If you are truly a geek, then you know we all have a serious need to bring some organizational skills to our gadgets and gear. This is even more true if you are a cyclist and Waterfield has our geeky backs with their new Cycling Tote.
What is the Cycling Tote?
The new Cycling Tote from Waterfield is an easy bag to grab and go that is designed to carry all our essential cycling gear (and for us geeks all the gear we probably really don’t need but have anyway because its cool and we really enjoy using it). The bag can easily fit your bike helmet, bike shoes, two water bottles, a pocket for all your geeky gear and plenty of room left over for ride and post-ride clothes and food.
The bag itself is quite simple in design. It has one main compartment that has perfectly sized partitions for your shoes and two water bottles off to the sides with the center of main compartment left for your helmet and clothes. The outside of the bag has two side pouches which work really well for snacks and small articles of clothing like gloves and socks. The front of the bag has a zippered pouch that is perfect for your phone, wallet, keys, cycling computer, lights and other small gadgets.
The overall specs for the bag are:
- Material: Comes in either ballistic nylon or 15 oz. waxed canvas specially-coated with Martexin™ water-repellent wax
- Length: 15.5”
- Width: 13.5”
- Height: 13.5”
- Weight: 1.9 lb
- Total Volume: 23 liters
How I’ve Been Using the Cycling Tote
I live far enough north that we haven’t quite had the consistent type of warm weather for me to meet a few friends somewhere for regular group rides just yet, so I have been using the Cycling Tote at home for my neighborhood rides. But with that being said, I have still found it extremely handy to be able to store everything I need for a ride in an easy to grab bag. I work from home most days, which means over my lunch hour I typically go for a bike ride instead of eat lunch. So time is of the essence and being able to grab my Cycling Tote out of the closet and head out to the garage knowing that I have everything I need to immediately start my ride turns a chaotic sprint out the door into a routine action. Riding is challenging enough, especially in my neighborhood with all of the hills, so I don’t need the extra stress of running around to grab everything I need before a quick lunch hour ride.
Once I start venturing outside my neighborhood for group rides this summer (and having to drive to those locations), having a bag that is already packed and ready to be tossed into the back of my car with my bike is going to make it that much easier to get out of the house on time (especially for those early morning rides where you really don’t want to get up any earlier than you have to).
Verdict
This isn’t the first Waterfield product reviewed here on GeekDad and just like all of their other products the build quality on the Cycling Tote is exceptional. But there is one thing that stands out with the Cycling Tote in its design and that is simplicity. The Cycle Tote isn’t overly burdened with pouches, pockets and zippers and doesn’t have any leather accents or specially designed interior fabrics. This tote was designed to take a beating from you, your gear, and the elements. This is a very functionally designed single-purpose piece of gear. The Navy waxed canvas version I received for review could have possibly been mistaken for a regular fabric bag from someone not paying attention from a distance. But get just a little closer and you will immediately notice that the sheen of the waxed canvas gives the bag a very classic yet rustic look and the interior compartments and side pockets scream out that this is no re-purposed bag. Having traveled a lot while cycling I have experienced just about everything that can go wrong when traveling with your gear. So I can say with experience that having a bag that is designed specifically to carry, properly hold, and organize all of your cycling gear is worth more than its weight in waxed canvas…to say the least.
The Cycling Tote from Waterfield is available now for $139 from sfbags.com and comes in three color/material options:
- Navy waxed canvas
- Brown waxed canvas
- Black ballistic nylon
Disclaimer: I was provided a Cycling Tote for the purpose of this review, but WaterField had no input into the review content.
