Osprey Hydraulics Raptor 10 - My Take...

I had been looking around for a new hydration pack for some time.  I wanted something to replace my ancient Camelbak MULE.  It really wasn't cutting it anymore.  Don't get me wrong it's been a good and faithful servant to me but it just wasn't able to haul enough stuff for really long epics and marathon races.  The fact that the bladder would leak (on the most inopportune occasions) was also painful.  Yeah I know, I could just buy a new bladder, but when replacements cost half or more of the price of a completely new hydration pack, it made no sense.

I certainly had some ideas about what I wanted in a pack.  I wanted a minimum 3 litre water capacity and something that was comfortable that I could use on epic rides and marathon races.  I wanted smart use of storage space for food and spares and something I could essentially throw everything I needed for a ride, ranging from a short 1 hour ride, my commute to work (when I didn't need to carry clothes and food) right up to marathon races where I could be in the saddle for up to 9 hours (yeah I really am that slow...).

So I started the hunt.  I checked out my local bike store as well as outdoors stores but couldn't find anything suitable. There seemed to be too many compromises. I read a favourable review of the Osprey Manta on MTBR.  I hadn't heard of Osprey packs before so decided to hit the WWW and have a look to see if they might have something I was after.  The Raptor looked promising so I found a store here in Australia that sells them and luckily enough there was a store that stocked them near where I work.

So I went and checked it out, opened every zip, and poured all over the bag. I went home, checked out the site again, measured my back to see what size I needed and then laid down the cash on the M/L version of the Raptor 10. Best decision I made.

The Raptor 10, ready for its first outing

Right away this pack felt comfortable. The fit was perfect. I was worried the waist belt would ride up my stomach like my Deuter Superbike L but those fears were unfounded. It didn't take long to get the fit sorted out and I was in business.

The following day I joined some mates for a 6 hour epic and the pack performed flawlessly. I did have the waist belt a bit loose to begin with, which caused a bit of movement on the downhills, but a little tightening and the issue disappeared. I was able to pack a stack of food, spares, arm warmers, phone, wallet, money and other bits and bobs and it swallowed the lot no problem. There is a ton of storage and compartments for things like your pump, key holder etc. There's also a non-scratch compartment for your sunnies which is nice touch. I found during my ride that as the load got lighter and thinned the bag I was able to use the compression straps to tighten everything back up and stop movement in the pack.

The reservoir is an ingenious design to stop barrelling, and the spine and large opening made refilling with your beverage of choice a breeze. Also, getting to, and reinstalling the reservoir was an absolute cinch and took all of two seconds.  It has it's own section and is designed to fit like a glove to stop the water sloshing around.  Undo two clips, unzip the zipper and you're done.  I imagine this will come in handy and save some time during marathon races when topping up water supplies.

I have to say I was a very happy little vegemite after the initial test.  I felt the pack performed flawlessly.  However, I noticed a few potential weaknesses, minor quibbles really. The mouthpiece makes the water feel a bit rubbery. I expect that this will disappear over time as it is still fairly new. We have to wait a bit and see. The waist belt clip also looks a little flimsy and could easily be broken in the hands of a ham-fisted rider, but again time will tell how this holds up. Also, I'm not too keen on the lack of zippers on the waist belt pockets and I could expect items stowed there to go missing, especially on bumpy descents. I don't normally use them so no big deal there but if you use them to stow some energy gels just be aware.

Overall I think this pack is very well thought out and has lots of excellent ways and ideas to stow all your gear for your next epic ride.  I think the reservoir is also well thought out and is designed to work as a system with the pack.  It might seem a little pricey compared to similar competition but I think this pack stands head and shoulders above them.
 

If you're looking for a pack for those epic rides or even to use during 100K/100Mi races, this pack should be the top of your list.

Highly recommended...
 
http://www.ospreypacks.com/