Hi Everyone

Could anyone recommend a daily commute backpack (3L area would be sufficient) that DOES NOT create shoulder pain?
I'm currently using a Camelbak and my shoulder's get so sore that I have to see a massage therapist regularly to get the "knots" out.
Even with 5 pounds of load, it's painful, and my commute is 20 miles both ways, about 1 hour ride, nothing major.

Forgot to add that I have a carbon bike so unfortunately racks are out of the question.

EDIT: I found the Ergon backpacks, but there smallest is a 12 litre.

Thanks!
Mike

Something with a good padded waist strap so you can support the weight on your hips instead of your shoulders. Go to a good backpacking/outdoors store.

Something like this maybe....

https://www.rei.com/product/778467

How 'bout a rack & pannier?

Lumbar pack

This is the one I use: https://www.campsaver.com/itemmatrix....6&MatrixType=1


I also have the optional shoulder straps....they fit very loose and have a chest strap, I don't even know they are there.

https://www.rei.com/product/745643 try this, completely bypass the shoulders

Mine can hold six rolls of tp. Had a Vaude' pack with the mesh frame
and waist belt. Kinda small but the theory was there. Glanced at a
pack in bicycle magazine I thought had potential. Canted bottle holders.
The REI Flashpack looked good too. Allways wondered how an asp pack held up.

Yea +1, rack and panniers are the way to go. free yourself

Some carbon bikes can take racks. I'd talk with your bike shop about your particular frame, because an appropriate rack really does solve your problem. It's also possible that a saddlebag could work on your frame. Velo Orange sells adapters so you can use cargo sized saddlebags on saddles without bag loops. The frame *may* also be able to handle a frame pack. Very '80s, but the point is to get around without killing yourself with pain.

Unfortunately, I'm not aware of a backpack that would make a 40 mile trip comfortable. That is far in excess of what I'm willing to use a pack for. You need a lot of upper body and core strength to make biking with a backpack comfortable. 20 miles with a 5-10lb load is about the most I'd do, and for that I need to do regular weight work or I'll be wiped out afterwards.

I do find my messenger bag is somewhat more comfortable. It's a cheapola one, but it's sized right for my body, and when it's snugged up to me so the weight distributes over my hips on a bike, it is *much* less painful. I still wouldn't do long trips with just it tho. The average college student using one keeps the strap *way* long, and that's flat out painful. I expect for a 20 mile trip, I'd need to stop midway to flip the bag to my other shoulder because the weight distribution is not great. A more expensive bag with a secondary strap *might* solve the problem. For a 40 mile trip, I'd still need to build up my upper body strength and core strength.

Long term your best bet may be to use a somewhat sturdier bike for your commute. It doesn't have to be a heavy clunker, just something where a handlebar bag or a rear rack is part of the design spec. You've got a long commute, so an appropriate bike makes sense.

"Forgot to add that I have a carbon bike so unfortunately racks are out of the question."

Can you attach a seatpost rack?



Even if your bike is all carbon, so long as the seat tube is round you can attach one of these. I've ridden a full carbon Madone with one through the South of France no problem. All you need is a racktop bag.

Otherwise, if your stuff is compact, you could maybe try a frame bag? I used to commute with a backpack, but it was killer in the summer with the heat, never mind the shoulder discomfort. Once I switched to a rack and panniers, there was no going back.

HA! +1

I was using my camelbak too and today I decided to switch to this bag. (I have it in black)

They also sell the shoulder straps if you want extra support.

Given the amount that OP is hauling, rack+panniers (or rack+anything) seems like overkill. I'd definitely go with the lumbar pack -- that's what I like to use for light hiking too.

Since a rack is out of the question, a backpack with a chest strap and waist strap takes a lot of weight off of your shoulders. I've only ever used them for hiking, so I don't know how much this might hinder your ability to expand your chest to breath for cycling. There are quite a few smaller packs with waist straps and if you can't find one with a chest strap, there are "after market" kits for adding them.

Not a problem at all. There is no reason to cinch everything down like a straight jacket...well, unless you actually need a straight jacket, but I am much better now thank you.

Even if it is the best solution hands-down, I would not put any panniers or seatpost rack, just not comfortable with the idea on a carbon bike.

I think the lumbar solution is the way to go, at least for my capacity requirements.

When leaning forward, the lumbar strap doesn't irritate or interfere with breathing? I tend to use my diaphragm extensively for breathing so I foresee potential interference there... can anyone comment on this?

Thanks everyone for your great insights. :thumbs:

You cinch up the waist belt just enough so the pack sits in the small of your back. The shoulder straps and chest strap are adjusted pretty loose...plenty of room to move and breath. It's not like a back pack where the shoulder straps are attempting to bear most of the weight on your upper back...the waist strap bears most of the weight, while the shoulder/chest straps just displace and stabilize. YMMV

You can add a Carradice Saddlebag; if your saddle lacks the rear slots you can get a set that bolt onto the saddle rails or an "uplift" frame which bolts to the seatpost.
Some of the carradice models use an SQR quick-release system.
Saddlebags can take as much volume as a backpack and a much heavier load. They dont need the big, heavy metalwork of racktop bags so have the best weight/volume ratio of any luggage system and are very aerodynamic.

Well just got back from the store, tried a lumbar pack, and as I suspected there is too much restriction on the diaphragm area. Great support on the hips, but I didn't find that I would be able to get a full breath every time.

I wouldn't feel comfortable putting anything on the carbon seatpost, especially since it's an integrated carbon.

Wow, I just wrote this long reply about the same topic in this other thread:
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...=1#post8750399

I'm lazy - I'm just going to copy and paste it here:

I would just put a rack on your Tarmac. (Yes, I do realize it's full carbon fiber and has no rack mounts, but I'm not advocating doing anything that might hurt your frame)

When I first got mine, I tried to figure out how to put a rack on it, but I definitely didn't want to do something sketchy like clamping rack mounts to my Tarmac frame. I considered replacing the seat post with aluminum one and using a clamp-on rack, but I wasn't fond of what I heard about the clamp on rack and I didn't want to do anything to reduce the ride quality (supposedly the carbon fiber seatpost reduces road vibration - what I know for sure is my but never hurts from hitting a bump :-)).

I had heard everything about how carbon fiber is fragile and it would be dangerous but after a while I started to think about it. How is it that my bike can support my 200lb body weight but it couldn't support 5 pounds of a rack and gear? It doesn't make sense.

So I started looking at racks and found one that was designed for a carbon fiber frame. The trick is to mount the rack in places where the bike is designed to hold weight. So the bottom, weight bearing part of the rack just mounts through the rear wheel skewer. That's the part that bears the weight between my 200 pound body and the rear wheel. This particular rack mounted the top part (the part that attaches to keep your rack from sliding off the back of your bike) directly under the rear brake. The rear brake mount is designed to take the pressure of you throwing on the brakes at 20 mph or more. Thing is it's really skinny and I'm a little dubious about mounting there - the jury is still out in my mind. But I found a thing that replaces your seatpost clamp that adds a mount for attaching your rack. I can't imagine a seatpost that's designed to hold 200 pounds or more is going to have any sort of issue holding onto your rack, even if you put 20-30 pounds on it. Maybe more - I mean, we're talking about a seatpost, and it's not even the weight bearing attachment (that's the rear skewer).

Here's the first rack I found - an Axiom Streamliner Road Bike Rack:
https://www.eriksbikeshop.com/ride/pr...ffset=2&s_id=0

Tubus makes racks, to - see this thread I created specifically about "How to mount a rack safely on a full carbon fiber bike" for a lot more details and rack options:
https://www.bikeforums.net/commuting/510439-solution-want-rack-my-carbon-road-bike-i-hadn-t-seen-before.html

EDIT: Sorry, I meant to link to this thread I created specifically about all the options available for safely mounting a rack on a carbon frame:
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...70#post8344070

what about handlebar bags? https://topeak.com/products/Bags/TourGuideHandlebarBag this one has a 5L capacity.

My apologies, at the end of my last post I meant to link to a thread I created specifically about safely adding a rack to a full carbon bike:
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...70#post8344070

I've seen this Tubus Fly rack on a road bike in person, and it's the nicest looking rack on the bike I've seen:

Buy a couple year old used Trek 1500 (or something similar) and throw a rack on it. Save the carbon for the weekends.

Ok accept your no rack on carbon seatpost, stays etc restriction

how about a large underseat bag, I used to used one (still have it some wear) it velcroed around the seatpost, had loops for the saddle rails. it was like a huge wedge bag.... certainly it had 3 l of capacity...and straps underneath that I used to strap a pair of shoes to.

No worries, and thanks for contributing.