Hi! I’m Greg Patton and this is my bag.
So, yes I do carry a bag to and from work, but it basically carries a computer, charger, water bottle and lunch, so I thought I would go with a bag that I actually spend time thinking about what it contains. This is my biking bag (I like to think of it as my adventure pack or enduro bag, but my daughter quickly brings me back down to earth with the pronouncement, “It’s a fanny pack!”) and I wear it whenever I go mountain biking on the amazing trails surrounding me in the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley. I do not wash this bag; it is strictly utilitarian and once the mud is dry it all falls off anyways. Other than my helmet and bike, this bag is one of the more essential things I need when I am out biking.
What is in my bag? Item and justification
• Truck keys: Better to keep them with me than in the ignition.
• Ear buds: Last ride I did was a solo one so I listen to music… but at a lowish level so I can still hear bears.
• Wallet with license, credit/debit cards, and some cash: Again, probably better with me than in the truck. Also, if for some reason I get hurt and need medical assistance my care card number is there.
• Small pump: Always good to have to keep the tires firm.
• Cell phone: Great to use in emergencies, but also with the app Trailforks, it is my guide to areas and trails I haven’t ridden before.
• 2 Tire levers: In case I need to take my tire off and put in a tube (I run my tires tubeless).
• CO2 cartridge: A quick and easy way to inflate a flat.
• Multi-tool: Useful for tightening just about every bolt on the bike and as a makeshift bottle opener after the ride is over.
• Nuun hydration tablets: Especially on a long ride I like to keep these handy to throw in with a water refill to help keep the electrolytes level up. I have a friend who just pops them in their mouth and chomps on them. I think they may have broken one too many helmets…
• Spare gloves: In rainy, cold weather like now it is so nice to put on dry gloves before you start heading down the trails.
• Extra water bottle (is held on outside of bag, but I’m counting it): I have become very mindful of staying hydrated so on longer rides I will bring both a bottle in a cage on my bike and this bottle in my pack.
• Small container with Advil and/or Tylenol (extra strength): Pain killers definitely help take the physical sting out of a crash.
• Protein bar (half eaten): Along the lines of hydration, I try hard to stay ahead of feeling low on energy and bars definitely help with that (though last ride I obviously wasn’t that hungry…)
Now, what do these items say about me? I would believe that they would tell people:
• I am active.
• I am active outdoors; all year long.
• I live somewhere where it is possible to be active all year long.
• I am prepared: both to take care of myself and my bike.
• I live within driving distance of where I use this bag and will drive longer distances to enjoy this activity (water bottle is from Whistler).
• I am employed, as my license has an address of a house on it, so I can afford accommodations, I have a credit and debit card from a financial institution so I must have some good credit, and mountain biking is not an inexpensive sport to get into (I won’t go into the prices of my bikes… yes, that is plural).
• I use technology while taking part in this activity; be it either mapping trails or listening to Bluetooth headphones.
• I tend to be more functional with my belongings; the bag is dirty because cleaning it will not make me a better rider, the gloves were bought on sale so as to save some money instead of choosing more expensive fabric pattern, the multi-tool is older and rusty yet still works so does not need to be replaced, I could throw away the half eaten bar and replace it but prefer to keep it even though I couldn’t tell you what it tastes like, and my phone is covered in a Life Proof case that is quite bulky and awkward but is completely water proof and shock absorbent.
If you examine the contents of my bag through the Greek definition of text as a creation and then further extrapolate that to the notion that text is technology, then everything in my bag is a text. They are functional creations that aid me in my adventures in the woods. Some can be seen as quite “low tech” (tire levers are basically a strong bent piece of plastic), but I would like to look at an example that would be seen as higher technology. My phone has become a vital piece of text for me when I go on my rides. Yes, it does it’s basic functions as a communication device with other people and as an emergency connection if aid is needed. But it has opened up another language for me in the form of cartography. The app Trailforks allows me to map out rides at different locales using a language that I quickly understand: take gravel road (purple trail) up to trailhead (green, blue, black, or red) and then start riding down, being mindful of bridges, jumps, and gaps (icons on the digital trail). Riders will also leave notes about descriptions and conditions of trails and alerts if trees have fallen and blocked them. To a non-rider, or trail hiker, this language may not make sense or be entirely helpful, but for me it has become something that I take part in before every endeavor out into the woods.
I’m a Vice Principal and that notion always brings forth the image of Asst. Principal Richard Vernon from Breakfast Club or Principal Edward R. Rooney in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off; suit wearing, hard-nosed, yet somewhat bumbling. When I actually think about it, my bag does reflect my outwardly projection, which is quite a far cry from John Hughes’ narrative of a school administrator. I find myself far more function over fashion; I worry way more about how the school runs than how people perceive me. Given the choice between giving a tour of our new school to senior administrators and helping a teacher get their projector functioning I will always choose the later. I tend to find my image as more down to earth; worrying about if everything is running well.
Now, if you had asked me 25 years ago to look in my bag things would be different. It would still be a bike bag; just not a mountain bike one but a commuter bag. It would be full of books, food water, and dress clothes as I commuted to my full time job as an Optician in North Vancouver during the day then out to UBC for night courses to complete my degree. Again, this bag would be primarily functional, but way more cumbersome, yet still vital to the success of the activity at hand; graduation.
I can only hope when the future Indiana Jones, whip in hand, stumbles upon my enduro bag (fanny pack) that he can devise that the person who owned this bag was someone who loved being outside on some sort of basic transportation that did not need highly technical tools to keep it working. With a closer examination of the contents he may hypothesize that this outdoor experience could be enhanced with the use of some text technologies that were apparent on their communication device and which showed the use of communication through lines and colours. That this person cared more for what the contents of the bag could do for them than what the bag could represent as a symbol in their culture. Function over fashion.
One Comment
Hi Greg! Like you, I also used a regularly used “activity” bag for this task. I especially enjoyed the way you described the items in your bag and how your sense of humour brought the description to life. I also connected with your description of text as technology when you said, “Then everything in my bag is a text. They are functional creations that aid me in my adventures in the woods,” helped to provide further context of what the “text” meant.