This is really a snippet of a product review to come, but I got excited thinking about it and the consideration that lead up to it. – so a quick preview before a full featured review.
For the gravel heads out there, yes you will have seen this as a new boy on the scene… USWE (pronunced you-swii) is a little Swedish brand that got famous in the US from one simple backpack / hydration product – This one below – the 2l Outlander Pro became popular in gravel races because of its minimal size, form fitting aerodynamic looks and 2l of water! This backpack has little / no room for anything else, maybe a phone and a powerbar, its benefit was hydration and mimimalism for gravel races. This product became iconic in white colur, it stood out in a scene where colours were typically darker, greys, black, browns and the USWE logo was bold and noticed.
USWE Outlander pro $109
Lesser known is the harness technology the company uses. This is the crux of their products. It has an innovative fitting system that attaches it well to your body and stops unwanted motion, the sloshing around by using a multi strap harness that secures four points together at the chest instead of just a two point sternum strap, like Camebak. The company market this innovation as “No Dancing Monkey”. the company have multiple patents and are proud of their innovation, incorporating it on several of their products.
If you have ridden a mountain bike with a backpack (even more so a backpack containing liquid) you will know exactly what I am talking about. Having weight high up on the body (2l of water = 2kg / 5.5lbs) can create inertia in turns and maneuvers, this is notably felt when riding and a poor design of pack can feel like its sliding around, distracting and throwing off your weight balance.
For this upcoming summer and my marathon mountain bike plans, I ordered a new model from USWE. A 12litre capacity Mountain Bike Specific Pack. With the intention that this is large enough for 3litres of water plus room for tools, jackets and emergency gear.
USWE came out with a few new models in sizes 9Litre and 12 Litre and a 3 Litre, the later might be a choice for gravel, but too small for an all day mountain bike pack. I decided the 12 was the best choice for me.
There really isn’t a ton of feature difference or price between the 9 and 12, But hear are a few points that tipped my decision toward the 12Litre. I liked the external straps on the outside, these would be good if I had to carry something external to the pack. Who knows, a larger spare Jacket, kneepads or some emergency kit etc. the 9L model did not have this. Also The 3 extra litres of volume I favoured as better also, but in reality there maybe not much difference. Let’s see when I get the pack
USWE New 3Litre MTB Pack (not for large MTB Days, gravel?)
Thoughts? please post in the comments.
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Essential Gear that I like
Rock and Roll Gold – Chain Lube – super clean, wont gunk up with proven low friction. Great value.
Pedros Tyre Levers – Virtually unbreakable, light and last a long time
Silca Ultimate Sealant : new and improved this Silca sealant clogs and lasts better than the competitors
Fillmore Tublesss Non Clog Valves – a little extra cost will save you a ton of hassle maintenance and worry
Muk Off – Tubeless Valves – great colour options, core removal tool, variety of valve bed seals
Muc-Off Bike Cleaner – effective, easy, non toxic, planet friendly
NOTE: The links in my posts are Affiliate links meaning if you click through, I will get paid a very small amount by the seller if you purchase, and by small amount I mean 1 or 2 cents. I doesn’t create any bias and big picture it does help me pay for website fees etc.
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