Alongside the Swedish brand Thule’s range of backpacks, its Rail Hip Pack offerings provide an alternative method of carrying riding essentials. Available in three sizes (0L, 2L & 4L), the Rail Hip Pack is ideal for riders who don’t want the bulk of a full-blown backpack, but still need to carry hydration, nutrition and tools out on the trail.
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Thule Rail 2L Hip Pack – $129
Shown here, the Thule Rail Hip Pack 2L is on the smaller side and weighs just 230g. However, it still manages to pack (*ahem*) in a load of high-quality features. There are dedicated holsters for carrying two water bottles, and these are wrapped with stretchy stuff pockets for packing food and gels that you can easily access without having to take the pack off.
Inside the main zippered compartment you’ll find segmented pouches for organising your tools and spares, and there’s a dedicated felt-lined phone pocket on the front for carrying your Nokia 3310 or perhaps even a BlackBerry (ooh fancy!).
The elasticated waistband offers surprisingly good stability, thanks to the addition of a nylon buckle and dual tension straps. Tightening the waist straps adds tension across the bottles, helping to minimise wiggling and jiggling. Also nice to see is the perforated foam padding, which is good for both comfort and ventilation.
Thule Rail 4L Hip Pack – $199
The Thule Rail Hip Pack 4L is the biggest bum bag option in the range, and comes with a 1.5L hydration bladder included. Manufactured by Hydrapak, the bladder uses a sliding closure system for ease of cleaning, and a soft bite valve for getting fluids into your cake hole. A clever trick brought over from the Thule Rail & Vital backpacks is the magnetic strip for the hose, which does a brilliant job of stopping it from flapping about all over the place. However, Southpaws should take note – the hose routing is biased for right handed use.
Like the Rail 2L, the Rail 4L gets a dedicated phone pouch on the front. A big looped cord for the zipper makes this quite easy to access while you’re riding, useful for mid-ride TikTok’ing, levelling up on Snake, or angrily commenting on Flow’s latest social media post. There’s also the same stretch pouches on each waist, a zippered main compartment with interior organiser pockets, and a front flap that’s just the right size for a lightweight wind jacket.
