I got one of these last night from REI for $9, camelbak's new "podium" cycling specific bottle:
Some product description:
"The Podium Bottle includes several significant upgrades, including a self-sealing squirt valve; a shut-off valve for leak-proof transport; one-handed (plus your mouth) operation; and an anti-microbial lining to eschew the build-up of common bacteria and fungus. “We set out to take away the bite-open, hip-slap-shut sequence that riders had to perform with other bottles,” said Jon Austen, a product manager. The Podium’s bite valve is made of medical-grade silicone, and Camelbak promises no leaching of plastic taste from the bottle."
my mini-review:
Having used it on a short ride today.. let me say I'm impressed. I was expecting something akin to their hydration pack bite-style valve on a water bottle. That's not the case at all.
It seems to have some sort of pressure resistance system. If you squeeze the bottle slightly it will overcome this resistance and water jettisons out, otherwise, it stays tightly sealed. There is a millisecond delay from squeezing it as it overcomes the resistance. You can also drink from it without squeezing (or biting) by applying about as much suction as if you were drinking from a straw.
It also has a lock on top where you can disable the water flow entirely. I don't agree with some of the reviews out there that describe it as something you can do with your teeth; perhaps they haven't actually used the thing or have dentures in place of teeth. Either way, it seems to be a two-handed operation for me. This is useful for transporting the bottle and you can just set it to 'flow' when you first place it in your bottle cage.
Lastly, it has a fairly compact form factor. The 24oz model takes up the same amount of vertical and horizontal space as my 20oz insulated polar bottle. It's also shorter than few other generic 24oz bottles I use. As far as width is concerned, it fits snugly in my tacx tao cages.
Has anyone else given this a try? For $9 I think it's reasonably priced (consider that a replacement hydration pack valve runs around $5). I may be replacing all my bottles with this one.
EDIT:
I later found that the cap from the 24oz version of this fits (with a complete seal) on both the polar insulated 20oz and 24 oz bottles--making a great insulated bottle with camelbak's top.