In the summer of 2025, I "raced" in the Mishigami Challenge (mini version), which is a race around (or halfway around) Lake Michigan in the USA. It starts and ends in Chicago, and passes through Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Indiana. (The mini version uses a ferry to cross the lake about halfway up, is about 500 miles in length).
Just wanted to pop in here and recommend Brooks' "Scape" line of bags (https://www.brooksengland.com/scape/). (I have no affiliation to Brooks.) I was not camping, so my bike was not as fully loaded as it may have been had I been. I used the Seat Bag, Feed Pouch (other side of bike), Handlebar Pouch, Saddle Pocket Bag, and Top Tube Bags (all in 'mud green').
To give you an idea of what was packed, in the large seat bag I had an extra jersey and bibs, base layer T, socks, rain shell, first aid kit, regular shorts, and small toiletry kit, plus a few other small odds and ends. The handlebar pouch held mostly gels/drink mix, etc. as did the top tube bag (along with a tube). More tools and a tube went into the small pouch. Most tools and I think another tube were in the downtube container.
I've long admired Brooks' products (though have never owned one of their saddles). I really liked the idea of a unified look of all the bags, and they play nice with each other – as you can see, I have the pocket bag lashed to the top of my seat bag. I find them aesthetically pleasing but they were also extremely functional and performed well. I didn't see much on reddit about this line of bags before I took the plunge, so just thought I would leave this here in case anyone else is considering them.
Bike is a 2022 Cannondale Topstone 4 (gravel bike) but was updated with new wheels, and with Shimano 105. Running Continental GP5000 32mm. I finished second to last (I wasn't racing, I was just glad to finish) in 4d 6h 14min. Amazingly, no punctures of mechanicals. It was a great adventure!
by Astr0_bot