Well, we’re three weeks into our journey, and you’ve probably noticed by now from our blog posts that there’s a bit of a pattern to our daily routine. We wake up (usually later than we planned), we bike, we meet our host, and then we go to bed. Except for a few learning festivals and rest days, this is what we do each day, so I’ll spare you the trouble and summarize day 22 in a few short words before moving onto the real substance of this post.
Today, we woke up in Cecilia, ate a delicious breakfast of cereal and banana-blueberry-nut-bread provided by Keith and Megan, biked to our campground in Mammoth Cave where Maile rigged up an impressive tarp system to keep us out of the rain, Bill showed us some delicious new camping meals, and that wraps up our day.
Now, onto the important stuff. Every morning before we set off down the road, we each dig through the “Bar Bag” and decide which energy bars we trust to get us through the day’s journey. You must understand this is a very important decision. Our selection of bars can make or break our ride. Countless times I’ve sat breathless at the bottom of a looming hill, and thanks to a few bites of an expertly chosen bar, I find the energy to pedal to the top. To help you understand what goes through our minds every morning as we search for the perfect set of bars, I thought I’d put together a ranking of the bars I’ve tried so far.
9. Nature Valley Crunchy Oats ‘n Honey
It was a difficult decision to put a Nature Valley bar at the bottom of this list because I really do enjoy them, but they have one flaw that makes them unusable for bike trips: they crumble. Stick a crunchy Nature Valley bar in your pack in the morning, and by the end of the day you’ll have nothing but a pile of granola dust. It doesn’t matter how good this bar tastes, if it blows away in the wind when I unwrap it, I won’t put it in my pack.
8. Caveman Paleo bar
The caveman bar isn’t a bad bar by any standard. It contains whole almonds and other nuts which is unique compared to the other granola-based bars. What gives this bar such a low ranking, however, is its chocolate coating that turns into an oozing, sticky mess in the summer heat.
7. Chocolate Chip Clif Bar
I think most of us on the Spokes team agree that chocolate chip is the weakest flavor of Clif Bar. In contrast to crunchy oats ‘n honey, Clif bars have the ideal consistency for an energy bar. They don’t crumble in your pack, and they don’t melt in the heat. However, chocolate chip is just a boring flavor compared to the other exciting varieties offered by Clif.
6. Special K Strawberry Protein Bar
The Yogurt coating gives the Special K bar a lot of the same problems as the Caveman Paleo bar, but I gave this bar a higher rating because its strawberry flavor is a welcomed change compared to all the other peanut and chocolate bars.
5. White Chocolate Macadamia Clif Bar
With Clif’s excellently crafted energy bar consistency, white chocolate macadamia is a solid bar to have in your pack. My one criticism is that it can be a little too sweet sometimes.
4. Crunchy Peanut Butter Clif Bar
You might have noticed that there are a lot of Clif bars on this list. Spoiler alert: there’s more to come. Peanut Butter is a classic Clif flavor, and it’s been a favorite of mine for a long time. The only reason it didn’t make it in the top three is I’ve noticed it doesn’t taste quite as good in hot weather.
3. Chocolate Brownie Clif Bar
Now we’re in the top three. These are the bars that have never failed me. There’s not much to say about the Chocolate Brownie Clif Bar, and perhaps that’s what I like best about it. It’s reliable, not too sweet, and never disappoints. It’s the kind of bar you’d take home to meet your parents.
2. Nature Valley Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Protein Chewy Bars
If any bar could topple the monopoly Clif has had on this list, it would be the Nature Valley Protein Chewy bar. This bar is just as durable as any Clif bar and contains whole peanuts and a delectable dark chocolate base that refuses to melt no matter how long it sits in the sun.
1. Blueberry Crisp Clif Bar
Was there really any question whether Clif would take the top spot? What really sets Blueberry Crisp apart from the other Clif bars on this list is its mind-blowing blueberry flavor. Bursting with real blueberries, this bar will carry you and your bike over any mountain, and it even works as a good dessert after lunch.
And that’s the definitive ranking of bars in the bar bag (according to me at least). I’m sure we’ll try many more bars on our trip, so I’ll keep you updated on how the list changes.