One thing that I don't think was mentioned was to carry some loose change with you. I always have a dollar or two in quarters for times when I forgot to fill my water bottle or it was a hot day and I ran out. A buck or two will at least get you something to drink at a convenenience store, or, maybe even an ice cream cone!

Thanks everyone, I'm gonna slowly work my way up to everything I need to be prepared (as much as one can be) with what's suggested here. Thanks again.

Fold up a couple of dollars and stick them in your bars.

Reading this thread reminds me of when I was in college, and the rides I would take with nothing except the bike (Motobecane Grand Jubile). The university was out in the country surrounded by cornfields, with very little traffic on the rural roads.
I would go for long rides on those roads with nothing, no spare tube, no tools, no money, no water, no food, nothing. This was well before cell phones. I live to tell the tale!
Today we have to have a little bike shop in our bags when riding in suburban areas, or we feel unprepared.
Don't pay attention to what they do in other parts pf the world with regard to helmets - get one.
My sister-in-law is an Emergency room doctor, she says they have a name for people that ride bikes and motorcycles without helmets. They call them "organ donors on wheels."

How long is a "long ride" that the rider is willing to embark on with no water?

That's not a modern thing. Vintage bikes often had braze-ons specifically for mounting pumps, and some bikes even featured clips on the chainstays for carrying spokes. Photographs from 100 years ago show spare tires tucked under the saddle, same as people carry tubulars today. People have been carrying bike shops with them for as long as they've been dealing with flats and mechanicals.

Well, back then there were no cell phones ... there were rarely even telephones. Nowadays we call a cab, and think we are superior because we don't carry gear "just like back in the day."

Back in the day the road might end. Back in the day people died of exposure. Back in the day people didn't have the option of living in some self-congratulating dream-world because death was a real possibility.

it is true that people drank a lot less water back then, though. I have seen an article about siome racer from maybe the 50sd with a 12-oz (probably 750-ml) aluminum bottle stoppered with a cork on a little chain, saying how riders should breathe through their noses and drink water as sparingly as possible. This was back when race stages took many, many hours and the riders did (check the photos) wear tubulars like bandoliers across their bodies because there was no caravan of vehicles and helicopters and spotter planes ... dudes took of in some city and showed up six or 12 hours later in some other city.

Anyway ...you want irony? Post #30 talks about how this guy would go off all daywithout a thing---no water, no tools, no patches, nothing.

Then he starts preaching about you have to have a helmet?

Whatever.

I like to ride my bike.

I don't know, some people who wear them are asses.......

Now that I'm a grumpy old curmudgeon, I carry way too much stuff to cover every possibility, but I rode for many years carrying nothing, and never experienced anything worse than having to walk my bike a few miles with a flat.

So ... if it doesn't matter why do you carry all that stuff now?

Fact is, we carry stuff because we think it will improve the experience.

I like being able to drink before I dehydrate (I used to commute in Florida, so dehydration and heat stroke were not just terms to throw around on websites.) I like having a Powerbar when I bonk.

I have pushed or carried my bike long, long distances, and if it was such a good thing ... why do I carry tools and tubes?

Oh ... because I like to ride a bike, not carry a bike.

Fact is, In My Experience, the stuff i carry is worth its own weight. It Does improve the experience.

As far as "what I used to do .... " When I was an infant I used to crap in my pants. Maybe "what I used to do" isn't magically more wonderful than the alternatives.

The "long rides" I used to go on were 25-30 miles; I didn't feel thirsty, but I was young and tougher then.
Now I have to have a drink after a mile or two.
I will always preach about wearing a helmet. After a few close calls, and hearing stories from my sister-in-law (most of which do not turn out well) I think it is a good idea, which is why I suggested it to a new rider. You might feel otherwise, and that's fine.

I carry "stuff" so I can address an issue if, and where it comes up because I'm usually heading someplace I need to be, but those "issues" are few and far between.

A lot depends on how and where one rides. One who rides a lightweight road bike long distances on the open road miles from resources will have different needs than someone who rides a more robust bike in an urban environment where they're always a short distance from anything they want, or need.

I often ride where there isn't cell service. Granted, it'd be only a couple of miles of walking to find service, or at least a house, but still. I like carrying a spare tube and some tools "just in case". Only takes once for it to prove its mettle. And water. Lots of water. But I like to bike 20+ miles out from home, and sometimes there are no stores on the way.

if I were to only go a couple miles from home, different story.