greg3rd48 

Thanks for all the feedback everyone. @deapee Where could I find this piece?

chinarider

I considered that, but they don't work if you have an underseat pack that sticks out at all and don't solve problem of water heating up during a long ride. Even insulated bottles don't work as well as a Camelbak for keeping liquid cool over 3-4+ hours.

rob214

i've got a 50 oz and a 100 oz love them use them primarily off road on my dirt bike but love them, very durable and high quality.

woodcraft

I have one of these- It avoids the leak-prone screw top,

& is easy to clean.

https://hydrapak.com/shop/reservoirs/

Maybe different for road riding, but for mtn biking,

I have regretted getting a pack that has no room for a jacket, etc..

You might as well have room for more than a tube and a power bar.

GSJon

I've got one of these from Geiger Rig and a smaller one from Camelbak. The bigger one I normally use on the motorcycle but when I'm going somewhere and need to carry a change of clothes too it works great.

deapee

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01GRGRHHE?psc=1

$9.80 Amazon Prime.

My LBS has a few sitting on their shelves, I'm sure yours do too.

Icculus21

I have a Deuter day/hydration pack that I use for commuting and traveling. It's light and comfortable, although it is more than just a hydration pack. I've been using it for about 3 years without any quality issues.

beechnutC23

Rule 29 violation

I only carry two insulated 750 ml bottles, as on most of my routes that's sufficient. When I do a longer route like a century, I choose a route where I can get water along the way from drinking fountains; when I ride with my wife on a longer route, one of us takes care of the bike while the other gets water if there are no drinking fountains.

That said, my trick for keeping liquids reasonably cool is to make my Gatorade the night before and freeze both (or if you use a saddle mount for two more bottles, all 4) bottles. Then the day of the ride I take one bottle out of the freezer an hour or two before the ride so it starts to thaw and can deliver liquids right at the start of the ride. The other one stays in the freezer until departure time. I did that today on an 88 km ride; it wasn't super hot, only 25C out, but my Gatorade stayed cold for a good 3/4 of the ride. Only when the second bottle got low did the liquid start to get warm. On really hot days it of course goes warm more quickly but it also runs out sooner. I can ride about 40 km per bottle on a day like today (25C), and when the temp goes up to 30 I go through about 750 ml in 30 km or so, which means I would need to stop for water along the way.

I tried the camelback thing and I'm also not crazy about having it on my back on a long ride. I took the bladder out though, but use the pack to carry a bit of food if on a century, about the only time I'll use it.

NYMXer

I only use a hydration pack when mtb riding. I never feel the weight or any discomfort on my back. I like that I can carry other things inside the pack like a spare tube, multi tool, CO2, TP and gels.

On the road bike, it's bottles only and when they get empty, I stop at a store or even a farm to refill with water. There always seems to be a place to refill a water bottle.

joejack951

In much of the US and certainly in the kinda-northeast where I live 30C (86F) is a downright cool summer day. For the past week or so it has been around 33-35C plus humidity making it feel like 40C+. I only got in one 50km ride during those days but I went through 2L of fluid and the first thing I did when I got home was down another 0.5L (then proceed to drink another liter with lunch).

Regional and personal differences can make a big difference in how much fluid one needs for a given ride and how quickly it will warm up. To do a longer ride in the heat we've been experiencing I'd have to really plan my fluid refill stops (likely every 30km or so to be on the safe side) or use a Camelbak to bridge any gaps or unknown areas.

chinarider

We all have to make our choices. To me, the convenience of having a ready, sure supply of cold liquid on a long ride outweighs any slight discomfort of using a camelbak. I'd rather wear it than have to bang on the door of random houses looking for water. The rules be damned.

jtaylor996

I got the camelbak skyline LR for MTB as it puts the weight as low as possible. I have enough weight on my hands already, giving me some nerve issues. I want the weight on my hips completely.

StanSeven

The problem that several people bring up but keeps getting overlooked is liquids quickly get warm in a Camelbak. When it's in the 90s, two hours is the limit. Since most people stop and take breaks on a multi hour ride, I make mine at convenience stores and fill up my bottles.

chinarider

In my experience liquids say colder much longer in a Camelbak pack than in any bottle, even a Camelbak Podium Ice. And again, in many places there is no reliable place to fill up or purchase water.

StanSeven

I agree that a Camelbak keeps liquids cooler. And there are places to ride where it's difficult to stop and buy things. That's why I have one.

But for almost all my long rides, I use bottles and stop. This time of year I'm acclimated and rode yesterday in 98 degree temps with two bottles and stopped after 90 minutes for cold Gatorade. That was do much better than bath water temp water.

Hypno Toad

I want to bump an old thread instead of creating a new thread.

I got stuck in a bad place on the 2017 Westside Dirty Benjamin: short story, we rolled out at 8:00 at ~80F into a 20+ mph headwind (reference video below). The winds were so strong everybody was slowed down to a crawl. The rising temps were forcing you to keep drinking. But there were no water stop options until mile 47 and I was out of my 3x 22oz bottles by mile 30. It took 4.5 hours to get to the water stop (I was planning on ~ 3 hours). The only riders that had enough water were carrying hydration packs (either on back or in frame bag).

I would like recommendations for a small profile hydration pack with a large capacity (3 liter); I will be testing riding on my back versus setting up a frame pack option.

Here are two I'm looking at, one on close-out and one small profile:
https://www.rei.com/product/881765/c...-pack-3-liters
https://www.camelbak.com/en/packs/R0...29bcde2f136bc7

Footnotes:

I have successfully complete this ride in these temps, but without the winds. So my typical hydration plan does work in normal conditions, but I want to be prepared for the next extreme ride.

Video of the winds at the Benjamin:

chinarider

+1 for the Camelbak Classic. Caveat: I don't have experience with the other. Mine is an older model and is 3L. Looks like this is 2.5. The Lobo is 3, but looks bulkier. Can probably hold more besides the liquid. Depends on your needs.

garciawork

I'll respond in general to the thread, I have used Camelbak's the entire time I have ridden road or MTB, and won't stop anytime soon. Couldn't care less about how it looks, and I legitimately don't notice them on my back, but I do notice I never have to stop for water, and I drink a LOT more than the couple times I have ridden with bottles only. Rules be damned, hydration packs are great. Plus, they keep my water cooler for a LOT longer than a bottle ever would.

Dirt Farmer

This is my experience, also. Water stays cold in my Osprey pack for hours.

TimothyH

I just went through this, looking for a 3 liter hydration pack for water and nothing more.

I don't need to carry additional gear in the pack and wanted one as small and light as possible. I could not find a pack with 3 liter water capacity which did not also have all kinds of pockets and zippers and compartments.

The Camelbak Classic with the 2.5 liter reservoir is the closest but I already have a 15 year old 70 oz version and so decided to stay with that for shorter trips.

Another option which I did purchase for longer trips is the Platypus Tokul XC 5.0 with 3 liter reservoir. It has a few compartments but is fairly low profile and has outstanding ventilation on the back. An added bonus for me is interoperability with the Platypus water filtration system I use to filter water where no services are available.

https://www.backcountry.com/platypus-tokul-x.c.-5.0.


-Tim-

waters60

Not only are Camelbak's great when water may be sketchy, it is nice to have space to put stuff on 100 mile rides.

CAT7RDR

I like to ride self-sustained centuries on Saturdays. I bring two 25 oz thermos water bottles and a 100 oz Camelbak. I freeze one water bottle and fill half of the Camelbak with water and freeze overnight. In the morning I completely fill the Camelbak and have enough cold fluids for about 80 miles. The Camelbak helps me to frequently sip cold water to prevent dehydration sickness.

The only bothersome issue with the Camelbak is it sometimes acts as a wind sail descending the local canyons.

I'm just a recreational cyclist. I am more concerned about finishing rather than weight and speed.

Hypno Toad

I forgot to share my buddy's CamelBak strategy on Saturday: he had a larger CamelBak with two frozen bottles in the side pockets. All kinds of good ideas, keeping your back cooler, keeping your water colder, additional water available.... And to his credit, he's the only one of five of us to complete the "Royal" Benjamin, he did 138 miles on that windy, hot day. I'm totally impressed with his ride!

Fox Farm

Exactly. When it is hot and humid, you really need a lot of fluid.

cycledogg

Hydrate or DIE!