UPDATE: Reviews section refreshed, redesigned, searchable: Go take a look
Curious to know if anyone does this as part of their 'on-bike' hydration set up?
No (always been more of a backpack person), but I can imagine it would work well enough if you did not mind the feel of having a tight fitting vest on while you ride.
Surely you'll still end up with a sweaty back....
Hip pack gives you more options for carrying stuff.
They’re much less sweaty than a full backpack I find. I also don’t like how bouncy hip packs are with a lot of water in them, it’s much stabler with more water in a vest on jumpy/drop heavy trails.
I prefer a vest to hip packs now generally
I use a Harrier one and find it way more comfortable than a hip pack. Much less bouncy. Easier to drink with either flasks on the front or a bladder and straw. Front pockets make phone and snack access more convenient. That far outweighs the slightly sweaty back penalty.
Some running packs are designed to have the water in the front, and I'm not sure how that'd work for cycling. They'll also be quite and designed to work on a more upright position so you may need to try a few to get the right fit.
i use my kalenji running vest on tours
really handy having my soft flasks on my shoulder straps - doesnt impact any of my positions including aero bars.
Low capacity bag means i dont have the option to load my back up with loads of stuff - generally just my jacket , gloves hat and wallet live there. - Sits high enough on my back that my rear jersey pockets are still accessable.
I dont use a bladder insert though.
I've got a small Camelbak Rogue hydration pack which I used to use for events like the Twentyfour12 when I just wanted enough water for a couple of laps at a time & enough space for some spares & a layer for night laps.
These look just like better version of something like that with more accessible pockets and a chest strap to keep things stable.
Also the Camelbak versions are horrendously expensive (current Rogue is £90) and it looks like you can get decent running vests for around £30-£50
I was looking at one to take to a music festival. Thought it wouldn't be a waste of dosh cos I could use for short rides too.
Not splashed out cos of the hot weather really, don't think it would work on a sweaty git like me.
This one is a "vest" but specified as a cycling one
https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/bike-hydration-vest-3-l-2-l-black/349843/c382m8830925
I've got the 12L version of the decathlon pack and use it for pretty much all rides now other than the bike that has frame storage. I used to have hip packs but always found they either too tight or slip down. I do sometimes use the Evoc race belt for quick rides.
You can take off the waist strap on it so it's just a vest, has 2 handy chest pockets on the straps one zipped where I keep a multitool and the other I stick gels or bars in. When I do longer rides I use the bladder but most of the time without.
I'm struggling to get out for afternoon rides in this heatwave summer, partly (and there are other excuses most of the time, but it should be easier now there isn't local afternoon school run traffic to deal with for ~6 weeks) because the downtube cage mounts on my gravel ebike are taken up with the proprietary cage for the Mahle SP1 battery extender, limiting me to one bottle cage.
But this thread has made me think a little about options to carry more fluid, if miracles happen and I go out needing more than ~1l (by swapping my 710ml Camelbak for an old ~1250ml squash bottle).
I guess there's no reason I couldn't use the fork mounts for extra bottle cages, just not a place I've ever used before!
Somewhere in the bikes spares box is a PlanetX material bottle holder that uses some hook'n'loop straps to attach to the bike.
Or rather than spending ~£50 on a rucksack with integrated hydration including a "straw," I could use my Xiaomi mini racksack to carry an old 2l pop bottle with fluid and simply topup my cage bidon by pulling over the side of the path/road... But I suspect that it would massively reduce my back's ability to lose heat and that's precisely where I focus my main fain when indoors on the turbo to stay cooler.
I bought a Montane one for a running even this year and have tried it once on the bike. Seemed fine to me and a good way of carrying an extra litre in two soft flasks without the the bulk of the hip pack.
Yes, I've had great success with running vest type things.
I sweat a lot and therefore keeping hydrated means carrying loads of fluid. I've been using two bottles on the bike (mtb, gravel and road) with the added running vest for water and "things".
I've been using a Swiftal vest/pack and also an Evoc version. Both can carry 1.5 - 2.0 litres of water in a bladder; the Swiftal also has two 500ml flasks on the front... I rarely use the flasks but the pouches are perfect for loading with snacks and stuff. Both vest/packs can also carry a light jacket, arm warmers, etc.
Both vest/packs are super-comfortable. Much more stable than any waist pack I've used. You can still access jersey pockets too. I've not noticed them feeling sweaty despite me being sensitive to that.
I'm a total convert to this type of pack.
I got one from the middle of Lidl. It's been good, sits high so pockets still accessible and just seems to work
I've got one of the cheap Decathlon one and it's great! Really good value compared to the likes of CamelBak or Salomon equivalents.
Another idea is just to pick up a couple of small runners 500ml squishy flasks and use in a roadie jersey with pockets on the back. Sure, the extra weight in the jersey isn't ideal but I just transfer the water from the flask to my on-bike water bottles as soon as I've drank the first 500ml
Got a Camelbak Rogue for short summer rides when I don't need to carry much. The front pockets on the straps are remarkably handy too. The downside is that its not as stable as a proper backpack with a waist belt and has a habit of sliding up my back on steep descents and ends up resting against the back of my lid.
Can't stand "hip" packs. They turn into "waist" packs on me the first time I hit a proper bump. I'm also bemused by the sweaty back thing. a) can't say I've ever noticed it, even in comparison to the roadie which I carry most stuff in my jersey pockets. b) if my back is getting sweaty, so is the rest of me, that means it must be a nice day, so its a good thing!
I saw an ad for this and wondered if it might help the sweaty back folk.
