The Stagecoach 400 is a 360+ mile bikepacking race in Southern California, starting out of the mountain town of Idyllwild, going through the hills and descending to the coast, through the city of San Diego, through the Anza-Borrego desert, and back up to Idyllwild. It’s got a lot of up and down, some real chunky singletrack, and lots and lots (and lots) of deep, terrible sand that will suck all of the life out of you into it’s gritty depths.

This was my first attempt at Stagecoach, and I’m not going to lie – I think I nailed it on the kit list, at least for me personally. I used everything I brought minus the rain jacket (well, except for the emergency spares and wound kit, thankfully). My goal was to finish sub-60 hours, which meant minimal sleep and trying to keep the setup LIGHT so I was pretty thrilled that I never was left wanting.

I was a little worried about bringing the full suspension bike as there’s lots of pavement on the route, but in my opinion, it ended up being the right decision. A lot of chunky sections and single track were comfortably rideable, and I was able to relax and take sections much faster than I would’ve on a hardtail or my gravel bike. Honestly, having more bike than needed for some rocky singletrack when you’re severely sleep deprived is great.

I would probably not suggest using this list if you’re looking to tour the route, there’s a lot of comfort that was sacrificed in order to be light and fast. Generally, this is what I would bring for any of these faster races where I would expect to just have short sleeps and reasonable weather (40F and warmer). This year, we were blessed with great weather, so I decided to cut a few pieces from what I might normally bring – I left the rain layers, tarp, beefy mittens and down pants at home.

I had 4.5L water capacity total (but could have bought and carried another L or two from a shop if I needed it, probably should have before the desert!).

Without further ado, THE LIST:

Bike:
Specialized Epic Evo LTD
1×12 GX AXS Eagle (32T chainring, 51T rear sprocket)
29×2.4 Rick XC tires
KS Lev dropper post
Lightbicycle wheels (sorry, forgot what model!)
Profile Design aerobars w/60mm risers
Ergon GP4 grips
Timber bell (for kitties!)

Bags:
Tailfin aeropack
Apidura top tube bag
Nuclear Sunrise feed bag
Tool/spare parts bottle (in cage)

Sleep Kit:
Borah Gear silpoly bivy
REI 40deg down bag

Clothes:
Nine Lives team kit p/b Castelli (jersey and drop tail bibs)
Castelli Pro Seamless arm and leg warmers
Castelli Aria vest
Buff
(An absolutely destroyed set of) Head long finger gloves
Alphadirect Polartec fleece hoodie
Down jacket
Goretex Shakedry jacket (only piece of unused kit)
The Athletic Conifer and I Like Bike socks
Pearl Izumi shoes
Salomon running vest
Smith Ignite helmet
Shimano sunglasses w/replaceable lenses and prescription inserts

Tools:
Dynaplug (with 5 spares)
Spare TPU tube, patches, and tire lever
Chainbreaker (mini)
Lube
Curved needles and floss (for repairing tubeless)
5x zipties, electrical tape
Spare brake pads
Derailleur hanger
2x master links

Electronics:
Garmin 840 Solar
Outbound Trail Evo front light (bars)
Exposure Lights Joystick (helmet)
Knog rear light
Garmin Inreach Mini 2
Anker laptop power bank (25000 mAh)
Coros Arm HR monitor
Wired headphones
Cables for all of the above 🙂

Food/Water:
2L water bladder
1L Katadyn BeFree filter
1L Nalgene (mounted on side of tailfin)
12x Carbs Fuel salted gels
5x Tailwind 90g powder sachets
2x 10p Saltstick tabs
Caffeine pill (Vivarin)
Lots of honeybuns, slim jims, associated garbage snacks, frequently reupped at resupply points.

Hygiene/Other:
Spare Voile strap
Tea Tree oil wipes
A&D cream
Chamois butter
Mineral sunscreen (50SPF)
Baby wipes
Polysporin
Basic wound care kit
Lighter

What worked:

  • Polartec fleece – I used this as a top layer almost exclusively at night. Just a little bit extra warmth, packed down super light and small, lets out extra body heat so it doesn’t get sweaty or too warm easily.
  • Tea tree oil wipes – disinfectant and antifungal, crucial when only bringing one pair of bibs.
  • Castelli arm and leg warmers – these things pack so small but were perfect for when I hit the chilly weather at night.
  • A&D cream – magic cream that heals chafing and sunburn super quickly.
  • Coros Arm monitor – lasted almost the entire race (forgot to take off for naps or it would’ve). Super comfortable, didn’t even notice it existed, great last minute pickup from BikeTiresDirect.
  • Sleeping bag in the bivy system – this is my go-to for short races that have short naps. I keep the sleeping bag in the bivy, and shove it all into a compression sack so it’s a ten second transition from no bed to bed and I can maximize my time asleep.

What didn’t work:

  • The shoes were comfortable to ride in, but terrible for hike-a-bike. I need something a little less stiff, and am considering getting a bikepacking specific pair that’s more walkable while keeping these for gravel/XC/CX.
  • Ergon grips – I think it’s just a personal fit thing, but the hand numbness came on pretty quick and I haven’t really used the outer barends as much as I thought I would. I think I’ll switch back to their smaller grips, and maybe take a look at inner barends or togs if I feel like I need more hand positions.


All in all – like I said, worked like a charm and I’m super happy with everything from the bike to the setup to the gear.

Race report coming soon!