First Aid Kits

[KelOnWheels]

REI has some good small first aid kits – I have a really small one that fits in my frame bag or hydration pack and a bigger one that velcros nicely to a rack or top tube.

[dplasters]

@hozn 92269 wrote:

Yeah, Dickie’s flask is mounted like this:
[ATTACH=CONFIG]6397[/ATTACH]

I was thinking I should get a saddle bag. I’ve changed my mind.

[rcannon100]

@KelOnWheels 92275 wrote:

REI has some good small first aid kits –

REI also has other supplies….

[IMG]http://www.rei.com/skuimage/624333[/IMG]

[AFHokie]

Hi all,
I really like the replies. I agree, if it’s something a band-aid would fix, it can wait until you’re home and most commercially available first aid kits are woefully inadequate. An aid kit should have enough to get you home or to a place where you can get proper treatment.

@rcannon100 92234 wrote:

Most likely, if needed, a cyclist has flown off a bike and eaten pavement. Rasberry skin burns and bleeding. Little hello-kitty band aids aint gonna do much for this. Need something that is going to clean the wound and make it stable / safe until advanced care can do more work. I tend heavy on neosporin and gauze.

Exactly, I’m not looking for a full on trauma kit, but I’ve found most commercial kits full of items I’ll never use and lack meaningful supplies of basic items such as gauze. After growing up in scouts as a kid and numerous first aid courses in the military as an adult, I’m more comfortable tailoring a kit to my specific needs.

More than likely if you take a spill off a bike, you’ll need to address cuts and scrapes so that’s the the type of wound care I plan to focus the kit. Anything more serious and you’ve likely exceeded the capacity of any aid kit smaller than a dedicated trunk bag you could carry on a bike. A larger kit like that is situation dependent such as a ride away from civilization, otherwise it’s overkill for a ride around the metro area.

It’s also likely if severely hurt you’re not hopping back on what is now probably a damaged bike. Your next ride will be an ambulance or other vehicle and at that point you’re managing ABC’s until help arrives.

[mstone]

I could have used a first aid kit after my last single-bike accident. Instead, I just dripped blood off my arm and leg, put the bike back together, and rode the 20 or so miles back to the house. Got some weird looks. I do carry a reasonably complete kit when I’m touring/camping and may be out of communication. I probably should carry something more often on longer rides, but there’s not a lot of space on the weekend bike. Maybe just a length of bandage, some pads, and some iodine wipes.

At least I’m set on bike repair.

[KLizotte]

@AFHokie 92284 wrote:

Hi all, I really like the replies. I agree, if it’s something a band-aid would fix, it can wait until you’re home and most commercially available first aid kits are woefully inadequate. An aid kit should have enough to get you home or to a place where you can get proper treatment.

I carry small and very large band-aids (e.g., 3″ x 2″) and they have come in very handy to give out or use myself. I’ve had minor scrapes/cuts and was glad to be able to stop the bleeding quickly and continue on my way without having to stop and look around for a convenience store or risk getting blood all over my clothes. One time I managed to cut my finger unknowingly and was bleeding all over the handlebars; unfortunately I was off to a dinner at a nice restaurant but after applying a few bandaids I was good to go.

[Dickie]

@hozn 92269 wrote:

Yeah, Dickie’s flask is mounted like this:

yep, that’t the one…. the 126 proof Willet is a great sterilizer

[dasgeh]

FYI, CVS is having a promotion for cardholders where for every $15 you spend on first aid supplies, you get a free first aid kit (just the bag). You can get the kit immediately after checking out, so if you need to stock up on first aid stuff, you could buy $15 worth, get the free bag coupon, then check out a second time to get the free bag. The bag is about the size of a steno notebook, so probably better for longer rides than for day-to-day.

[Anonymous]

Migraine medication. It’s essential if I’m more than 30 minutes or so from home, and can’t be readily obtained when needed.

I also have bandaids, though that’s more habit than particularly useful. I started carrying them when I had my first bike with twist shifters and would sometimes get blisters on my hands– very helpful for that, but don’t think I’ve ever used any since then.

[Author]

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