Quote Originally Posted by oph4887
So is there something I can do/practice so that I can pull the water bottle out and drink while riding without going down or do I just give up and buy a camelback?
oph4887/Geana, do you ride a road bike (i.e. something with dropped handlebars) or a hybrid/mtn bike with wider straight bars?

I've been road cycling (touring) a long time, and way back when, with a little practice, it wasn't too hard to get used to retrieving and drinking from the bottle. On a road bike, the usual hand positions are so close to the center of the headset that steering with one hand isn't too difficult.

However, this past May I got my first wide-handlebarred bike (a hybrid). There is a LOT of play in the steering when I only have one hand on the bars. I'm way more comfortable using a camelback, when riding my hybrid. Since I sit a bit more vertically anyway on the hybrid, the weight of the camelbak isn't as bothersome as it might be on a road bike.