Mr. Editor,
First, [E.I.D. presented] lots of good hints. I like the idea of getting good trail bikes and using them regularly to keep them and your self in shape. But I have long though the best comprise for distance, energy cost, and speed is a four cycle “road/trail” motor cycle. I emphasize four cycle so you don’t have to go looking for two cycle oil. Most get well over 200 MPG and have 2 gallon or larger tanks. That is a long ways. Most of the moped type things he suggests are two cycle engines. Not a good thing. I like the Honda 250 [cc] to 350 [cc]bikes because of reliability and high sales volume means easy parts availability, new or wrecks. Fill the tires with “Slime” for flat protection. If you have family members that have trouble with getting started with a clutch type vehicle, change the rear sprocket for a lower gear. It will limit top speed, but we are after distance not running races. You should rarely go over 30 MPH. [JWR Adds: Another important tradeoff is engine noise. The larger the displacement, the more noise. Some might prefer a smaller, quieter two cycle engine.]
The suggestion about the little 12 volt [vibro] tire compressors is useless in this day of tubeless tires. Once the bead seal is broken, they will not inflate a tire unless you were a forward thinker and put tubes in your tires. ( Assuming you can even find tubes these days.)
For a gas siphon hose, go to your local sports store and get a 5/8ths-inch outboard motor hose. The one that goes from a 6 gallon carry on tank and the motor. It will come with a “primer bulb” that has the one way valve in it to make starting the siphon easy. This will keep the gas out of your mouth, and that is a good thing!
Magnetic key holders are largely a thing of the past in this day of plastic cars. There is no easily reached ferrous metal to stick them to, even assuming you could find one in a store to buy. Plastic wire ties work better and give you more flexibility as to hiding places. (Don’t use the trailer hitch [channel] on the back of your SUV or inside the gas filler door. Those are the first two places anybody will look.)
Be very careful [about transmitting] on CB or any other kind of unsecured radio. The bad guys have them too. – Keith S.
James,
Just a few notes in regards to E.I.D.’s article on bug out transportation, particularly the section about using bicycles. I totally agree that an automobile is preferable. But if a bike is used as a backup or your only means of transport, then I have some advice from my bicycle commuting and touring days.
Riding efficiency is not the top priority. You want reliability and resistance to failure. Road tires and tubes are thin to reduce weight and increase speed for the given effort. Just commuting to work on paved roads I found I was getting flats every week from broken glass, metal debris, and even a carpet of acorn shells in the autumn. I switched my road bike tires to slightly wider and thicker semi-knobby tread, and used a thorn resistant inner tube. No flats since then. A mountain bike is even better and will have even thicker and wider tires to carry heavier loads and absorb shocks of uneven ground. Potholes and sewer grates can bend or break a tire rim in an instant of inattention, but the bigger mountain tires are much more resistant to those dangers. Even with mountain bike tires you still want the extra thick thorn, or puncture, resistant tubes.
The tube patch kit should be one you have used successfully before. Some are easier than others and seal better than others. Better yet is a spare inner tube. I used to carry just a patch kit, but after trying to patch tubes in the pouring rain or snowy slush, or even 98F burning sun, I decided it was worth the weight and bulk to carry a spare tube as well. You may want the thinner regular tube as a compact spare since the puncture resistant tubes are fairly bulky.
As far as a toolkit you don’t want anything bulky or excessive in weight, but you want enough to handle tire changes, loose nuts, and brake adjustments. Most bike shops will sell a variety of bicycle multi-tools with screw driver heads, hex wrenches, etc. In addition you want an adjustable wrench (“Crescent” or similar) for all the little nuts and bolts. I like a 6” as a minimum but usually carry and 8” wrench. You also want to carry a couple of the special thin open end wrenches specific to bicycles that fit on the hub adjusting nuts, these are usually about 14mm – 16mm. You need two, one for each side of a hub. You may want a small needle nose or electrical pliers for cutting and pulling or holding onto brake and shifter cables. A regular pliers/multi-tool is fine if you have one. You also want two of the small tire irons for lifting the tire bead off the rim to change the tire without poking holes in the inner tube. Lastly, you need to have a small spoke wrench. Then you probably want some plastic electrical tape and plastic zip ties, too. A small bicycle repair manual would be good for long distance trekking.
When I was in high school many years ago I road my bicycle across the state of Washington for the DOT one summer. I rode many east-west and north-south highway routes. The major equipment failure I had was that at every mountain pass was breaking a few spokes. Long uphill climbs of 20 – 25 miles puts enormous strain on the bike hubs and spokes. They never broke going uphill for 12 hours. But it was just after cresting the pass and starting downhill my spokes would start to go sproing! You are dead in the water with a just few broken spokes. I would carry a half dozen or so, as they are so light weight. [JWR Adds: I’ve found that taping 4 to 6 spare spokes directly bike frame is a good way to keep spares handy, and protecting them from getting bent, as they often do if stored in panniers.] For a long trip you might want an extra set of brake pads, an extra brake and derailer cable, and maybe even extra hub bearings, chain oil and hub grease.
When preparing for your planned bug out trip on bicycle, imagine the worst possible conditions. You could be traveling in pouring rain, some snow, or searing sun. Will you be traversing mostly level or rolling hill terrain? Or over a mountain pass? Forest Service roads can be very dusty and the gravel can be near impossible for road tires. Even paved roads may have a lot of debris or require cross country detours in an emergency situation. Plus, you are very likely to take at least one or more nasty spills trying to avoid a vehicle or while encountering treacherous terrain.
Do you have a wrench to be able to re-adjust the handle bars? Do your hubs have quick-release handles on them for easy removal? Do you have any sort of pedal clamps or other means to secure your shoes and feet to the pedal? You probably don’t want specialized biking shoes and pedals that interlock, but I found the U-shaped metal shoe clamp with leather straps allows me to have them loose enough to easily slip my shoe in and out of them for maneuvering, but still hold my shoe securely enough to get good pull as well as push effort, so that both legs work together on each half of the pedal revolution.
I wouldn’t want to have to use a bicycle to bug out since you are open to attack, your hands are kept occupied, you go relatively slow and cannot carry much weight. But if you end up needing to use a bike then a few simple tools and choice spare parts can make the difference between being stranded halfway or only having a short delay. You need those tools for ongoing maintenance anyway, so you might as well have the small essential tools with you at all times. I fit my entire tool and parts kit into one of those small under-the-seat-pouches you can get at bike shops. – JB in Oregon