Originally Posted by
Steve Sawyer
I read a piece recently mocking certain practices amongst cyclists that were judged as just too uncool to consider. One of them was wearing a Camelbak or equivalent. It didn't make much sense to me, and doesn't now. Having two quarts of cool water when the temp is up in the high 90's is really nice. The wife & I did a multi-day tour last summer that had the choice of a 14- or 25-mile "warmup" on Friday night. Because Marcy isn't the avid cyclist I am, we did the 14-miler. Temp was 98 at 6:00, and we both completely drained our 2-quart Camelbaks over that distance. I also found the next day that the Cambelbaks are so well insulated, I could load it up with ice and water, and when the water was gone there was enough ice left that I could transfer the warm water in my water bottles to the Camelbak and still have cool water to drink after 40 miles.
I started riding regularly with a club in June 2004. The Saturday ride was always around 50 miles @ 15 mph ave. Not strenuous, but you have to be in reasonable condition. One of the leaders always wore a Camelbak, and he was the one that said he wanted a cool drink at the end of the ride. I am fortunate to have ridden with them.