T minus one week

Our arbitrary departure date is June 6th, one week from today. Since I will be gone for a month and a half (after I reach Wisconsin I will be traveling without the bike) I have been putting a lot of energy into making sure I have my affairs straight before I leave. If I forget anything there is always the cell phone!

Last minute things include:

• lok-tight on all of the little screws holding on the bike racks and bottle holders
• taking all four wheels to the bike shop to get them trued
• purchasing extra spokes, a few tools and one spare tire
• picking the brain of the bike shop owner at the Cycle Cave for anything I forgot (like spokes)
  
• riding the 100 mile ride in the Albuquerque Century this Saturday
• replacing a questionable front pannier rack with a more reliable one
• checking to see if the multi fuel cook stove really does work on unleaded gas
• contacting a few folks on the way that we might stay with through a bike touring network
• ordering a few extra pairs of shorts and shirts online
• telling people about this blog