{"id":4483,"date":"2016-03-06T11:51:17","date_gmt":"2016-03-06T19:51:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gonesouthblog.com\/?p=4483"},"modified":"2016-03-06T11:51:17","modified_gmt":"2016-03-06T19:51:17","slug":"our-cook-kit-for-bicycle-touring","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/rideeatcamp.local\/our-cook-kit-for-bicycle-touring\/","title":{"rendered":"Our cook kit for bicycle touring"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Over the years I\u2019ve made changes to most pieces of equipment we use for bicycle touring. From toothpaste to tent stakes, everything is open for scrutiny. Nothing is safe from the wary eye of the gear nerd. If there\u2019s a way to further optimize and refine the pack list, I\u2019m game to experiment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignnone size-full wp-image-4486\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"511\" src=\"http:\/\/www.rideeatcamp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/P1050183.jpg\" alt=\"Our simple cook kit complete with new windscreen cone but our old alcohol stove.\" class=\"wp-image-4486\"\/><figcaption>Our simple cook kit complete with new windscreen cone but our old alcohol stove.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Our cook kit however has managed to evade replacement since our 2007 trip to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.rideeatcamp.com\/category\/new-zealand\/\">New Zealand<\/a>. What gives? There\u2019s got to be plenty of ways to take food prep from drab to fab. What about a bigger knife? Or how about toting a custom spice supply? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Maybe it\u2019s just us, but when we\u2019re riding several hours every day, day after day, the last thing on our minds when we roll into camp is how we\u2019re going to prepare a four-course meal. The only thing we worry about is how quickly we can get food into our mouths. Meals with a few ingredients that cook quickly, or don\u2019t need cooking, take priority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With our simple needs a simple cook kit is all that\u2019s needed. Here\u2019s what we brought to New Zealand:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Evernew-Titanium-Non-Stick-Pot-1-3-Liter\/dp\/B000AQYYE2\/ref=sr_1_2?s=sporting-goods&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1457227760&amp;sr=1-2&amp;keywords=evernew+1.3\">1.3L titanium pot and lid<\/a><\/li><li>homemade alcohol stove from cat food cans<\/li><li>homemade pot stand from a spoke<\/li><li>homemade wind screen from an oven liner<\/li><li>Bic lighter<\/li><li>two spoons<\/li><li>fuel bottle of denatured alcohol<\/li><li>two <a href=\"http:\/\/www.paddlinglight.com\/reviews\/review-orikaso-fold-flat-bowl\/\">Orikaso folding bowls<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/product\/739246\/flatworld-orikaso-plate\">Orikaso plate<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Leatherman-Juice-C2-Granite-Gray\/dp\/B00IYOMTKI\/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1457226072&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=leatherman+juice+c2\"><del>Leatherman Juice C2<\/del><\/a> (4\/3\/16 &#8211; We ditched the Juice for a dedicated pocket knife and military-style can opener.)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>You see that list? No sporks! Sporks are terrible. So are plastic utensils. We broke or melted several during the trip. Then we came upon <a href=\"http:\/\/www.seatosummit.com\/product\/?item=Short+Spoon&amp;o1=0&amp;o2=0&amp;o3=341\">a good metal spoon<\/a>\u2014in fact the best metal spoon on the planet. A pair of them stash in the pot, weigh little, and do a fabulous job scooping and scraping.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This is the same kit we\u2019ll be using when we depart for Europe in May, except I\u2019ve finally found room for improvement. While functional, the wind screen and pot stand have never been above average. The pot stand isn\u2019t stable and the wind screen doesn\u2019t live up to its name. Our original stove singed a picnic table in Iceland because the flame kept getting bullied by the breeze bellowing through the poor excuse for our windscreen. The stand and screen have stayed employed however because they never complain. But at their age they\u2019re hearing the trumpet calls from the great recycling bin in the sky. It\u2019s time for the young and the shiny to take their place. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignnone size-full wp-image-4485\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1024\" height=\"683\" src=\"http:\/\/www.rideeatcamp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/P1050182.jpg\" alt=\"While it looks like a windscreen, it sure doesn't act like one. \" class=\"wp-image-4485\"\/><figcaption>While it looks like a windscreen, it sure doesn&#8217;t act like one.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>So today, with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=VerP7-aiEBw&amp;feature=youtu.be\">old man Internet providing me insight<\/a>, I made a new pot stand and windscreen cone a la the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.traildesigns.com\/stoves\/caldera-sidewinder\">Trail Designs Sidewinder<\/a>. The cone took two attempts to get right and cost me about $15 in material. I have enough material for three more cones. Three bucks a cone is a fine price for an upgrade. I\u2019d have to pony up far more for the commercial version, which while made from titanium, includes a bunch of other stuff I don\u2019t want.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image alignnone size-full wp-image-4487\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"1020\" height=\"683\" src=\"http:\/\/www.rideeatcamp.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/P1050180.jpg\" alt=\"The new windscreen cone also supports the pot about an inch above the alcohol stove. This setup should be an excellent upgrade.\" class=\"wp-image-4487\"\/><figcaption>The new windscreen cone also supports the pot about an inch above the alcohol stove. This setup should be an excellent upgrade.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>I also decided to replace my homemade cat food can stove with something that doesn\u2019t look like a stove made from cat food cans. The <a href=\"http:\/\/www.woodgaz-stove.com\/starlyte-burner-with-lid.php\">Zelph Starlyte<\/a> is neat and compact and efficient. And since it\u2019s slimmer than the cat can stove, I was able to make my new cone short enough so that it can fit rolled up inside the pot. Even though I\u2019ll lose some gear nerd street cred for using a commercial stove, I\u2019ll always think fondly of the meals I prepared over the cat can\u2019s unruly flame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>With the changes made to the cook kit, you\u2019d think that I\u2019d finally covered everything. But alas dear readers, you\u2019re mistaken. Next time I\u2019m going to talk tools. Like painting the Golden Gate Bridge, my work is never done.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Over the years I\u2019ve made changes to most pieces of equipment we use for bicycle touring. From toothpaste to tent stakes, everything is open for scrutiny. Nothing is safe from the wary eye of the gear nerd. If there\u2019s a way to further optimize and refine the pack list, I\u2019m game to experiment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4486,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/rideeatcamp.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4483"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/rideeatcamp.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/rideeatcamp.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rideeatcamp.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rideeatcamp.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4483"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/rideeatcamp.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4483\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rideeatcamp.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4486"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/rideeatcamp.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4483"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rideeatcamp.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4483"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/rideeatcamp.local\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4483"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}