Nathan Vapor Wrap 2L Hydration Pack

This is not my first Nathan product, but unfortunately it may be my last. I really wanted to like this pack. It is sleek, stylish, seems to have plenty of storage, is highly reflective for my numerous nighttime runs, and can fulfill the majority of my hydration needs for my long trail runs. Unfortunately with the shortcomings of this pack, I'm ready to swear off Nathan altogether. I have over 150 trail miles on the pack so far, and here is what I came up with.First, the good. It has plenty of storage, and with a 2 L bladder it holds plenty of liquid for my longer runs. If the bladder isn't enough, there are two bottle holders in front for additional liquid. The design of the pack and the numerous straps help keep it snug on your body and eliminate bounce. The pack is comfortable to wear. I've spent plenty of time in the military on long road marches, or running with ill fitting packs, where at the end of the day it felt like my arms were being cut off. That is not an issue with this pack. It is highly reflective so when you're operating at night people can actually see you. The magnetic tube clip on the drinking hose is sufficiently strong to hold it in place when you're not using it. This is a great feature that keeps the hose from smacking you while you are running yet still allows you to grab the hose and put it up to your mouth and then return it securely without being cumbersome. It has plenty of storage for long runs for food, hydration, and equipment. It fills the niche for my trail running.Now, the bad. Unfortunately there are number of things. First, why aren't the straps on top for the trekking poles removable? I am never, ever going to use them, so why must I be forced to use a pack that has them, that slap me on the side of the face with every step I take? The emergency whistle is removable (and good thing too since it's pretty much useless for anyone over 50 feet away to hear you), so why not the pole straps? I only ran a quarter-mile and had turn around and go back and cut them off.The hose is a few inches too long. As is it will pound you in the chest the entire way, or if you use it with the magnetic holder will form a big loop that hits your arm constantly. I cut about eight or nine inches off of mine. This is perhaps just personal preference.The bottle holders will work with plain bottles, but not with a Nathan QuickDraw. So if you want to hold a bottle in your hand while you drink it and then shove it back in your pack when it's empty, you will have to shove it in upside down (still a pain and doesn't work well), or completely stop your run and fiddle around putting it in the back. It does not seem conducive to doing things while you are running.It comes with a little Velcro pouch that is removable. It fits perfectly on the front around the main straps. Unfortunately the Velcro is so weak that bouncing from running on the trail keeps pulling it apart. I had almost nothing in it with just some fruit snacks but it could not even hold that weight. It needs to have stronger Velcro, or a strap/snap system of some sort to hold it on because it's simply not dependable. I kept having to reseal the Velcro every mile or risk losing it. Nothing is more annoying than the sound of velcro coming apart with every step you take for 26 miles.There are two zippered pockets on the lower back of the pack. The placement is good and they are the perfect size for my headlamp or snacks. Unfortunately, the zippers face the wrong direction. The majority of the time you are taking things out of your pack, not putting them back in, so you want the zippers to be easier to open than they are to close. When they're on your back, you want the zippers to pull toward you (forward), not away from you (back). Not only for this reason, but so if you snag them on the brush, it will pull the zippers closed, not open them and risk losing the contents of the pocket. When I first looked at it I thought, those are going to open in the brush. I just had this happen on a 20 mile trail run. When I got back to my car, I noticed one of the pockets had been completely opened somewhere along the trail and my Clif bars were hanging out. This seems like common sense design to me. If I don't feel safe taking my gear on a 20 mile trail run with this pack, there is no way I would trust it on a 50 mile ultra.There is a nasty plastic taste I keep getting out of the mouthpiece. Nothing is worse than being in the middle of a trail run and getting a wretched plastic taste in your mouth. I have washed it, and bleached it, and done everything in between. It goes away for a while and then the next time I use the pack it is back. In all my years of using camel backs I've never had this issue with a mouthpiece doing this.The reflective tape on the back is great for safety, but it appears to have zero durability. I have only washed mine only once in the washer on gentle cycle and let it air dry, and already the reflective tape is falling off. So is the big yellow "NATHAN" lettering on the back. Come on guys, this is ridiculous. What am I supposed to do, not wash it and embrace the stench?Nathan seems proud of their Bladder Control System, and even went to the trouble of trademarking it. The system works ok (when is someone going to design a tank baffle system?), but has one giant weak link. The bladder is hung upright in the pack by a little plastic hook at the top. The hook has no sort of positive retention device (like a carabiner), it's just an open hook that the loop on top of the water bladder slides into. On all but a couple of my runs the bladder came unhooked and ended up in a crumpled ball at the bottom of the pack, beating me in the kidneys the whole way. Why go to the trouble of designing and trademarking a fancy Bladder Control System if you're going to kneecap it with a cheesy little hook that took five minutes to design? That would be like NASA using duct tape to hold the space shuttle door closed. Why not use a simple plastic carabiner instead that cannot come unhooked?At this point I have to wonder, did Nathan bother even field testing this pack, or did they just give it to the lowly intern in the office and have them run around the building a couple times? I don't expect this pack to withstand military testing or the stuff that I went through in combat, but it should be able to function on a simple trail run and perform the basic tasks of hydration and gear carrying. Unfortunately with the toxic plastic taste, accessories that smack you in the face, zippers that open during runs, water sloshing on your back hitting you in the kidneys because the bladder comes loose, and reflective material falling off after washing, this pack falls far short of expectations.Bottom line: I really want to like this pack. It looks cool. Its fits comfortably. Unfortunately this pack falls way short of expectations. If I hadn't used it so much and customized it, I would have sent it back long ago. If this is the standard of Nathan products, I'm never buying another one.-------------------------------Update 9-22-13I ran the Birkie Trail Marathon wearing this pack, a brutal trail run in Wisconsin with 4500' of incline on the hills. Somewhere around mile four the bladder came unhooked inside the pack and proceeded to pound me in the kidneys for the next 22 miles. This is the last time I buy a Nathan product. This pack is a piece of crap. Don't buy it.

First off, who am I? I'm an endurance athlete who regularly competes in anything up to an Ironman or marathon. I purchased this pack in order to tackle my very first ultramarathon (50 miles). I've used a cheap hiking hydration pack from Target in the past, but needed something a little more geared towards running to get me through my training and race. I've used this pack for about a month on anything from a 5 to 29 mile run, both on trails and pavement.Overall, it has been great, but as expected, as my first real running hydration pack, there are a few things I could have altered. For a few minor things I might change, I gave it four stars. I'm not ecstatic about this pack, but I'm quite satisfied with it.i had debated between the Nathan Vapor Wrap and the Ultimate Direction Scott Jurek Ultra Vest. In the end, because it had a separate sleeve for the bladder, I chose the Nathan pack. However, the Ultimate Direction pack does have much more options for storage.Ok, here are my thoughts...SIZINGMy chest is 38". The S/M range goes up to 39" and the L/XL starts at 37", which means I am smack in the middle. I purchased the L/XL thinking that in the cooler months, I'll have more layers on making my chest slightly bigger. Nathan advertises that they have straps (four of them) to allow you to sinch the pack tighter to you as you go through the water in the bladder. They do have that, but I have it sinched all the way from the start. Therefore, at times, the pack does a fair amount of moving around. Would the S/M have been a better choice?, sometimes I think so, but other times I think not. I would love to see the pack offered in three sizes to help avoid being caught in the middle.POCKETSWith the plan of using the pack during both training and my race, I purchased the Nathan pack because the side pockets seemed reachable without needing to remove the pack. They are, but only because I am flexible enough to reach back there. If you are less than flexible, you will need to remove the pack to get at the side pockets.There is a detachable pocket on the right side that I had hoped to carry my camera in. Unfortunately, the velcro makes a lot of noise as you run, the removable pocket bounces a lot as you run, and in the end, it does come off after a time. I've since removed the pocket without a thought of making use of it later on. I would love to see a zippered pocket on that side like the one on the left strap.I have not tried using the front storage pockets for water bottles yet since I don't have smaller bottles that would fit. I've only used them for storing quick items - my gloves, camera, food, etc. I very much enjoy having things on hand that quickly.Again, I think the pocket placement on the Ultimate Direction SJ Ultra pack might have suited me better, but I was afraid of puncturing the bladder.BLADDERI read a number of reviews stating that the Hydrapak bladder included with the Nathan Vapor Wrap made the water taste like plastic. It does, but only if you leave water stationary in the pack for an extended period of time (ie. leave it over night). If I happen to do this, I simply let the water wash through the hose for a minute and the taste is gone. There may be a better bladder, but I don't have experience with any others.I was highly skeptical of the closing mechanism for this bladder. I expected to have it leak out the top quite a bit. Thankfully, I was VERY wrong. Nathan should have a picture or video of the clasp to better display this. This bladder opens up faster and wider than any I've seen at races in the past and is much easier to fill. I very much like that aspect. And I trust it not to leak completely.STORAGE SPACEThis is by no means a hiking backpack. Don't expect to take a set of clothes and lunch with you. But for training runs and races, it has a good amount of room. I just recently went for a training run with it fully packed and while it looked stuffed, it felt fine. Here's what I carried... extra shirt, extra shocks, extra calf sleeves, hat, large body glide stick, Charmin To-Go roll, pack of bandaids (roughly half the size of a pack of cards), two pairs of gloves, camera, phone, mp3 player, chapstick, pocket knife, sandwich bag of candy corn, 6 granola bars, 1 pbj sandwich, 2 gels, and a full bladder (2L). And then you can always strap other items to the outside of the pack, which has held clothes for me on multiple runs very well.

I am a beginner marathon runner. I did a lot of research on hydration vest and decided to go with Nathan. I'm very satisfied.Pros:- Great even fit around the waist. No sloshing back and forth while running.- the ice back compartment on the back. I run in the desert, so this will be a nice feature during the hotter times- rape whistle. It's pretty loud. I actually used it to deter a stray dog from coming my way- lightweight!!!- has compartments on the side of the chest for easy access for energy chews, my phone, and a couple of fuel pouches. Has more space than I have needed thus far- has a very good valve for the fluid to drink from- Reflective materials, to alert those awful driversCons:- Needs to have a quick disconnect from the tube and the hydration pouch. A little cumbersome when cleaning. Lost 1 star for this reasonOverall I'm very satisfied with my pack. I'm fortunate I'm smaller size. I'm 5' 8" 165, so the medium fits right. Fortunately it's around a $45 price difference from the larger size, so I got lucky. I probably still would have bought the larger size if that was my size, based on all the research I put in.

Ich hatte bisher zwei Rucksäcke von Salomon, die mich leider nach kurzer Zeit enttäuschten (Reißverschlüsse defekt, geplatzte Trinkblase).Etwas neues musste her: Nathan Vapor Wrap.Erster Testlauf über 30 Kilometer durch die Berge:+Toller Tragekomfort, auch bei voll gefüllter Trinkblase (2 Liter)+Schlaufen zum Festziehen im Schulter- und Brustbereich+Viele Täschchen zum Verstauen verschiedener Utensilien+Robustes Material+Praktische Magnetbefestigung für den Trinkschlauch-Der erste Schluck Wasser ist warm und schmeckt nicht (am besten ausspucken), danach ist alles bestens, dieses Problem gab es bei Salomon nichtNun hoffe ich, dass der Rucksack mir noch viele Kilometer treu bleibt und hält!Bis jetzt: Totale Begeisterung!

Hab den Vapro Warp nun seit eingen Wochen und ihn im Training sowie bei Ultramarathons im einsatz gehabt. Super Tragekomfort durch die Verarbeitung und die mehrfach einstellbaren Träger. Mit bis zu 3, 5l (2l in der Blase und weitere 2* 0, 75l in den Flaschenträgern) ist auch für ausreichend Flüssigkeit gesorgt.

今の自分が求めていた機能が全て備わっていて完璧でした。背負った感じも文句なしです。

見た目はカッコいいのですが、あらゆる要求に応えようと欲張り過ぎたのか、余計なポケットやストラップ、コード類が煩わしく、かつ実重量よりも重く感じます。さらにストラップの配置が悪いのか、それともそもそも私の体格に合わない規格なのか(私の身長は163センチ胸囲90センチ)、ユルくて体にフィットしません。ゆえに、トレイルデビューは一度もせずに、部屋のインテリアになっています(笑)トレイルのバックパックはもっとシンプルなのが使いやすいですね。