grand junction to moab mtb ride, field repair readiness question
 

so i'm going to ride this thing called the kokopelli trail with a buddy. it's 142 miles over 3 days through the desert. we've never done anything this long before so we're putting together a list of stuff for our packs. one topic we're talking about is whether we'll take a whole spare chain or just like 10 links or so. i dont know if it's pertinent to the question but we'll both be riding singlespeeds. ...and we both have pretty new chains. we'll be maintaining them on the trail of course, but just in case one of them busts, i want to be prepared. i've heard people say things like: "once a chain breaks and is repaired, it will never be as strong as it was." is this true of the ENTIRE chain or just the links surrounding the break? we're trying to go as light as possible.

thanks in advance for any advice. while i'm here i guess i'll just post the list, in case anyone has any suggestions or ideas. here it is:



items for my pack:

tp
toothbrush/paste
water
food
1 pair of boxers
1 pair of flip flops
small container of assorted meds
sunscreen
ball cap, or skull cap/beanie
sleeping bag with compression stuff sack
bivy sack
long sleeve lifa shirt
silk or light weight mts/capilene long underwear (to keep sun off legs at midday)???
soft shell jacket or pullover
Rain Shell
Rain Fly (Use a garbage bag to line pack- lighter and will also serve to keep dirt out)
brake cable
alien tool (can share one of these to save weight)
8mm hex for crankarm pinch bolts(also shareable)
lockring wrench for me
patch kit(shareable)
tube (one each)
cash/id/credit card


items that will be on my body while riding:

cycling shoes
socks
shorts
jersey
gloves
glasses
helmet

items that will be on my bike:

two bottles in cages
pump (Shared item)

single items we can split up between our packs to share the load:

tikka headlamp
chain lube
stove/pan/fuel
2 lexan forks
matches
lighter
cell phone
a few pieces of gauze, two gloves, 2 or 3 chest needles, and a small legnth of duct tape wrapped around a hollow/cut down bic pen tube, all in doubled-up ziplock bag. ...also neosporin, blister packs
camera
leatherman??
15mm wrench for wheelset
10 spare chain-links or full chain?
hydration bladder patch kit??? do they make these?
water purification tablets
water filtration system??? (if we just take the tablets, maybe we can take some gu2o or something and just mix it really weak to cover the iodine taste)
hand cleaner or soap (Or PURELL Wipes)