The Vapur Element Water Bottle truly is an “anti-bottle”.  It’s a bottle without being a bottle.  It’s sleek, compact, and great to use.  It takes away your excuses for not carrying a bottle with you.  Vapur gave me a bottle to test and here’s what I thought.

Vapur Element Water Bottle Features

• Sizes:  .7L & 1L
• SuperCap – Tough Seal. Easy Open
• Durable 3-ply construction
• Antimicrobial lining
• Dishwasher safe
• BPA Free
• Made in the USA
• Price: $11.99 (.7L) & $13.99 (1L)

Vapur Element Water Bottle Review

The most striking feature of the Vapur Element Water Bottle is how it folds down.  This is the “anti-bottle” element (no pun intended).  I think the biggest complaint people have with carrying a typical bottle is they are too bulky and a pain to carry.  The Element  folds down super small.  It’s small enough to easily fit into a jacket pocket, daypack, or in a purse. It weighs next to nothing when empty.

The biggest excuse is no longer valid.

My first thought when I first saw the Element was “that’s going to be a pain to clean”.  I didn’t realize that the cap unscrews and the inside is easily scrubbed with a bottle brush.  It is dishwasher safe too if you want to go that route. My second concern was the cap accidentally being opened.  The cap fits tightly and in most cases shouldn’t come open.  If you throw it in your pack with a bunch of other stuff you’ll be tempting the fates. Just be smart.

Vapur threw on a plastic carabiner to help with portability.  Clip it to the outside of your pack, climbing harness, or if you want to be super cool, your belt loops.  I’m not a fan of clipping it when it’s full, but when it’s empty it’s a good option. The biner folds down around the lid when not in use.

My next concern was with leakage.  With 3-ply construction the Element is durable.  You’d really have to work hard to randomly puncture it. It can also withstand freezing.

Lastly, and it threw me for a loop, I actually had people tell me how cool the bottle was.  It is cool but to receive compliments was unexpected.  Just don’t buy the bottle thinking it will make people like you or notice you. That’s what the convertible is for.

The Good

• Compact
• Versatile
• Different

The Bad

• Nothing

Bottom Line:

You no longer have any excuses to not carry a reusable water (anti)bottle.

Buy Now: Pick up the Vapur Element Water Bottle

Polar Bottle is the original insulated water bottle. It was an innovation that was so simple I’m betting a lot of companies were wondering why they didn’t do it first. Take a regular water bottle and put some insulation around? I bet it seemed too easy and simple that nobody gave the idea merit. Turns out, they were all wrong. Tons of companies have their own variations but there can only be one original. It’s finally nice to go out for summer rides and not be drinking 90 degree water when I’m done.

Polar Insulated Bottle Features

• Capacity (fl. oz.): 20 or 24 fluid ounces
• Average weight: 5 ounces (20 oz bottle), 6 ounces (24 oz bottle)
• Material(s): Polyethylene
• Water bottle cap type: Push/pull
• Bottle opening: Wide
• Fits in cup holder
• Fits into standard cycle bottle cages
• 100% BPA free
• Price: $10 (20 oz), $12 (24 oz)

Polar Insulated Bottle Review

The Polar Insulated Bottle is essentially your standard water bottle with an insulated jacket on it. The cap is your standard bike bottle type with a push/pull cap that is easy to open and close with your teeth on a ride. The bike friendly design fits securely into bike water cages and provides a comfortable area to grip if you decide to run with it.

The key differentiator is the insulation. The bottle features double-wall construction with a foil-lined insulation layer in between the walls. The double-wall construction acts just like your vacuum sealed thermos keeping your beverage cold (or warm) with a layer of air insulation and protected from the swings in outside temps. The foil liner reflects solar heat which is awesome on the cloudless days of summer. The claim is that it will keep your drink cold twice as long as a conventional bike bottle. I didn’t break out the lab coat, thermometers, and stop watches but I will say that my drinks stayed colder a lot longer than regular bottles.

The less touted use that I found recently is keeping your drinks from freezing when it’s cold out. I just tested this on a 10 degree F bike commute. The water in the bottle didn’t freeze. Yeah there was a little bit of icy build-up trying to keep the cap from opening, but it was still pretty easy to open. Now that winter is full-on here I’m excited to still be able to bring water on the commute and not worry about it freezing solid. Coming up soon I have a sub-zero commute so we’ll see how it goes.

The Polar Insulated Bottle comes in 20 oz or 24 oz sizing. The foil liner comes in different designs so you have some options to choose from. The bottle is 100% BPA free. It also comes with a plastic carry loop but as soon as I received my tester bottle from Polar Bottle I took it off. It’d be nice if you were going hiking or any other time you’d want to clip it to your bag. Oh yeah, and it’s made the USA.

The Good

• Keeps your drinks cold (or warm in the winter)
• Simple, time tested design
• No gimmicks
• Secure, bike-friendly design

The Bad

• Really couldn’t think of any negatives

Bottom Line:

The Polar Insulated Bottle is definitely a step up from your standard water bottles. It’s worth throwing down the extra cash for the insulation. The first time you finish a hot ride and your drink is still cold (or when your bottle doesn’t freeze in the winter) you’ll be glad you did.

Buy Now: Pick up the Polar Insulated Bottle

When I run I drink a lot. I don’t like to feel thirsty. It’s a total mental game for me. If I think I feel thirsty then it starts to affect my resolve. Things start to seem harder than they are. All I can think about is how much I want a drink. Reading that you’d think I was crossing the Sahara with no water. It sounds dramatic but that’s just the way it works for me.

Hydration packs are great for longer runs but it was the 30-90 minute runs that I struggled with. I tried not drinking but that didn’t work for me. I tried carrying a bike bottle and that was annoying. Just the act of holding the bottle was annoying, especially when the going got tough. I tried other bottle holders but they were awkward, hot, or uncomfortable. Enter the GoLite Unisex Hydroclutch. Light, airy fabric, comfortable around the hand, cinches down tight so the bottle just hangs in your hand, no grasping required.

GoLite Unisex Hydroclutch Features

• Nylon-Spandex Stretch Woven
• High-Void Polyester Mesh
• Quick-Drying air mesh sides for excellent airflow
• 21 oz BPA-free squeeze bottle (included)
• Zippered stretch mesh pocket holds keys, gel & credit card
• Snag-resistant Velcro® adjusts to fit different sized hands & gloves
• Reflective stripe for visibility
• Weight: 4 oz
• Price: $15

GoLite Unisex HydroClutch Review

The GoLite Unisex HydroClutch was my hydration saving grace on short runs. The 21 oz bottle carries just enough water for me for 30-90 minutes on mild days. On hot days it varies between 30-60 minutes and if there’s not shade at all, 30 minutes. Like I said, I drink a lot when I run.

The mesh is lightweight and breathable. I didn’t get sweaty hand as bad as I did with other bottle holders. One side of the holder is the cinch strap and the other side is the zippered pocket. The pocket is my favorite feature. Just big enough to fit a car key, credit card, and still have room for a gel or two (depending on how big your gels are). The cinch strap is backed with velcro to keep it from loosening and from excessive flapping. Imagine two hours of bouncing strap on your hand, that’d drive you nuts. For those of you who like to run on the road, the cinch strap is lined with a reflective strip to give you some additional visibility in headlights when it’s dark.

The big downfall of the Hydroclutch (which is the downfall of all handheld bottles) is the longer your run, the warmer your bottle is going to get. It’s a fact, you’re holding your water in your 98.6 degree F hand, it’s going to get warm. I tried piling in the ice one time, but then my hand froze and by the end of this particular longer hot run, my water was warm anyway. You might be able to negate this with an insulated bottle. I haven’t checked to see if there are any in a 21 oz size that would fit into the holster.

In terms of durability it’s pretty good. I’ve used mine for a couple of seasons and it’s held up well. The elastic on the bottom is fairly tight and can be hard to stretch over the bottle. Also it likes to slip down a little and as a result the bottle isn’t held as securely. Then when switching hands the bottom of the bottle can slip out. The stretching has caused a little bit of separation between the elastic and the mesh on the bottom.

The Good

• It’s comfortable
• Straps to your hand so you don’t have to grasp
• Carries just enough water for short runs
• Zippered pocket is awesome for the keys and a gel

The Bad

• Water eventually gets warm
• Some stitching is pulling apart on the bottom
• Because the elastic is so tight, it pulls off the bottom of the bottle little and when switching hands the bottom can come out

Bottom Line:

Don’t run thirsty again. Shell out the 15 clams and get the HydroClutch. For running it’s some of the best $15 I’ve spent.

Buy Now: Pick up the GoLite Unisex HydroClutch

If you enjoy a good beverage a few days into the backcountry, Platypus has designed a new product to eliminate toting all that glass in your pack. The Platypus PlatyPreserve system allows you to take wine from the glass bottle, seal it into a PlatyPreserve container, and open it a few days later, still getting that just-opened taste!

Exposure to oxygen affects the taste of wine, and wine can go bad within 2-8 hours after opening a bottle. Crux! How do you tote you Pinot Noir on your 5 day backpacking trip without a) drinking the entire bottle the 1st night or b) hauling along that cumbersome glass bottle the entire trip and fumbling with gas-exchange systems to retain the taste? Get yourself a PlatyPreserve.

Platypus PlatyPreserve Features

• Collapsible container- when you’ve finished off your beverage, there’s no large container left around to haul for the remainder of the trip.
• The PlatyPreserve allows you to put your wine in, and then remove all the Oxygen from the bladder, eliminating the exposure to any O2. This keeps your wine tasty, even days later!
• No taste transfer! Your wine doesn’t taste like plastic.
• BPA Free- who likes that stuff anyways?
• The average glass wine bottle weighs 2 pounds! Shave that weight off.
• The PlatyPreserve allows you quite the selection of portable wine, as opposed to just the wine that comes in a box…
• $12.95 per bladder. A bit pricey, but think of the weight and space you’re saving.

Check It Out! Platypus PlatyPreserve System

We’ve all done it. Grabbed a [insert name]ade drink at the store before or after a ride. With the myriad of flavors and colors, it’s got to be good for your body, right? Well, that’s up for debate, but the fact of the matter is that most of those sports drinks contain oodles and oodles of sugar.

Sugar is good–sometimes. It gives you that quick burst of energy, but if that’s your liquid of choice on a long ride, it gets heavy and hard to swallow when all you need is water and electrolytes to maintain the proper hydration balance. Plus, you’re mixing energy with hydration which isn’t always the best thing to do.

Enter Nuun active hydration tablets, which are a portable and effective solution to provide just the right amounts of electrolytes (sodium, potassium, calcium. magnesium, vitamin C and B2) every time. And, all you need is a quick-dissolving tablet and regular water.

Who needs another sports drink?

Nuun is a sports drink, but not in the same sense as all the others. Without any sugars and still offering a range of flavors that taste great, nuun changes the hydration game. Not only is it better for you not to have to swallow all that sugar, it’s also better for your water bottles and hydration bladders. In fact, nuun is truly the first hydration pack-friendly sports drink. Drop a couple of tablets, wait a minute and you’re golden.

With the regular sports drinks, they leave a sugary goo that’s hard to rinse clean. But, with nuun, it’s sugar-free formula is not only easy to drink, it’s easy to clean–nice!

I’ve been using the Lemon+Lime flavor for the past month on morning road rides. I love the taste and I do seem to drink more water than previously (nuun states that flavored waters have shown to increase consumption by 40%), which is a good thing. We all know that by the time you’re showing signs of dehydration, you’re too late to stave off some of the side effects.

The blend of vitamins and minerals in nuun speeds up hydration and essentially splits hydration from caloric intake.  If you need to consume calories, they can be targeted calories, like a PROBar, ClifBAR, etc. There’s no calories piggybacking on top of your liquid hydration.

Nuun Active Hydration Tablet Details:

• Flavors: Lemon+Lime, Tri-berry, Citrus Fruit, Kona Cola and Orange Ginger (NEW)
• Quantity: Each tube contains 12 tablets
• Size: Standard Tablet (1 tab for 16 oz) or Bigger (1 tab for 32 oz)
• Price: $6.50 per tube or $22 for a 4-pack (Standard Tablets)
• Nutrition Facts: serving size = 1 tablet (4.6g); recommended dissolution volume: 16 oz water; amount per serving: calories 7, total fat 0, total carbohydrates <1g, sodium 360mg (15%), potassium 100mg (3%), magnesium 25mg (6%), calcium 13 mg (2%), vitamin c 37mg (63%), riboflavin .5mg (30%). *percent daily values (dv) based on a 2,000 calorie diet. not a significant source of other nutrients
• Read nuun FAQ’s

The bottom line… nuun hydration tablets provide the optimal mix of electrolytes, minerals and vitamins to keep you hydrated during all activities. By separating hydration from energy, you can optimize both instead of having to lump a bunch of calories into a sugary drink. That, to me, makes sense!

Buy Now: Search Backcountry.com for Nuun