What to Bring — The RAC

What to bring? As little as possible

Your bikes.

What to carry on your bike every day

ID, Medical insurance information
Helmet, gloves, vest
Water
- adults: two bottles (if you have room on the bike) or hydration pack and one bottle
- kids: hydration pack for water, bottle for Gatorade Two tubes per bike per rider
Sunglasses
Small container of sunscreen ChapStick with SPF 15. Apply often to prevent sunburnt lips
Small bag of toilet paper and zip lock bag. Leave no paper behind.
Small package of baby wipes and zip lock bag. Leave no wipe behind
Small hand sanitizer.
Small emergency snack (to get you to the nearest snack or lunch)
Optional: eye drops or nasal spray. The desert is dry
Optional: bandana for windy days
Optional: bike tools (or find Bob)
Optional: small bike pump (or find Bob)
- The nearest chase car will have a large foot pump.

Luggage | This list does not apply to chase families

One box or duffle bag per person
- Costco black boxes with a yellow lid. 27 gallons.
  - The size we will show you at the meeting.
  - Not the ones from Home Depot.
- or standard-size duffle bags
- you pick the combination of containers you want to bring
  - these containers will carry your clothes, your pillow, your toiletries, chargers, etc
  - maximum weight limit is 40 pounds per box/duffle bag
One camping chair (in a sleeve) per person, as seen at the meeting
One sleeping bag per person, ideally packed in the box/duffle if it fits
One rolled sleeping matt per person
Or one sleeping cot, the foldable kind that fits in a sleeve, max 15 lbs, as seen at the meeting
Your tent
The more you can fit in your box/duffle bag (and still stay under 40 lbs), the better.

Please remember that

you and your child carry your luggage from the truck to the camping site.
- camping sites might be 100+ feet away from the luggage truck
- practice at home
if you bring items to the luggage truck that we find inappropriate or too heavy, we will
ask you to return home and repack.
- we pack the luggage truck on Saturday, April 6. You have time to go home.
it is our teenage Youth Support that loads and unloads the truck
- they stack and unstack 40-pound boxes up to four boxes high
- every day, after they ride with your kids all day.

Camping Equipment

We will camp every night (unless you have reserved a hotel near Julian). Please bring the following.

Tent (incl rain cover and tent spikes)
- optional mallet. Or borrow one from the camper next to you
Sleeping mat
- or folding camping cots that come in a travel bag.
Sleeping bag
Pillow
Ground Cover (plastic tarp)
Flashlight /phone
Folding camping chair with bag.

Clothing

Pack light and bring layers.
- The temperature varies significantly during the week
- Shed layers as the day warms up.
Bring plenty of underwear, bike shorts, and socks.
Bring as little as possible of everything else.
No laundry facilities along the way.
Yellow vest with name
Socks
Shoes for biking
Shoes for not biking
Underwear
T-shirts
Long pants
Bike shorts
Thin sweatshirt (which must be neon yellow or fit under the vest)
- Leave them in chase cars as the day heats up.
- Label them. It makes retrieval from chase cars easier.
- Thin windbreaker (that fits under your vest)
- Sun hat
- Gloves for riding
- Gloves for cold Julian mornings. (Thick socks will do)

Personal & Toiletries

Electronics

Phone (you will have coverage along the route)
Charging cable
External battery packs or solar charger
Electrical outlets are few and far between
Optional: A simple odometer for mileage counting.
cheap, fun, lithium battery-powered, kids love them
or a bike computer for yourself. (But that is one more thing you need to charge)

________________

We will help you and we will share with you if you forget something*.
- *Exception: no sharing of underwear or toothbrushes. We have standards

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What to leave at home|

For chase drivers

Every morning, Sabine will send you out to your assigned spot with a cooler of water and a cooler of Gatorade. She will help you refill your coolers during the day as needed.
You must stay at your assigned spot until the last rider passes by.
You may not leave your assigned spot to attend to your own child (unless it’s an
emergency)
Sabine, Ana, and Bob drive the route all day and will care for anyone who needs help.
If you provide anything extra during your chase shift (ice, cookies), you must provide it for all riders or at least all children.

Please do not offer anything ‘special’ to your child that others see but
don’t get.
You are not expected to provide anything but water and Gatorade.
Many chase parents bring signs and or/write on their cars. We appreciate your motivation.

We encourage you to write messages that support all children (and not just your own).
We love:
- You trained. You can do this.
- RAC kids rock
- I trained very hard to hold up this sign
- River to Riptide
- This is a motivational sign
- Have a great ride
- You are stronger than you think you are
- Hills don’t scare us
- This is the best day ever
- Today builds character. You’ll thank me later.
- My arms are killing me
- Ride like the wind
- Dennis is our hero
- and the ever-popular sign at mile 1: you are almost there.
When kids stop at your chase spot, please refrain from well-meaning but unhelpful comments like

“You only have .... miles left.”
- At the end of a long day, even one mile is a long way.
“You have one mile to go” when you are guessing.
- Kids get very discouraged when that one promised mile becomes two.