms are private lockable facilities, usually in a obscure location. The other thing was to use restrooms at restaurants. I usually avoid this at all costs but found myself looking for gas stations and stuff to handle business where it would be a bit more private. I find it funny looking back at a time men and women alike were openly discussing the same issues together during mingle times. We were all going through the same thing. As far as getting a shower we found some of the towns have swimming pools, this means shower facilities since most pools have showers to use before actually getting into the pools.
* The ride itself was pretty fun, plenty of scenery amazing amounts of hills and some of them extremely challenging. There was plenty of sun, rain and wind to complete anyone’s expectations. There was all types of bikes and no longer can you say I wouldn’t expect to see that out here because people were riding everything!
* The people were amazing. No other time have I heard so many greetings and got so many waves. We get snubbed in Wichita all the time by cyclists who are busy training or to fast to wave or say hi. Not the case on BAK. There’s nothing like 3 or 4 hundred good mornings on a long ride . I also met some really cool people, got to ride with them as well as some who believe it or not actually follow this blog. I definitely look forward to riding again soon, maybe next year??
*Pictures Click here for pictures I took
* The movie: Coming soon (I have over an hour of footage and am in the progress of editing it now.)
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I had just the right amount, I think I ended up with 1 shirt and my thermals that I never wore.Everybody has different needs, I think my most used items was my little porta fan, chamois butter and thermal rest.
Clothes was what people seem to overpack on. really need just 2 sets of bike clothes and 2 sets of street clothes. Swim trunks are a good idea, they dry fast and can be used for P.J.s or lounging.
The privy was a real issue at first, but restrooms got better the further east we got. If your a not a people person you will not like this tour, You will have to get over people and their little quirks if you plan to ride in BAK.As far as the ride, Kansas is a fantastic state, you will see stuff you dont see driving 70 mph.The only downside is some people think this is RAK (race across kansas). If your dragging in 8 hrs late they seem to think your unfit, when really your just taking your time.although the advantages of getting to camp early are better than scrapping over leftovers. You have to train, I was doing 15-20 mp day,for 3 mo. prior to BAK, if anything that helped me through the tough days, wind, hills etc and finally you have to love your bike and know it really well. Know how to do simple things, change flats, grease chain, etc.
Congratulations Robert. Quite an accomplishment.
Hey, it was nice meeting you! I took way to much stuff, also, man. Sorry to hear about your tent, man, that sucks. Hope to see you down the road!
Matt
Thanks Randy, Nice meeting you too Matt. I’ll be doing the Flint Hills Death Ride soon I’ll be in your alley??
Rob I had a blast hanging with you and you have come really far in your strength in cycling great job!
I had to cancel my tour of Lake Ontario this year. The silver lining is that I used the money to buy a new bike.
All the people on crazyguy who ride cross country say the Kansas is one of the most difficult sections. It’s windy, dry, hot and a long way. I prefer touring with one or two people for a lot of the reasons you wrote about.