Sticking with maintaining a low stress rider to enjoy the road more on a long and challenging ride, let’s look at 20 basics a lot of Twistybutts utelise.

• Earplugs – great fatigue fighter.
• Cold, mid and warm gloves. Waterproof helps immensely.
• Stick on hotpacks – if you haven’t got wired heat this is gold. Or if you get cold knees and toes.
• Proven wet weather protection. How many mountain passes are we doing and what do we find on mountain tops? Fog, clouds and rain.
• Eye drops – Ahhh…
• Lip balm – pucker up. 😂
• Good layering from base to mid to over and outer shell, without being constricted or having to walk like an Apollo astronaut.
• Screen cleaning kit – group leaders catch the bugs and all the others catch the mud n dust.
• Baby / Wet wipes…not all of us are perfect at pinching off a loaf. 😉
• Extra socks and underwear – if you can dry out at lunch, why not. Besides, you may shit yourself at some point.
• Dark & clear visors if you don’t have an internal sunshield. Quite dangerous doing those final twisties tired, in the dark and almost blinded by a dark visor.
• A few microfibre cloths – so many uses!
• A quality hydrating drink – OS-1 is a good one
• Energy snacks,.. not peaky sugar.
• A mild painkiller – just in case…
• Bandaid power pads – stops the bleed, seals it and starts to heal while you ride!
• Lozenges – Avoids a dry hoarse throat, especially if you are using intercoms all day. Gum & helmet cheekpads, ouch!
• Sunscreen – no one likes a redneck
• Music – pick your songs carefully. 😉
• SLEEP – last but probably most important. Get surplus sleep three or four nights before hand and try going to bed earlier in prep for maximising Friday night’s final sleep