Hey, I'm new here, only been commuting for about 3 weeks now but I am really enjoying it and definately want to continue.

I ride 2.5-3 miles to school every day (distance depends where on campus I need to go). I live in Orlando, FL so it's already getting pretty warm, and will only get warmer from here. For the last couple of weeks, the backpack has been no big deal due to the cooler weather, but now it's heating and up, and even with it just in the 80's today my entire back was covered in sweat by the time I made it to school.

Whatever I bring I have to carry around all day, so bringing a change of clothes every day isn't an ideal solution, especially since I already have to carry one change for one of my lab classes (aquatic biology, have to bring boots and old clothes). Obviously, I'm going to get somewhat sweaty, and I can deal with that, but my whole back being covered in sweat is rather uncomfortable. I tried using bungies to attach my backpack to the rear rack, but it took me like 5 minutes to get it on there securely, and the straps desperately want to escape.

So I've been looking more seriously at the Arkel bug. Are there any other options like this out there? It seems like it would be faster/more efficient than strapping my backpack to the rear rack, and would give me a place to put my helmet, which gets annoying to carry around school anyways. But the cost is pretty high, so I would be interested in hearing from some people who actually use this before I invest in it. I'd also like some feedback on how well it handles water. Even if I don't commute in the rain (I'm still undecided on this and it has not come up yet) I've gotten soaked from head to toe just walking from class to class so I do need something that can handle getting wet without soaking my stuff.