I like to give everyone something to talk about, I ride my touring bike with trunk bag, fenders and rear panniers, I leave my night rider in place and carry three water bottles. I carry all my tubes and tools that I generally carry and a good supply of food. I usually ride from my home to the start of the ride if it's under 100 miles away, I ride the century, then ride home. Sometimes it takes more then 1 day. At the start of the ride my bike usually weighs around 55 pounds. I always have a great time and meet many new people, cycling is a great sport, good for the body and good for the mind.