Thailand: Expected

I packed a small backpack, and 3 small bags that fit on my bike. I was going to ride from the airport in Bangkok to the airport in Phuket, and spend a couple days riding around Phuket. Attached to my backpack was a bivy sack. To get every last ounce of riding effort possible, we were going to sleep wherever we were when the sun went down. We didn't want to be riding in the dark too much. If the roads weren't dangerous enough, the malaria-carrying mosquitoes were, which only come out at night. Erdem got some malaria pills, but I thought the bug repellent and bivy sack were enough. I brought a tarp to protect us and the bikes from possible rain while sleeping outside.

The distance between the airports is almost 600 miles, and would definitely be more with the inevitable detours taken into consideration. After all, we did want some time to relax at the beaches along the way. We wanted to spend a couple days in Phuket, so we had to make the trip in 4-5 days. We figured that 150 miles/day would get us there in the right amount of time. To do that much riding, I brought about 15 Clif bars that were certain to be necessary. I also brought some tupperware and plastic bags to save food from restaurants. We were going to need to eat a lot of food.

Even eating as much food as I could, I knew it wouldn't be enough to maintain my weight. I ate more food than average for the week before the trip to gain a little extra weight that I would surely lose on the trip. That was definitely a good start to the trip.

In short, we were expecting a tough trip.