Features:
I stopped riding in backpacks a very, very long time ago. The sweat, the discomfort, the ice cold chills when you sat with a saturated shirt in a cafe... none of it was for me. I also didn't like how insecure they often felt, or how some could limit the range of movement for your head on steep trails. Recently, however, I've started using one again. Going between bikes regularly, it felt absurd to have four different pumps, tools and tubes on different bikes. Instead, using just one pack felt like the better option.
Over the colder months, it's actually been very comfortable to wear. Plus, the option of having a jacket is always nice. Typically I carry the normal tools you would expect, but also a shock pump, buff and thin jacket. On the front, the pockets are big enough to fit your phone, keys, gloves, multi tool and other small pieces. Plus, each zipped pocket also has a separate and additional pouch behind it. Oftentimes, I put my food or wrappers here on the fly.
Around the back of the bag is a long sleeve that functions a lot like pockets on a road cycling jersey. That said, you do need to be quite flexible to do it on the fly.
Adjustment is decent, although it might not suit everyone. The strap lets you set the limit of the elastic running around the side of your body, and the small clips on the front can be tailored to be either spread out, misaligned, or close together. The hose also features a magnet to keep it up and out of the way.
Will I continue to run it over the summer? Maybe. I quite like the idea of carrying more fresh water than I need rather than hoping to find fast-running streams over the hot BC summer.
