If I had to do it over...

What would I do differently if I did Bike & build again? What would I do the same? Some of these things are really minor details, but would be nice. I was talking to some of my teammates about this when we met up in New York over New Year's. They laughed at a few of my ideas, but I will post anyway. I know we talked about more things, but this is a start.

• Stuff sacks - keep things organized in my luggage and save space
• Location enabled for photos on my phone - I have no idea where some of the photos were taken
• Smaller camera - I took my DSLR. I just need memories for a summer like that and not the next cover of Nat'l Geo
• Better tires - I used Rubino Pros that I use for training and racing. I would want something a little more durable and would be willing to sacrifice performance.
• Camera mounts - I brought one mount for my Contour camera. I wish I had brought my other primary for rear facing shots.
• Chalking - I wish I would have chalked more. Chalking can provide a lot of encouragement to riders behind you during the day. I often would not want to get off my bike halfway up a mountain to do this, but I think my teammates deserved more than what I did.
• Pictures of the host - I don't remember a lot of the places we stayed. Last summer was kind of a blur.
• Bike fit - I would have done this before the trip. I got it done in Dallas. As you put in more miles the more things you notice that are "wrong" with the bike. Minor adjustments can make a huge difference in the comfort of your ride.

They laughed at these:

• Hose nozzle - makes washing bikes and bodies easier and uses less water
• Maybe sink hose nozzle to fill water jugs - something like this
• It was a pain to fill the 5 gallon jugs with a pitcher or pot, but then again if we had this, would we even be able to find it in the trailer?

What I really enjoyed having:

• Solar powered radio - this made lunch much more fun
• Phone tether - I could get on the internet when others couldn't
• Everything usb rechargeable - plug it in my laptop and don't have to worry about batteries
• Two way radio - these were pretty fun, but didn't have too much chance to use them
• Extra water bottles - I had four on my bike at all times. Bike & Build requires two in addition to the hydration pack. There were days when I was glad I had four when I ran out of water.
• External hard drive - grab everyone's videos at the end of the trip
• Lemon flavor packets - my mom gave me some of these when I passed through my hometown. After a while you get sick of water, and a little flavor is nice in the evenings when drink choice is limited.
• Hammock - enough said

Here's the thing. I am doing it again! Surprise!