Road Frame Pack $150–$175
Top Tube Pack $65–$90
‘Bikepacking’ is a new thing. Or rather, it’s a new name for a thing that people have been doing as long as bikes have been used for transport. It’s the current term for strapping your luggage onto your bike to carry it. The key distinction with bikepacking is that you carry your stuff without a rack, to save weight and to use a bike that doesn’t take a rack, such as a road bike. British company Apidura make bikepacking easier with a range of bags that strap to your frame, under your seat and to your handlebars. I tested a frame bag and a top tube bag.
The materials used are tough but the bags, including the fastenings, are carefully designed to avoid frame scratching. The highly abrasion- and tear-resistant fabric has low stretch and is waterproof, though the seams are not. The zippers are water resistant. All the while the bags are light weight.
The zippers have handy half-hexagon loops for one-finger operation on the go. An opening from the top of the frame bag allows access for a hydration hose or battery lead. The large Road Frame Pack weighs just 160 grams and has an impressive six litre volume and the extended Top Tube Pack at 100 grams provides a handy 0.8 litre capacity. It is padded with closed cell foam to protect contents and frame.
The interior lining is yellow for ease of locating stuff inside and the graphics of the logo on the outside are reflective for increased visibility. None of the Apidura bags are lockable and they aren’t designed to be locked to the frame either. But they sure are light weight. In fact the description ‘ultralight’ is used at least three times on every page of the Apidura website, sometimes three times in one paragraph.
Review by Simon Vincett
For more info and dealers apidura.com
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