Yes.

Agree with you njee but it’s when you do longer rides with nowhere to stop that a camelbak with 3l bladder comes into its own.

Camelbak for me, it’s a lot easier to drink from when you moving.

The road bike has two bottle cages, though.

Bottles for racing or short rides on the HT.
Camelback for the FS, no choice really as there is only room for 1 small bottle. The battery goes there for night riding as well.

Bottle and cage for XC racing and training, Camelback for marathons and long sessions.

I always use my raptor. I can easily drink 3l in 2 hours (sometimes less!) as well, so I prefer having it on my back and adjusted properly!

I have a bottle cage on both my bikes, but I only put them on once I converted my Lumi battery to a bottle version. The previous one – 6.6Ah endurance beast of a battery won’t find along the top tube of my FSR due to the shock mount, so I had it converted into a bottle.

I normally use a camelbak anyway.

If I use my Inbred for commuting, then I use a bottle & if I need a light I use my Spokeshirts helmet mounted light.

I don’t always ‘need’ a drink, but it’s nice to wet your gob every now & again.

I always use a hydration pack. It is easier to drink on hills & bumpy ground plus I always carry two spare tubes, tools and phone in it.

Bottles + Peaks = bottles bouncing down trail
Tools + saddle bag = rattle

Camelback = problems solved

(and bottles are for roadies, I know this as I have them on my road bike!)

I use Both, but I prefer not to have anything on my back if I can help it so for short rides I’ll stick to a bottle.

I do have a Bum bag type thingy I bought a while back which will accomodate tools/phone/maps/spares and whack a 750ml – 1Ltr bottle in the cage, it doesn’t look particularly “cool” but it prevents a sweaty back.

If I think I’ll need more kit and/or 2Ltrs+ then the full pack does come out I’m affraid, although I just binned a manky 2Ltr Bladder that’s not been used for a little while, so I’d best find a new one I think…

Yes – for energy drink on long rides, for racing and for a battery in the dark.

For most rides (except races) I also use a camel back.

I can easily drink 3l in 2 hours

What, without alcohol in it ❗

if you get good cages – blackburn MTN cages here – not cheap but worth it.

havnt had a bottle bounce out of them EVER – including in the alps doing downhill on a hardtail.

use bottles for everything – in scotland ill drink just about any running water away from civalisation without filtering it

i have a camelback – i have no idea where the bladder is tbh … last seen at my parents house on the back of the patio chair 2 years ago – it wasnt there when i was there at the weekend though !

When I fly over the handlebars, I’d rather land on my backpack, 2 ltrs of water and waterproof than on my bare back. I have several times, and I definately prefer it.

The dropped water bottles of others on the trail make the above feat more likely!

I can easily drink 3l in 2 hours
What, without alcohol in it

yep, i like to keep hydrated. Only water in my hydration pack.

The mud and rocky trails are both issues for me. I predomiantly use a OMM & deuter pack or nothing at all for shorter rides.

I have landed on it a few times so it’s saved a few bruises at least

When I fly over the handlebars, I’d rather land on my backpack, 2 ltrs of water and waterproof than on my bare back. I have several times, and I definately prefer it.

What happens when you stack it at the end of a ride and the bladder is now empty? all your “Protection” is gone…

Personally I’d not like to rely on a Hydration pack for spine protection, if you’re going OTB that regularly might be worth getting one of these POC jobbies with the integrated protector…

I don’t get this thing of losing bottles – only once in decades of riding have I dropped one. even riding red / black trail centre routes and jumping with the grace of a wounded elephant.

tommo146 – Member

I’m not a fan of bottles, for most of the reasons above. Camel bak all the way for me I’m afraid, and do you guys sometimes take NO tools at all?

I carry everything needed. Pump on a frame clip. Multitool and bits and pieces and tube in a seat pouch.

Mud not an issue as I have a crudcatcher and the bottle top is behind that.

How anyone needs 3l of water in two hours is beyond me – I doubt you can even absorb that. Must have been well dehydrated before setting off. No way can you sweat 1.5 l an hour
Mud not an issue as I use mudgurads

Bottle cage lol how quaint 🙂

If it ain’t broke why fix it? Why carry round a sweaty and uncomfortable backback for a couple of hours in the woods. Why do mountainbikers need this huge amount of water and tools and road riders don’t?

If it ain’t broke why fix it? Why carry round a sweaty and uncomfortable backback for a couple of hours in the woods. Why do mountainbikers need this huge amount of water and tools and road riders don’t?

All of my Camelbak/dakine backbacks are (when properly adjusted) very comfortable. Personally I put in a lot more effort and sweat a lot more when off-roading compared to road riding, i.e. I try to ride trails as fast as I possibly can cos that’s more fun whereas on road I am just getting from A to B.

If it ain’t broke why fix it? Why carry round a sweaty and uncomfortable backback for a couple of hours in the woods.

As above, for reasons of mud in winter/summer/all year round UK conditions 🙂 I use crud guards front and back when the conditions warrant. They don’t stop bottles getting covered in crap riding round here.

Mind you the weather’s been great this year and combined with our new trails I’ve hardly used a camelbak in the last 6 months 🙂

TandemJeremy – Member

How anyone needs 3l of water in two hours is beyond me – I doubt you can even absorb that. Must have been well dehydrated before setting off. No way can you sweat 1.5 l an hour

Have you ever ridden in hilly terrain in 42 degree heat? 😉
Last year with Ciclo Montana in July it was between 36 & 42 degrees all week – we were getting through a lot of water. I think my bottle would have run out before getting to the coffee stop at Pitres!

Erm, and is sweat the only thing your body uses water for??

A few years ago on the Transwales a load of the riders went down with a stomach bug caught from sheep poo apparently, and it was blamed on the massively wet riding conditions & people ingesting sheep poo/water spray. I use front rear crudguards in muddy conditions, but they don’t stop mud getting splattered all over the place when it’s more than ‘just a bit wet’.

I’d rather use a Camelbak in most situations. All my tools/tubes are already in it so I just need to stick the bladder in & off I go. Doesn’t matter what bike I am on.
Also a 3l bladder will last on an all day ride so I don’t even have to think about topping it up.

Erm, and is sweat the only thing your body uses water for??

You lose a bit thru your lungs. thats about it.

And piss 😉

only put a cage on when going on tour. water in the camel bak and something sweet in the bottle to make life a little more interesting.

i just bought a 36gr cage for 2€!

clubber – thats the point – you don’t need to lose more than 25 ml an hour in urine – even less if conserving water.

I bet all these folk drinking litres an hour are peeing clear fluid continuously – showing that their body is actually getting rid of excess fluid

How anyone needs 3l of water in two hours is beyond me

Here’s an idea, maybe, just maybe, not everyone wearing a camelbak is carrying around 3 litres of water. It’s not a legal requirement to fill them up to the brim…

off road i use a bag. All my stuff lives in it so I can just pick it up and go. Often have less than 1L in for night rides or short rides.

I use bottles + bag in races so that I can have energy drink in the bottles. I’d use purely bottles but my FS only has one cage.

On the road I use bottle all the time. For races ~1hr I use a 500ml bottle but normally only half full as I don’t have time to drink.