Water Bottle Location

[quint41]

I have a hell of a time drinking from the bottle cage down on the frame. It's just too far a reach for my short arms without getting all unstable. I currently have a Minoura handlebar thingy that allows me to mount a cage on the handlebar, but it doesn't fit properly and is not stable. I have to think of something else ... the thought of having a Camelback on my back the entire ride does not appeal to me (not to mention which, I wouldn't be able to get into my back pockets for tissues when my nose needs blowing, chapstick, etc.). Does anyone have their bottles mounted behind the seat? If so, how do you like them there? Only problem there is that it will mean my wedge has to go, and then where do I stash my tube, keys, cell phone, etc.

I've been looking at handlebar bags, but they all look so honking big!! I'll never be able to see my front wheel. Of course, it doesn't help that the online sellers do not picture the bags ON THE HANDLEBARS and most don't give dimensions so you are just supposed to guess!!

OK, enough griping. I'd love your feedback on the whole water bottle dilemma!

Thanks, girls!

[HillSlugger]

I've got a back-of-seat double bottle holder (Minoura), but so far I haven't tried to get a bottle out while riding. I am able to fit my smallish seat pouch under it but I have to unstrap it to get anything out.

My preferred setup is a Camelbak fannypack. It sits really low so it doesn't cover your back and make you too hot or completely block access to your jersey back pockets. At rest stops I use my water bottles to refill the pack.

[Veronica]

http://tandemhearts.com/coppermine/albums/central-coast-double-2007/ccd-2007-012.JPG

My rig - I have two handlebar bags in this picture. Both are Gille Berthoulds and are sort of expensive. I normally only ride with the black one, but this was for a double century and I needed the second to hold the battery for my light.

I keep food, money, cell phone, spare contacts, chap stick in this bag.

I have a small bento box which holds whatever I'm currently eating and another chap stick.

The saddle bag, that you can't quite see in this picture, holds tools, a jacket, a buff and short fingered gloves.

None of that answers your water bottle question, but it does show you what a small handlebar bag looks like.

V.

[emily_in_nc]

I too really like my Camelbak fanny pack ("Flash Flo", I think it's called). I tend to use bottles on my road bike and the Camelbak on my mountain bike (since bottles get dusty and dirty), but sometimes I'll use the Camelbak on my road bike too. Not many people seem to use them, but I definitely prefer them to the shoulder straps of usual Camelbaks.

Emily

[r900]

I wear a camelback rocket. It rides fairly high on my back, but I'm a 6'2" dude. The road tours I'm on around here about half the riders (guys and gals)wear camelbacks of some sort. The newer camelbacks have wide padded straps so the don't cut into your shoulder.I was once riding down a valley (about40 mph) and being overtaken by a rider with the seat mounted rear bottle carrier.It was shortly after the start and his big bottles were full and the road was rough.One contraction joint too many and the carrier broke off and sent the bottles flying.That was a bad way to start a century.

[tygab]

my bike did not come with a 2nd set of brazeons for a 2nd cage so my DH mounted a cage holder to my handlebars. At first it did not seem stable, as the holder itself would rotate around the bar, so what he did was put a plastic shim underneath basically to absorb any extra space around the handlebar. It has stayed rock solid ever since. I seem to be one of the only ones with this kind of set up.

That said, I still don't drink on the bike well. It has to be 100% flat and very low traffic for me to even think about it. The other day I got the bottle out from the lower cage only to realize I was on a downhill so... bottle or me... I chucked the bottle so I could get both hands on the bars again. [then went and retrieved] I can't imagine how the riders who can eat, put their coats on or off, or perform TdF gear distribution do it. Maybe it will come with time, but I am skeptical.

I have however mastered swigging at stopsigns, which seems to work well enough for most days. ;)

[Zen]

I have however mastered swigging at stopsigns, which seems to work well enough for most days. ;)

me too:o

[Kimmyt]

I have the behind the seat water bottle holders. There's a picture of em posted in the 4th of july thread. I don't actually care to actively use them for drinking while I ride, usually they are just storage for backup bottles. When I come to a stop and am out of water in my frame bottle then I switch out the bottles so that I have a full one on my frame, which I find very easy to drink out of. The reasons I don't really like to use the ones behind my saddle to drink out of are: 1) the bottle holders are tight. I have a profile designs (I think?) Plastic one and its really hard to get a bottle in there. I've tried to stretch it out but it's always a struggle to get a bottle in and out of it. 2) It's an awkward position to reach around for, it entails sitting up pretty straight in the saddle and keeping one hand on the handlebar and then pulling hard with the other hand to get the bottle out. I'm pretty flexible so I find the frame bottle within easy reach for me though.

[DDH]

I have one on the frame and one on the handles bars and both are easy for me to use. The one on the handlebar is there because I didn't have room on the frame for another holder and I always ride with 2. Even short rides. I'm paranoid about running out of water. Sometimes I even stick an extra one in my seat pack if I think I might go a little further. If I decide not to then at least I was prepared. I know it's extra weight, but I am not fast anyway, and don't worry that much about speed.

[TsPoet]

Another option is to make a sort of camel back think out of your water bottle
http://www.bluedesert.co.il/
I've got these, and they work really well. You have to really suck to pull the water into the tube, but once it's there it stays there.

[Meg McKilty]

Perhaps you could rig an AeroDrink bottle to your bike, if you don't have aerobars.

http://www.sportsbasement.com/jump.jsp?itemType=PRODUCT&itemID=3144

[GLC1968]

I had the behind the seat bottles on my previous bike. Like Kimmyt, I also used them to hold the bottles for back up and not as a place to drink from. I did drink out of them while riding on occasion, and it was harder than drinking from the frame bottle.

I had the Minoura holder and my tiny wedge did fit underneath it, but it made it fairly inaccessable. I stored emergency stuff in it (tubes, gauge, etc)...nothing that I'd need regularly. For long rides, I used a small handlebar bag to store camera, lip stuff, multi-tool, snacks, etc.

You can kind of see it all in this photo (the rear bottles, the tiny wedge, the handlebar bag...):
http://www.tranquilitysystems.com/gallery/files/4/015_12A.JPG

[Chile Pepper]

No one has mentioned hand position, so I'll throw it out there. If you feel unstable when you reach for your bottle, have you tried moving your left hand to the center (next to the stem) while you reach down with your right (or vice versa if you're left handed)? You are much more stable in that position than riding one-handed out on the hoods or in the drops.

[gingergin]

My water bottle is so far down and far away from me that I am certain I will end up on the ground with my bike on top of me if I get my hand anywhere near enough to even attempt to grab it :(

[quint41]

That said, I still don't drink on the bike well. It has to be 100% flat and very low traffic for me to even think about it. The other day I got the bottle out from the lower cage only to realize I was on a downhill so... bottle or me... I chucked the bottle so I could get both hands on the bars again. [then went and retrieved] I can't imagine how the riders who can eat, put their coats on or off, or perform TdF gear distribution do it. Maybe it will come with time, but I am skeptical.


I'm like you, tygab. I am not secure enough to drink while driving yet, either. I don't know if I ever will be -- I guess if I do this long enough! I ride with guys who let go of the handlebars, unwrap a bar, stretch, etc. It blows my mind.

[quint41]

No one has mentioned hand position, so I'll throw it out there. If you feel unstable when you reach for your bottle, have you tried moving your left hand to the center (next to the stem) while you reach down with your right (or vice versa if you're left handed)? You are much more stable in that position than riding one-handed out on the hoods or in the drops.

Yes, Jen. That is what I do when I drink. I'm still don't feel stable, though. I'm not confident yet, that's what the problem is. I'm afraid I'm going to lose control. I'm getting a little better ... I move left hand close to the stem, remove the bottle (from in front of my handlebar -- cannot reach down at all), prop it on top of the handlebar for a moment so I know I'm stable, and drink. But it has to be flat, and I have to stop pedalling.

[quint41]

Another option is to make a sort of camel back think out of your water bottle
http://www.bluedesert.co.il/
I've got these, and they work really well. You have to really suck to pull the water into the tube, but once it's there it stays there.

DING DING DING DING DING!!! WE HAVE A WINNER!

I saw this concept somewhere a long time ago and thought "that is what I need." Then I couldn't find it again when I really went looking. I'm going to get one of these! Thanks!!!

[RolliePollie]

Another option is to make a sort of camel back think out of your water bottle
http://www.bluedesert.co.il/
I've got these, and they work really well. You have to really suck to pull the water into the tube, but once it's there it stays there.


Oh, I am SO getting one of these!!! Thanks for the link! I was recently joking to a friend that I needed to buy some surgical tubing to make a long straw for my water bottles. Now I see this wasn't such a silly idea!

I have just recently mastered the drinking-from-bottle-while-riding technique, but like many others here, I'm very unstable, have to stop pedaling, etc. And I can only reach one of my bottles. I've been using a smallish Camelbak, but now that the weather is getting hot, it's starting to bother me. On longer rides, I feel like I still need the Camelbak to ensure that I'm staying well hydrated. Soon, after I place my order, my problems will be solved! :)

[tygab]

Let me know how these tubes work out... I'd probably get one if I hear they do work for you guys....

My current technique is stop pedaling with my left foot down for stability, not sure where I put my left hand, so I'll check next ride. I reach down with the right and as others have said, grab bottle, rest bottle, drink, rest bottle, return. But have to be in a flat, quiet area. I practiced a bit of one handed riding today, no drinking involved but just reaching down and having my right hand off the bars. I think that's really where I feel I need to be comfortable.

[quint41]

Hey, tygab! Where in Mass are you? I'm outside of Hartford, CT, and my sister is near Fall River.

[tygab]

northern central (a stone's throw from NH border)... love it here! Not real close to Fall River however, but if you're ever up this way let me know! always fun to ride with TE visitors.

[wonderwoman]

I have used a handlebar bottle cage when touring, since my 47cm frame didn't have space for 2 bottle cages and a pump on the frame. Instead of bolting onto the h-bar (like I think the Minoura does), this one was a faceplate for the front of your stem. Got it from Supergo/Weyless. It also came with another faceplate with a "dashboard" mount to put lights, bells, etc., on. I use that one the most. The water bottle cage mount was very stable, but with two drawbacks -- occasionally Gatorade or water would leak out of my bottle and make my frame sticky, and once an aluminum cage broke at the welds probably due to excessive vibration or age. I replaced it with a nylon cage with no problems.

[Crankin]

This is the first year that I haven't used my Camelbak on all road rides. I can only drink with my left hand; for some reason I only feel stable with my right hand on the bar. I've progressed to being able to drink while riding at about 14-15 mph, but it does have to be flattish. And I do tend to wait until it's low traffic. I also try to drink at the beginning of a climb, when i am going a bit slower.
The Camelbak doesn't really bother me when I'm using it, but riding without it feels liberating! I use it mountain biking and probably for rides 50 miles and over, with no places to get more liquid. So far though, this year, my 50 mile rides have been in places where i stop and refill my bottles with Gatorade bought at a grocery store. And yes, the people who can eat, undress, and fly down a hill are amazing. My husband can take his jacket off, roll it up, put it in his pocket and fly down a hill drinking from his bottle.
Tasha, we have to get together and ride!!!

[Kimmyt]

Perhaps you could try this when reaching down to your bike bottle, it enables you to have more reach:

instead of pedalling regularly, kick whichever knee out on the side you will be grabbing the bottle from. That is, if you are grabbing with your left hand (I usually do this, since I'm right handed and feel like I have better control with that hand on the bars) keep your feet in the pedals and just move your knee outward, sort of how a racer takes a corner, this gives you a few more inches of reach without your knees getting in the way of your chest. Once you grab the bottle, usually I grab with my hand already in drinking position (or you can grab with palm on top of the nipple, then set it on your thigh to rearrange your hand) you can go ahead and drink while peddling. When I do this, usually my body is slightly twisted, to enable my mass to still be centered over the bike instead of off-balance. Then I do the whole thing in reverse to put it back. I do usually slow down for this whole process, I don't like to drink when I'm going top speed.

Good luck!

K.

[quint41]

Kimmyt, you'd be scraping me off the asphalt if I tried that!! LOL I'm getting better drinking from the bottle in front of my handlebar, but I'm definitely going to try the tube thingy.

I ride with a guy who can climb a hill, stand, stretch, remove clothing and drink all at the same time, I swear! It just amazes me.

[mimitabby]

i am under 5'4" and i wear a camelbak. it doesn't make it hard for me to reach my pockets. I have choked more than once trying to get some water from a waterbottle while riding. And feeling like an idiot!

[SadieKate]

Mimi, some hydration packs have a waist belt which makes it impossible to use your pockets.

[li10up]

I'm with KimmyT. I'd be concerned that the tubing would get caught on something and send me sprawling. I think if you just kept practicing you'd get it. Also, it will make you a better bike handler to be able to get your water bottle. Compensating isn't always better than learning a new skill...especially if that new skill will help you in the long run.

Maybe you could start out by just reaching down with your hand and resting it on your knee. Just coast and/or pedal for awhile like that. Then move your hand back up to the bar. Repeat. Then after you've got that down move your hand down to your shin...then move down and actually touch the water bottle but don't remove it...just keep your hand on it for awhile. Maybe that would help???

[Trek1500]

DING DING DING DING DING!!! WE HAVE A WINNER!

I saw this concept somewhere a long time ago and thought "that is what I need." Then I couldn't find it again when I really went looking. I'm going to get one of these! Thanks!!!


I'm such a klutz. I also need something like this. I'm definitely going to try it and will report back. :)

[HillSlugger]

So, has anyone tried this? I'm thinking it could be a real boost on my triathlons.

[Trek1500]

I placed an order for it. Then I was notified that it was on back order. At this point I may just cancel it because they didn't indicate when I could expect it.