The not-so-minor details
Positives
Ample storage for an all-day ride, rain, hail or shine.
Negatives
Can cause chaffing on the back.
While some companies are yet to release a women’s specific hydration pack, others are in the process of refining them. CamelBak is the latter type. The L.U.X.E. (a women’s version of the M.U.L.E.) has been around for a few years now and has morphed into two models for 2013.
The regular L.U.X.E. is a 7.5L pack, which carries 3L of water and fits most of the things you need for a day long ride: lunch, snacks, spares, extra spares, a jacket and warmer layer, first aid kit.
The L.U.X.E. NV offers 8L carrying capacity, has easy access side pockets for gels and comes with a rain jacket to protect your goods in the wet. We comfortably carried a DSLR Camera and spare lens in ours along with the rest of our regular gear for half-day rides.
The side pockets are glove friendly, using wide elastic openings rather than zips. Located on the waist belt they stay clear of the rain jacket and allow easy access to gels and other small items whatever the weather throws up.
The biggest difference between the two models, and the biggest innovation for 2013, is the ‘NV’ back. Four independently moving pods ideally provide optimal airflow and spread the load while you move around on the bike. We can give this a tick on both accounts. The new design also prevents the rear of pack from deforming when full.
Unfortunately for us, the bottom pod tended to chaff the lower back and make undershirts hitch upwards while riding. In CamelBak’s defence, our tester has sloppy posture in this area and when extending better from the pelvis the chaffing ceased to be an issue.
The overall design provides ladies with a snug and comfortable fit. Shoulder straps are an S-shape to compliment women’s torsos, and softly padded so as not to rub. The harness comes in nice and tight and the main straps adjust from the bottom upwards keeping the things nice and secure.
You can rail sweet trails with confidence knowing you won’t get hitched on a tree or need to constantly swing your hips to slide your hydration pack back in place. The tight and tidy fit of the L.U.X.E. also prevents the pack feeling uncomfortably weighty.
CamelBak’s bladders offer almost as many features as the packs themselves. The one we like most is the wide quarter-turn opening that allows for easy filling and cleaning. The hose is easy to drink from although we wouldn’t have minded a bit of extra length so we could keep our head a fraction higher while drinking on the trails.
The constant improvements to the fit and function of the L.U.X.E. are evident in the way it performs on the bike and as a daypack while travelling. The different back panels on the L.U.X.E. and the L.U.X.E. NV offer riders different choices if they find the NV pod system a bit scratchy.
Terms & Conditions
Privacy Policy
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Proin eleifend ante id diam eleifend, vitae ultrices magna venenatis. Vestibulum consectetur pretium convallis. Cras et quam pulvinar, blandit felis quis, tempus enim. Donec sodales leo eget nunc mattis vulputate. Quisque vehicula dignissim dui, a finibus felis sollicitudin et. Mauris rutrum efficitur metus, non tristique augue. Phasellus porta ipsum sed risus faucibus bibendum. Aliquam tincidunt, eros a tincidunt varius, mi turpis tristique elit, vel iaculis mi purus non tellus. Cras sollicitudin dignissim orci ac lobortis. Sed hendrerit velit a massa ornare, sit amet tincidunt arcu molestie. Aenean id eros at dolor aliquet lacinia et sit amet lectus. Nullam et dui et metus mattis placerat. Mauris eget tempus elit, vel convallis neque. Integer consequat ultricies eros ut sagittis. Donec sodales at erat sit amet euismod. Vestibulum molestie massa quis leo venenatis pretium.
Nunc erat ante, egestas nec tortor at, bibendum egestas velit. Aliquam interdum egestas augue, sit amet cursus dolor elementum at. Vivamus elementum, odio eu posuere lacinia, eros felis egestas metus, a ullamcorper dolor sapien eget ligula. Mauris mattis dui in laoreet auctor. Proin eget arcu ac dolor molestie vestibulum nec sed neque. Praesent sagittis sit amet risus id blandit. Sed id venenatis turpis. Integer sed nibh blandit, euismod tortor et, pulvinar nisl. Praesent eget ante fermentum, tempor urna sit amet, blandit ipsum. Vestibulum malesuada tellus enim, eget tempor arcu ullamcorper vel. In convallis lacus eu egestas tristique. Praesent auctor nisl in arcu pretium commodo. Class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos himenaeos. Praesent at libero ut sapien ornare sagittis ac ac lacus. Sed a ipsum libero. Vestibulum a accumsan arcu.
Praesent mi erat, pharetra at bibendum in, convallis non leo. Sed eu sodales ex, sed porttitor sapien. Etiam id hendrerit elit. Integer massa mi, vehicula eget turpis nec, semper ultrices odio. Interdum et malesuada fames ac ante ipsum primis in faucibus. Duis consequat sem dui. Phasellus at turpis et augue lacinia laoreet vitae sit amet magna. Aenean ultrices, justo ac luctus tempus, urna neque ullamcorper tortor, in interdum augue ex vel mauris. Aliquam erat volutpat. Pellentesque habitant morbi tristique senectus et netus et malesuada fames ac turpis egestas. Mauris turpis magna, luctus in aliquam sed, vulputate in diam.
Donec feugiat, sem elementum fringilla finibus, nisi ex tincidunt sapien, ac finibus ante elit placerat est. Aliquam venenatis rhoncus tellus, ac sollicitudin lectus tempor vitae. In et mauris vel ipsum eleifend pharetra. Sed vitae lacus et velit porttitor mollis. Duis at lectus id orci ultrices malesuada ac sed ligula. Donec eu lectus vitae lectus aliquet ultrices vel vitae est. Nunc at turpis et lorem maximus tincidunt. Integer sagittis augue sit amet justo posuere, gravida dictum nunc vestibulum. Duis maximus at dolor at fermentum. Morbi porta eleifend est a efficitur. Fusce a finibus urna. Nullam tincidunt orci ut nunc aliquam, quis faucibus purus faucibus. Duis facilisis commodo nisi ac fringilla. Morbi dictum, felis nec euismod molestie, orci mauris elementum felis, mollis pharetra mi quam vel elit.
Nulla sed convallis dolor. Aliquam efficitur metus quis urna placerat sodales. Cras pharetra sagittis purus, et aliquam ipsum consectetur nec. Vestibulum quam lectus, finibus ac tincidunt a, tincidunt varius nunc. Fusce cursus quam magna, vel porta urna viverra ac. Vestibulum faucibus felis odio, vitae rhoncus leo porta eu. Donec lobortis eu neque non tincidunt. Nunc facilisis gravida erat a laoreet. Curabitur nec diam eros. Praesent quis erat ultrices, sagittis ex eu, varius orci. Integer consectetur erat et volutpat lacinia. Nunc commodo vitae felis vel luctus. Sed eu justo ipsum. Suspendisse eget varius risus.