Both - Camelbak - ice and water, bottles (2-24oz)carbosugarstuff. If ride is under 20 miles, bottles - all water - over 20 miles but under 40 - camelbak - 100oz. Over 40 - camelback, 2 bottles. Tour - over 1 day - camelbak, 6 bottles (4 in panniers - until I figure out a way to zip tie cages to racks.

I love my camelback but I get a bad rash if I use it more then an hour which well if I was riding less then an hour I could just use a couple bottles in the cages.
It's really nice to have ice cold water and tons of it easily accessable. On my fuji touring bike the cages are too far away. Have to figure out how I can sqeeze in those behind seat bottles.

But when I do use my camelbak, I tend to overhydrate myself due to the ease and convinience of sipping through the hose, and sometimes find myself running out of fluids.

You were shocked? Why? That's actually a fairly average price. However there are deals to be had CLICKITY
and this was forwarded to me by another member It works out to be half price

I go with bottles, I use a couple of polar insulated bottles, One has gatorade with ice, the other is mixed and frozen solid. After 2 hours of riding the second bottle is still ICE COLD. Don't knoe if I'll ever try a camelback. Don't care for anything on my back. Besides one of those would give me a higher center of gravity. Lower center of gravity is better.

All part of being away from a bike for 25 years, Raiyn...sticker shock.

I currently use 2 water bottles. However, I'm thinking about purchasing a camelback (sp?) I drink a lot of water during the summer, especially july and august. Sometimes 2 bottles isn't enough water. I've tried carrying extra bottles in my pockets on my Jerseys, but I find that uncomfortable.

I don't like wearing a backpack either. So, I probably wouldn't like a camelback. But I may give it a try.

I switched when I went to accelerade, since cleaning out hydration packs is a major PITA.

I do sometimes use the camelback as well for a long ride when it's really hot and I need the extra water.

Today, just to have *something*, I bought a (cheap) cage & 23 oz. bottle.

I bought a Sette 70oz from Pricepoint for under $20 and it's just right for me for short rides. I also await the Sette 100oz pack that has more storage space for around $25. I have a Camelbak Classic and, while I like its larger bladder fill opening, I use it with the Settee since the Sette has better storage arrangement. The Settee has a sternum strap as well as a waist strap and a pocket for your music player w/headset cord opening. Topping it all off, there is a bungee web for the shedded outerwear. So you DON'T have to spend alot for a very good hydration pack unless you simply want a namebrand, Sette is the namebrand for me!

If you are caught using a Camelbak on a road bike your roadie union card will be pulled and you will be branded a Fred and banned from the Road Cycling forum. On a MTB, Camelbaks are the way to go. Just kidding about the roadie stuff but honestly I've never found myself in a situation on even long road rides where I didn't pass a convenience store every few miles so carrying large amounts of water has never been an issue. I tend to travel light with my wallet/cell phone/patch kit/spare tube/CO2 cartridge in my jersey, and a couple of bottles for the road. For MTB OTOH, I might be miles from nowhere and Camelbak a comes in very handy. Stopping to fill bottles from a stream with dirt and giardia parasites just doesn't get it.

I ride with a hydration pack because I don't want to lose momentum by having to reach downwards for a bottle or at worst have to stop at a store, lock up the bike, refill the bottles, and then get back on the road. I fill up the bladder, throw it in the backpack, and never have to stop until I'm back home. The seatpost mounted bottle holder looks really cool though.