Black Line Sprinting VeloRacing Backpack

Black Line Sprinting makes it clear its bags are all about organization. Everything has a specific home in the VeloRacing Backpack, in keeping with Black Line Sprinting’s mantra. That means despite its diminutive size, you should be able to fit everything you need inside this water-resistant backpack.

That’s assuming you’re not packing for a multi-day trip, because filling up the approximately 1,300 cubic inches of space doesn’t take much. The VeloRacing Backpack easily fits a summer kit, shoes, helmet, and sunglasses, but beyond that you’ll be tight on space. Consider this an excellent choice for a one-day race or ride.

There’s a dedicated helmet pocket that’s vented to let your lid dry post-ride. Same goes for your shoes, which go in their own compartment on the bottom of the bag. The main compartment is where you’ll stuff your kit. Within that main compartment, you’ll find two zippered pockets — one of which is mesh — for your phone and keys.

We did have some difficulty getting the helmet to fit in the top pocket. This is probably less of a problem if you wear a small or medium helmet, but our large helmet just barely fit.

When it’s all loaded up, the padded bag keeps its shape well. That’s good news when you toss the backpack on your back. There wasn’t much bulging to kick the bag off balance. The thin straps don’t offer tons of cushion, but you won’t need it since the bag is fairly small, which means even at its heaviest, it won’t be very heavy.

The VeloRacing Backpack definitely adheres strictly to the “everything you need, nothing you don’t” model. If it seems like this small pack won’t fit the bill for you, Black Line Sprinting also offers the much larger VeloRacing Duffel. You’ll still get plenty of organization options, but in a larger package that allows you to cram more kit and accessories inside.

Of course, it’s also entirely possible to buy a larger backpack for about the same price as the VeloRacing bag. You may not get some of the nice features like the vented pockets and logical organization, however. If you want a small, well-organized, water-resistant backpack to toss on your shoulder pre-race, this is a good choice. But if you’re toting lots of gear, opt for something larger.