Hydration Vest

[brooke77]

I'll be jumping into training for my first marathon in a couple weeks.  I'm at the tail end of my half marathon training and it's painfully obvious that my 20ish oz handheld will not be enough to hydrate me through a long, hot summer of marathon training.  I have done some basic research and think I would really like a hydration vest.  They are not banned at my marathon, so I think if I liked it enough I could use it during the marathon as well.

Anyone have one they recommend?  Love/hate?  Other options?

[fuckyourcouch]

I use a small camelbak.

I have seen the ultimate direction jenny vests recommended on here, and I looked at a Nathan one. Fire? Something with fire.

[runnergirl]

I'm a big Ultraspire fan.  I have the Surge, which is a more traditional bladder style vest that has good pouches to hold fuel.  I love how it sits on my back and over my shoulders; it doesn't impact my upper body form while running.  I tried a few camelbaks before this that I didnt like. DH is an ultrarunner so we also have the Revolution, Kinetic and Spry.  All of our packs have taken a good beating with long training runs and races and are still in amazing condition!

ultraspire.com/product-category/race-vest/

[Mushe]

I have and really like the women's Nathan vest. It's gotten to be like a security blanket, with the ability to carry all my junk! I do a lot of trail running, so I've always got things like pepper spray (like that will stop a mountain lion, but shhhhh) and tissues for a potty stop (thank god I've never needed it!), plus plenty of pockets for food and my cell phone.

[mjl6907]

Nathan intensity vest is fantastic! Lightweight, easy access front pockets to hold lots of things.

[taratru]

reginaphalange72 has one she really likes.

[reginaphalange72]

May 27, 2015 20:51:53 GMT -5 taratru said:

reginaphalange72 has one she really likes.

Indeed!

I have two.  The smaller one (I use that term loosely because you can still fit a massive amount in it for the size) is the Ultimate Direction Jenny Ultra Vesta (http://www.ultimatedirection.com/p-612-ultra-vesta.aspx).  This seems to be the go-to vest for most female ultrarunners.  Everyone seems to have it.  Super comfortable, fits a 70 oz bladder, two smaller chest flasks, and plenty of room for other nutrition.  One note:  The Jenny doesn't come with a bladder, so you would need to buy that separately, or use one you already have.

The larger one is the Ultimate Direction Wink (http://www.ultimatedirection.com/p-635-wink.aspx).  Same deal, just somewhat more storage if you want to carry more outerwear, etc.  The Wink does come with a bladder.

blndsnbrdr did a great write up of these two on her blog... runaroundaroo.com/2014/12/10/ultimate-direction-jenny-pack-wink-pack-comparison/