Originally Posted by
woodcraft
Hmm, come to think of it, I have way more backpacks than bicycles. Am I in the wrong forum?
Haha! Don’t get me wrong: a good backpack, when it’s the right tool for the job, is sweet, so I can totally dig having several. And, I was bring hyperbolic in my disparagement of backpacks; I mean, it’s not like you can’t ride with one.
One problem I used to have with backpacks while cycling was helmet interference. Maybe because my posture on the bike is more leaned forward rather than upright, the backpack would contact the back of my helmet, interfering with movement.
I worked with a clothing designer friend years ago, in the early ‘90s— what up Randall Roy!— prototyping a backpack design for cycling which dropped the storage compartment well below the shoulder straps, for load stability, helmet clearance, and cooling. We didn’t have the technical material expertise to pull it off like it needed to, but the concept was good and he made me a couple of cool bags which I wish I’d held onto.
My favorite on-body bag for cycling is the lumbar bag, specifically the Mountainsmith Tour:
If I really need load support, they have an optional strapette kit which I guess makes the Tour the ultimate cycling backpack:
