After a muddy ride up at Haldon yesterday I washed all my kit including the Gelert pack I use. It’s a blatant knockoff of a Berghaus Bladdered, cost about £15 maybe 8 or 9 years ago (if not more)and has been my go to pack for everything from quick blasts to all day Alp epics.
It seems to be just the right size and shape for everything, doesn’t weigh too much and to be honest, I will be gutted when (or if) it finally gives up the ghost.
The other one is the good old Giant XTC SX from 2006 that cost £500. I’ve upgraded the brakes, shock, saddle, post over the years so it’s still my go to bike for the stuff I don’t want to put the full suss through…and it never lets me down. I just can’t justify a new hardtail while I still have it, even though it weighs a ton, I just love it’s reliability!
So go on, what’s the cheap bit of kit you’d miss the most, that no-one else would probably use!