Cycling & bikes - Hydration Pack recommendations needed

CycleBanter.com (http://www.cyclebanter.com/index.php)

- Techniques (http://www.cyclebanter.com/forumdisplay.php?f=8)

- - Hydration Pack recommendations needed (http://www.cyclebanter.com/showthread.php?t=89600)

Hydration Pack recommendations needed

I'm shopping around for a new hydration pack, preferably a Camelbak, that
I'm hoping to use for a variety of purposes. Specifically, in order of
importance:

Long day hikes
Bike commuting
Long day rides
Regular commuting (i.e. car, bus, train, etc.)
Urban trekking on vacation

Right now I'm looking at the following Camelbak cycling packs:

HAWG
Ventoux
TransAlp

I'm also looking at these Camelbak hiking packs:

Rim Runner
Peak Bagger
CrossLite 2.5

What are the major differences between cycling and hiking packs? Is it just
marketing, or are there design differences that make them better for one
activity over the other?

Any recommendations, either in terms of specific packs, or things to look
for?

Thanks,

Kovie
zen

Get a Hydrapak, one of the models with three lobes on the part which
touches your back and keeps it off so air can flow. Love mine.

They seem to have disappeared from the stores but you can find them on
ebay.

Good luck,
Doug

Kovie wrote:
I'm shopping around for a new hydration pack, preferably a Camelbak,
that
I'm hoping to use for a variety of purposes. Specifically, in order
of
importance:

Long day hikes
Bike commuting
Long day rides
Regular commuting (i.e. car, bus, train, etc.)
Urban trekking on vacation

Right now I'm looking at the following Camelbak cycling packs:

HAWG
Ventoux
TransAlp

I'm also looking at these Camelbak hiking packs:

Rim Runner
Peak Bagger
CrossLite 2.5

What are the major differences between cycling and hiking packs? Is
it just
marketing, or are there design differences that make them better for
one
activity over the other?

Any recommendations, either in terms of specific packs, or things to
look
for?

Thanks,

Kovie
zen

It may be hard to find one pack that fits all of your uses.

For cycling use, I'd get a cycling specific pack. It will work fine off
the bike - but the cycling ones are designed to fit correctly and stay
put when you're riding. (In the riding position, you're leaned over, so
the pack ends up more on top of your back; if it doesn't fit right, it
will roll off to one side).

Packs like the Ventoux are HUGE. I don't think you want to commute or
ride any sort of distance with that. The HAWG or MULE are about as big
as I'd go for all-around use.

"sunderland" wrote in message
oups.com...
It may be hard to find one pack that fits all of your uses.

For cycling use, I'd get a cycling specific pack. It will work fine off
the bike - but the cycling ones are designed to fit correctly and stay
put when you're riding. (In the riding position, you're leaned over, so
the pack ends up more on top of your back; if it doesn't fit right, it
will roll off to one side).

Packs like the Ventoux are HUGE. I don't think you want to commute or
ride any sort of distance with that. The HAWG or MULE are about as big
as I'd go for all-around use.

Thanks. It occured to me that cycling packs fit better when riding. I assume
that explains the triangular profile, vs. the more boxy hiking packs. I've
cycled with regular (i.e. non-hydrating) packs, with sternum and waist belt,
and it wasn't comfortable, and didn't feel very safe. Given my dual
cycling/hiking needs, it's clear I need a cycling pack. In fact, I'm
guessing that cycling packs might even work better for hiking in certain
situations, such as steep trails and scrambling over scree.

As for size, I realize that there's no one-in-one pack that will suit all of
my needs ideally. I'll probably need a second pack at some point, most
likely a small pack like the MULE for road cycling where I'd only need to
pack in some food and perhaps a shell or light jacket.

But right now I'm more interested in something that I can do serious day
hikes with, and commute 5-15 miles each way with laptop, some books, and a
change of clothes and shoes. I've tried out all of these packs in stores and
there's no way that the MULE would work for this, and even the HAWG seemed
borderline. That's why I'm looking at the Venteux and TransAlp (which is the
one I'm leaning towards right now).

But I guess my biggest question was whether to get a cycling or hiking pack,
regardless of size, and you've helped me settle that.

--
Kovie
zen

Kovie wrote:
But right now I'm more interested in something that I can do serious
day
hikes with, and commute 5-15 miles each way with laptop, some books,
and a
change of clothes and shoes.

Put a rear rack on your bicycle and get some panniers. Four P-clips,
top of seatstays and bottom of seatstays will hold a rack very securely
if your bike does not have braze on mounts. Obviously don't try to go
loaded touring using a rear rack mounted with P-clips but for anything
less, it will work just fine.

Use the water bottle cages for fluid on commutes and anything up to 100
miles. You can stop and get more fluid on rides. And supplement the
water bottles with a regular Camelbak if you want more fluid. No need
to carry excess stuff on your back.

wrote in message
ups.com...
Kovie wrote:
But right now I'm more interested in something that I can do serious
day
hikes with, and commute 5-15 miles each way with laptop, some books,
and a
change of clothes and shoes.

Put a rear rack on your bicycle and get some panniers. Four P-clips,
top of seatstays and bottom of seatstays will hold a rack very securely
if your bike does not have braze on mounts. Obviously don't try to go
loaded touring using a rear rack mounted with P-clips but for anything
less, it will work just fine.

Use the water bottle cages for fluid on commutes and anything up to 100
miles. You can stop and get more fluid on rides. And supplement the
water bottles with a regular Camelbak if you want more fluid. No need
to carry excess stuff on your back.

Not sure how the rack and panniers will help with hikes. Is there a device
that will allow me to carry the whole rig on my back while hiking? ;-)

Seriously, if carrying more than a couple of pounds on one's back is such a
bad idea, why are hydration backpacks selling so well? Surely Camelbak isn't
in business to lose money. I didn't intend for this thread to be about the
pros and cons of hydration backpacks, but since you got into that...

Most of the time, I ride my road bike on 30-70 mile day rides, in which I
only carry water bottles, a couple of energy bars or gel, essential tools,
spare tube, etc., all of which I can easily carry in a small seatbag, jersey
pockers, and bottle cages. Putting a rear rack on it would be pointless for
such rides, add unnecessary excess weight, and, er, take away from the
aesthetics (ok, ok, call me vain, but I like the clean look of my Ti road
bike).

Since I don't intend to commute by bike daily, and then for relatively short
distances, and don't want to keep installing/uninstalling a rack and
panniers, is it that big a deal to ride with a full hydration backpack for
5-10 miles 2-3 times a week? I see lots of people doing it, and have read
many online reviews by people who loves these packs, so it can't be as bad
as you make it sound. Realizing that raising one's center of gravity is
never a good thing, aren't these things designed to overcome the effects of
that in part, if strapped down?

--
Kovie
zen