Karrimor Refuel 1+2
Karrimor’s philosophy is clearly to create a very minimalist and lightweight pack. Cue the mesh straps, thin insulation and limited storage.
Unfortunately, the sleeve doesn’t hold the bladder in place tightly, and on downhill rides we found it kept riding up and hitting us on the back of the head.
Continuing the negative theme, the tube is routed via a retaining ring low down on the shoulder straps, which means kinking the pipe at an acute angle to get the valve into your mouth.
The lack of a waist strap means more bounce when running, and the one vertical storage pocket on the back has no mesh or internal clips, so small things fall out easily.
As an ultra-light race pack purely for hydration purposes the Karrimor fits a small niche but, unfortunately, too many little niggly design flaws make recommending it for general training difficult.
Contact : Eurotech Leisure 01922 628554 www.karrimor.com
Matt Baird
Editor of Cycling Plus magazine 
