The Evolution of Bike Trip Refreshment

© Ken Bingenheimer / RumBum.com

The OFMC has learned the art of stopping for a drink while on the road.

Join us each week to get a view from the road in "The Bike Life."

In the early days of the OFMC, an army surplus canteen that I carried strapped to my belt was the only refreshment Bill and John and I had when we would stop along the road. This summer, when the nine of us stopped to let some storm clouds pass ahead of us, we broke out cold beers from a variety of custom-designed motorcycle coolers. We’ve come a long way.

To tell the truth, the canteen was adequate. But “adequate” meant that there were times on hot days when we were drinking water that was probably 90 degrees. It was wet, and it provided hydration, but that was about all. It didn’t exactly quench your thirst.

At times we carried cans of beer left over from a six-pack or a twelve-pack the night before, and if there was a cold mountain stream at hand we would let them chill awhile. That was a treat when it was available but you can’t always count on having a mountain stream close at hand.

Then one year I lit a spark that had results I never dreamed of. I had a soft cooler that was big enough to hold six cans of pop or beer and a little ice. Empty, it folded down to almost nothing. Opened up, it could be loaded and then strapped on on top of my other bags with a bungee. The ice didn’t last long because the insulation was not that good, and it leaked, so as the ice melted it dripped down on my stuff, but it did the job. This was a big step forward.

The following year, Bill showed up with something he had rigged up. It was a larger plastic cooler and he managed to strap it onto the rack behind his seat. Being bigger, it held more ice, and it didn’t drip. Now, it was fairly flimsy, so the bungee straps bent it out of shape, but once again it was a step forward. It was still easier to share my canteen than undo the straps and go fishing in the cooler, but the canteen was getting used less.

With Bill the one left to hassle with the cooler, John and I were perfectly happy with this arrangement, but Bill was not. A few years went by and he showed up with something new. There are a variety of types of motorcycle luggage, and one type is a bag that sits on the seat behind the rider and is held in place by a pocket on the back that slips down over the passenger backrest, or “sissy bar,” as they’re called. Bill’s had the main compartments directly behind him but there was another, smaller compartment behind the sissy bar. It zipped open at the top for easy access and was very roomy. Bill got a heavy plastic liner and cut it to size so there would be no issue with leaks or drips.

From that point on it was just a matter of hitting the motel ice machine in the morning and loading any leftover cans or bottles in, with cold refreshment guaranteed somewhere down the road. Additionally, we frequently buy cold beverages at gas stops, so now if you didn’t drink all that Gatorade, you’d just unzip the bag and toss it in. How are you going to improve on that?

For a long time we didn’t. Just as my tank bag, with the map display on top for easy reference, became the gathering spot before we hit the road again, Bill’s cooler bag became the gathering spot when we stopped. But then we were joined by new OFMC members and more of the bikes were new, with modern gear, and Bill’s cooler bag was no longer the only one. Jason’s new set-up, in particular, makes us feel like we’ve hit the apex, but don’t underestimate American ingenuity.

Jason came this year on his new Harley and one of the things he added to it was a custom-designed cooler bag that straps perfectly into an odd-shaped spot. It holds six cans and has a gel lining that you chill in the freezer overnight. It sits right where he can reach down and slide something cold and wet out while riding. And of course, some of the luxo-touring bikes have had cup holders for years. Whatever will they think of next?

Now mind you, we’re not a bunch of drunken motorcyclists. The guys who do go in for heavy drinking save that for the evening once we’ve reached the day’s destination. But one beer along the road during a 45-minute rest stop is not going to get any 150-pound adult intoxicated.

And I still to this day carry my canteen of water any time I travel.