Anybody got on with a built in back protector? I’ve been looking at the Trail pack mainly because I sometimes do an XC loop around Kilvey Hill and then spend an hour or two on the DH track. Seemed like a good solution to either not taking my body armour or stuffing it in a huge rucksack

yep I bought one so I could carry a tripod in the back! Its great to use, and well made,the wide lower belt allows you to spread the load making it suitable for long days out great kit 🙂

It does make me wonder how effective the things are… The coverage is low after all. I can see it could protect you from the contents of the bag if you’re carrying bulky solid stuff but I’d be pretty surprised if it’s actually significantly more effective than any other padded rucksack with everyday cycling stuff in it. I’m not anti-back protector, I wear them for DH use and for motorbiking but it seems like in order to make it convenient to wear, they’ve taken away a lot of the usefulness.

dunno about the back protector but the bag without it is okay, really comfortable and can carry a load of gear for a full day, but lacking in internal features / pockets / things to secure stuff to etc so if only half full stuff tends to rattle around
and the pocket for keys / change etc is behind the water bladder so difficult to get to without moving the bladder