Can you list the top 5 purchases that you've made in the last few years which have made your cycling, in general, and cycletouring, specifically, more comfortable and enjoyable?
I've got a whole list of purchases, but making the top 5 cut would have to be:
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Machak: my Marinoni Ciclo. A bicycle that FITS!
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MEC Rain Jacket. I have lived in that jacket for the past couple years.
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Brooks B-17 Saddle. I sit in that saddle for thousands and thousands of kilometers and it just keeps getting more comfortable.
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Lake Mtn Bike shoes. I can ride thousands of kilometers AND do long hikes in them!
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Thermarest mattress. There is nothing like a good night's sleep at the end of a long day's ride.
Honourable mention also has to go to:
-- Bento Bag - it made eating while on the bicycle a piece of cake ... sometimes I eat pieces of cake now!
-- Sarong - one of the most versatile pieces of ... clothing? ... I've ever owned.
-- Topeak Road Morph Pump - even
I can pump my own tires up now.
-- Topeak Alien Multitool - I could build a bicycle from scratch with that thing.
-- Balaclava - I don't leave home without it!