Travel Essentials With Chris Doyle

Ryan Fudger

• December 22 2008
• 2,901 views
• 12 comments

This one almost got lost in the digital black hole, but every so often, my brain actually works and I remember to back things up onto the ever-faithful Ride server. Did you know that some random dude shows up to the office every month or so, takes the server backup tapes, and locks them in some bomb proof mountain safe? Seriously. Anyway, I spent a bit of time with Chris Doyle this year on the Kink road trip up to Canada and the DC Shoes Trails Trip in the Northwest. We talked about lap dances, Olive Garden, mud butt, and I think we even slept in the same bed (I don’t snore). On the final night of the DC Trails Trip, we threw together this little list of what keeps Doyle moderately sane when he’s on the road for a long period of time. Maybe you’ll learn something. Maybe you’ll just gawk at the one riding photo that I included. It’s a doozy.

1. Bottle of Aleve
Riding hard everyday for weeks straight will take a toll on your body. Everyone gets sore, some more than others depending on age and how much you’re slamming. Take two Aleve after breakfast and suck it up.

2. Camera
Pretty obvious one here. Good to have to document your travels and to remind your friends of the night before if they’re to hung over to remember for themselves.

3. Noise Canceling headphones/iPod
Always good to have to silence the sounds of snoring roommates, crying babies on planes, and Tony Hamlin’s machine gun inspired iPod.

4. Shoes
On pretty much every trip I bring at least two pair of shoes - one pair for riding and the other for “chillin’”. Sometimes more, depending on the length of the trip and how much room I have.

5. Laptop
Having a laptop on a trip is good for a number of reasons. One, communication—when you’re on a trip, especially over seas, having a laptop makes it easier to communicate with people at home whether it’s in e-mails or IM. You can even use a laptop like a phone if you’re up on that kind of software. Two, pay bills online instead of having a bunch of overdue bills piling up at home while you’re away. Three, misc. stuff—change flights, watch movies, cruise the web, or leave deep insightful anonymous comments on BMX sites…whatever you’re into.

Dooooozy!!!!!