For those of us who for 15-20 years have been going through different models of "Camelbak" for cycling, running or just going out in the mountains, running with any hydration backpack vest type of this latest generation of the French brand is to play in another division.
If you've run with backpacks that bounced, that tilted, that rubbed you, that didn't fit your ergonomics, that didn't reach all your pockets, that bumped into the back of your helmet, and a thousand other hardships, you know the evolution I'm referring to.
It all started in 1988, when Michael Eidson, a bike enthusiast and American emergency doctor, introduced an IV bag (the kind you see hanging in hospitals to provide intravenous fluids and medications to the sick), filled with water, in a white sock, which he placed on the back of his bike, throwing the hose over his shoulder and holding it with a clothespin. All so he could run a 100-mile race in the hot Texan summer, with very few water stations. Without knowing it, and to the laughter of his opponents, he was the pioneer of the hydration backpack.
Years later, in 1993, Camelbak signed Jeff Wemmer, a cyclist who was so impressed by the invention that he began distributing it himself at races to sell it. For this reason, many people still find it hard to call the generic product a hydration backpack, rather than the brand that launched it worldwide.
From then until today, the options for hydration solutions for trail runners have exploded: backpacks, vests, fanny packs, gloves, hydration bags, standard bottles, SoftFlask,...
For guidance we recommend you take a look at our article 4 tips for buying a trail running backpack, in which we help you mainly to solve the following questions:
It's not that I want to waste your time, it's just that I believe that a thoughtful decision will increase your chances of success with the product.
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Now we focus on the review of the Salomon S-Lab Sense Ultra Set. Its name already orients us about the philosophy with which it is conceived. It is within the Sense line of Salomon items, the lightest, and as you will see later, only 110 gr of backpack will give you a total capacity of 3 liters. And within the S-Lab family, a whole series of products (clothing, footwear and accessories) oriented to competition, high-end, in which the Annecy laboratory collaborates with the contributions of the elite athletes of the alpine brand.
If you ask any trail enthusiast to name two brands in the sector, one of them will always be Salomon.
Ever since they started betting on trail as one of their mountaineering sports activities (apart from skiing and mountaineering), they have always been a reference brand.
In my opinion, in recent years they have lost ground to many other brands in the shoes section, but in clothing and accessories they are still one of the first. Another aspect to evaluate would be the final retail price of their products. But take a look at the peloton of runners, so many people can not be wrong, or yes, and marketing works miracles.
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Backpacks:
Belts:
Gloves:
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS:
As we read in Salomons advertising, designed to "provide absolutely minimal weight, the S-LAB Sense Ultra Set allows elite runners to carry front hydration bottles and all the basics needed for ultra-distance racing in a system weighing just 110 grams. Its soft, breathable materials provide a very pleasant feel against the skin."
In the Motionfit trail spirit, Salomon has devised a design that seeks absolute freedom of movement, based on knowledge of the activity for which it is intended and the needs of the athletes who practice it. Part by part...
POWER MESH ELASTIC MESH, made of breathable fabrics that adapt to the body, with a 3D, three-dimensional design that provides ventilation and cushioning, with an innovative construction, SENSIFIT, of self-adjusting fabrics that at the same time provide stability to the whole.
The Cocona fabric, also known as 375, is an active particle technology that captures and releases moisture vapor, maintaining the optimum degree of relative humidity in your microclimate, favoring perspiration and the elimination of excess heat. According to this, comfort, better body odor management and better performance would be assured. We'll check it out.
1 Large back pocket, on the back, the largest capacity, with a large opening and finished with a rubber band and elastic mesh on the outside and breathable fabric on the inside.
1 back pocket kangooroo, in the lower part of the back, of smaller capacity than the previous one, also with a top opening and finished with a rubber band closure, remaining outside the mesh.
1 elastic pocket, on one shoulder, inside the mesh of the large back pocket, designed for your batteries or the front battery, thus reducing the length of the cables.
2 elastic front pockets for hydration bottles, also finished with a rubber closure, compatible with the two soft 500 ml SoftFlask bottles that the backpack includes as a front access hydration system.
1 zippered front side-access cell phone pocket on the shoulder pad above the right bottle pocket.
1 front pocket, rubberized closure, above the left bottle pocket, ideal for those small items you need to have on hand, such as bars or gels.
2 front elastic pockets, below each bottle pocket, expandable to secure and fix any utensil you need quickly.
2 zippered side pockets, in the area that connects the shoulder straps to the back, between the two front elastic pockets and the kangooroo on the back, side access, where Salomon takes the opportunity to detail the technical data of the backpack.
Twinlink adjustment system, designed to offer greater comfort and softness. There are two elastic straps, adjustable and adjustable with a hook at different height options for you to adjust them to your needs.
Emergency whistle (mandatory in many races for safety), incorporated into the left bottle pocket through an elastic band.
Reflective: in different bands and logos that make you visible in 3 dimensions for safety.
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1. Comfort, fit and ergonomics:
if you've chosen the right size there's no doubt that the S-Lab Sense Ultra Set is "a glove on your body". The combination of the vest-like design, with the Sensifit and the elastic and self-adjusting mesh fabric makes the backpack adapt to every bone and muscle relief of your body, as if it were a mold, adapting perfectly to your morphology.
In my opinion, the model achieves two fundamental objectives: maximum comfort and perfect fit and stability of the load. Both are essential to maintain optimal performance over a long period of time. I have not noticed any chafing or areas of greater pressure than others, the weight is distributed evenly and uniformly. The backpack, at full capacity, does not bounce with each stride (not even in jumps!!!) nor does it sway laterally. The feeling is that it becomes part of your body. As I haven't tried it without a shirt, I can't tell you that the feel is as soft and pleasant as the advertising says.
Highlight:
I especially like the Twinlink support system in this section. When you see the two elastic and "minimalist" straps before testing the backpack you wonder if they will be able to fulfill their function, narrow, with a plastic hook to fix, .... Well, they are a success!
They reduce the weight of the classic lumbar belts (which I think unnecessary to carry this weight) and chest straps, and fulfill the function of giving stability to both sides of the vest, holding and adapting the backpack to the body with a soft but firm touch.
Its elastic capacity makes you do not even notice them during the expansion of the chest itself in inspiration, even when this is deeper, in climbs when you go with your tongue out. In addition, to further fine-tune the fit, you can adjust the length and hook the closure at three different heights.
Another aspect to highlight regarding the comfort of the backpack is the quality of the finishes and stitching.
Aspects to improve: little to contribute in this aspect, unless you are a woman and you notice that your morphology does not adapt so well to the backpack. A specific model designed with female anatomical differences in mind would give the product a higher quality point. However, all the athletes I know who use the S-Lab Sense Ultra Set, or its sisters in the S-Lab range, have not told me anything about it.
2. Breathability-Waterproofing:
If its minimal unladen weight, its quality of finishes, its mesh of elastic and self-adjusting fabrics seem little to you, here goes another strong point, its breathability. As you can see in the photo, the inner reticular membrane contributes to this, in contact with all those parts of the body that sweat the most.
Highly breathable but not waterproof. We would only get this binomial based on a microporous membrane of expanded Teflon (Goretex type or similar). In my opinion it is not worth adding the weight of such a membrane to the mesh: it would lose comfort, it would no longer be as elastic and self-adjusting. Just keep it in mind: protect your interior or at least those objects sensitive to water and humidity, we'll talk about it later. Or do like me, in the rain put the waterproof jacket over the backpack, because of its small volume, it fits perfectly and... it works! it works!!!
I emphasize:
It would be useless that your first and second layer (in case you wear the windbreaker) are breathable, that you have searched for the best fabrics for it and you have spent a lot of money..., if this chain of breathability is broken with the last layer which is the areas in contact with the backpack. The backpack, despite its close fit to the body, allows the evaporation of water vapor from sweat drops on your skin to reduce humidity and eliminate excess heat produced by physical activity. In addition to its highly breathable fabrics, it also helps that the vest-like design seeks the minimum contact of the backpack with the skin.
I also like the fact that it counterbalances its lack of waterproofing with a quick drying capacity. After a downpour, getting wet from sweat, washing it,..., the lightness and breathability of its fabrics makes it dry very, very fast.
Aspects to improve:
To value, without adding much more weight to the backpack, it could be to include a pocket with a small waterproof backpack cover, although valuing its cons (more weight, less volume for load,...) I'll stay with the home remedy that I told you before.
More than aspects to improve is an observation, and is that, as you can imagine, there are no miracles. In workouts of maximum sweating, by the conditions of heat or humidity or by the intensity of the exercise, yes, the mesh of the backpack also ends up wet from the absorption of sweat. In my case, I sweat a lot and easily, and I've checked it. Even so I say that the breathability of the model is 10 compared to other models.
3. Hydration system:
The S-Lab Sense Ultra Set includes two 500 ml soft-flask type bottles in two front pockets, one on each shoulder pad. Since I tried these bottles, I've stopped using a hydration pack, as long as the distance between the aid stations and that liter of water is compatible. I find them much more comfortable and versatile than the bag. In favor: their flexibility makes them adapt to the body regardless of the liquid load they carry and are much more comfortable to carry; when they are half-loaded the liquid does not oscillate as in the rigid ones or in the bag because the elastic fabrics hold them to the body; you can fill one with water and another with salts and/or hydrates; you can even drink without taking them out of the pocket; you can take them out to drink and carry them comfortably in your hand to take several spaced sips; you do not feel that cold sensation on your back; you can refill them without removing your backpack...
Against: they are filled with a little more difficulty than the rigid ones and you will need both hands to put them in their pockets (either I am very clumsy or I almost never manage to do it).
Highlight:
I think everything said in the previous review would fit here.
Aspects to improve:
To have both options (flex bottles and hydration bag), the center back pocket would have to be wider and have some attachment element for the bag. But if you want to have both hydration systems you will have to go for the S-Lab Advance Skin 5 or 12 liter models.
4. Different compartments and accessibility:
If the feeling of comfort when running with the backpack is its main validatorvaya full or with water and little else) the ease of use, handling and accessibility to all its elements is not far behind. All pockets are easily accessible on the run, except for the main one on the back, which you will have to reserve for material that you do not expect to need often. The rest, apart from being accessible, are clearly identifiable with their utility.
The bottle holders are the clearest, but the rest all have a clear function. The one on the back of the right shoulder pad for batteries or the front battery; the one on the left shoulder pad zipper is ideal for the cell phone; the one on the left shoulder pad above the bottle is ideal for gels and bars; the one on the lumbar back for the waterproof jacket or windbreaker (the kind that folds into a fist); the side ones with zipper for valor such as the van keys, ID, some money and the survival blanket and the ones under the bottles for more food and/or gloves, sleeves, buff...
Everything is perfectly distributed and accessible and effectively you can carry the mandatory material necessary for any ultra-distance competition as indicated in the advertising.
I emphasize:
The doubt that may assail you when you see the pockets without zipper is if the simple rubber closure is secure. Don't worry, the zipper on the open pockets is the elastic outer mesh itself, which perfectly compresses the load to hold it in place, on descents, climbs, jumps, doing the bridge,.... The zippers are easily handled, although you will have to get the knack of the side ones, stretching it with one hand and opening it and accessing the inside with the opposite hand to the pocket.
Aspects to improve:
All compartments are formed on the inside by the breathable reticular mesh and on the outside by the elastic and self-adjusting mesh. In my case, with high perspiration, the objects and materials may not get wet but they can be in contact with the moisture that exists between the internal mesh and the skin. For this reason, I would reinforce the insulating capacity, despite losing breathability, in the pockets for the cell phone and the battery in the front.
I say this from personal experience: I always keep my cell phone in a closed plastic bag (the small freezer kind) after two unusable screens due to contact with moisture from sweat in an S-Lab backpack.
5. Complements:
By complements I mean all those "extras" that you look at when buying and that give a touch of quality to the product. I have already mentioned that the S-Lab Sense Ultra Set includes a whistle (mandatory material in ultras) and also, as it is attached to the backpack with a rubber band can be stored in the left bottle pocket so it does not vaya bouncing in the race. All its logos and two front bands on the shoulder straps are reflective (and very effective by the way). However, I have missed two elements, in my opinion very important for the use for which the model is intended. One is that it does not include a survival blanket, mandatory as a safety measure in ultras and that comes standard with its older sisters S-Lab Advance Skin. And another, a system for attaching the poles, so often used in long distance. The central pocket on the back is not a comfortable solution for carrying them.
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