28 October 2011

The Mary Poppins Saddlebag

On one of our FNRttC rides this summer, the mount for the saddlebag that we normally take on my bike broke off. I felt it break and stopped as soon as it felt safe (the bag was hanging on by a velcro strap, rubbing against my back wheel), but it was dark and we didn't want to turn back to search for the bolt that had held the saddlebag in place. We managed to pack the contents of the saddlebag into our jacket pockets and into Alberto's large Ortlieb saddlebag, and continued on our way. Shortly afterwards we bought a new saddlebag, the Topeak Aero Wedge QuickClip.

This new saddlebag is incredible! It is compact and unobtrusive, yet holds a ton of stuff! Here's a picture of it, fully packed, on my bike.


The Topeak Aero Wedge QuickClip

You can already see two of its excellent features--the pump holder straps along the bottom of the  bag and the strap on the back of the bike for a back light. It certainly helps to fit things into the bag when you can store some stuff on the outside of it!

But the best thing about this saddlebag is how roomy it is on the inside. On our 200km audax last month, I managed to fit all of this into it....


That's the routesheet, two spare inner tubes, a patch kit, a back light, a pump, a multi-tool, a spoke tool, two spare AA batteries, our alternate sunglass lenses (in a plastic bag), tyre levers, and my packable waterproof jacket! 

I'm so glad we have this one, especially as it means I have more room in my jersey pockets for FOOD!

PS: In case it isn't obvious, we don't get paid for our reviews and we only review products we have bought ourselves unless otherwise stated!

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