Nathan Triangle Insulated Angled Holster Waist Pack
I don't usually drink any fluids during runs of less than 5 miles. But for my longer runs, I like to make sure I intake plenty of water or sports drink. I sweat a lot when I run, so it would be very easy for me to get dehydrated. When I first started making my longer runs, I would run in Bedford. Since my parent live very close to the "loop" in Bedford, I could stash a drink there and just make my way by their house during my run. This caused me to repeat sections of my route over and over again. I didn't find that too fun. I like seeing different things when I run and I also like just randomly running through town without having to plan my next water break. Also, since I do like to run without an exact route, I wanted to start carrying my cell phone on me. You never know what could happen and I wanted to be able to call someone in case of an emergency.
Wanting to run more random routes and wanting to carry my phone and ID lead me to start looking for a hydration belt. I didn't like the idea of having to carry a hand held bottle for my entire run. I went to Riverside Runners in Lynchburg to check out their belts. I settled for the Nathan Triangle Insulated Angled Holster Waist Pack (now that is a long name). I like this one because the bottle sits on the small of your back and it seemed to stay out of the way.
After quite a few runs with my new pack, I am pretty pleased with it performance. It has a built in ID card and a pocket that is big enough to carry my phone and a snack. The pack stays put pretty well, but you do need to get use to the bouncing of the bottle on your back. It seems to be worse when the bottle is full, so towards the end of my runs this hasn't been too much of an issue. When the bouncing is really getting on my nerves, I just carry the bottle in my hand for a while. I have been thinking of downsizing my bottle to something smaller than the provided 22oz. bottle. I think that will help the bouncing issue some.
Overall, I am pleased with my hydration belt. It is very functional and doesn't aggravate me too much during my runs. It allows me to run where ever I want without having to get back to a stationary water bottle I hid somewhere on my route. Having this freedom allows me to enjoy my longer runs a little bit more.
