Ban the Hip Belt

[Hobbes]

What exactly is the downside of using a hipbelt?

To properly answer that question, it's necessary to first step-back and take a look from a macro perspective of where technology is going and why. To wit, the basic governing idea is to increase the respective strength/warmth/flexibility to weight ratio. This is true in all sports, commercial activities and manufacturing processes. Consider the impact of carbon fiber on bicycles, (race) cars, airplanes, etc.

The biggest advances in surfing have come from lighter, stronger surf boards along with lighter, more flexible, yet warmer wetsuits. (The rapid growth in surfing's popularity north of Santa Cruz - especially around SF @ Ocean beach - is due in no small part to these trends.) As for hiking, we can see the trend/impact in advanced lighter/stronger materials and increased loft of down bags/jackets.

Now, let us consider what some (including myself) would consider the most pleasant hiking experience: just walking along on a nice day hike with your dog, S/O, kids, friends, etc, with maybe a light windbreaker and a day-pack with some snacks, water, etc, and not too much exertion so you can engage in conversation, etc.

The question then becomes (using my definition of the ultimate hiking experience), how to scale it for longer, more remote, rigorous hikes? IMO, your pack should be the last consideration; rather, one must address two core issues: (a) keep warm; (b) keep dry. Practically speaking, given the advances in material science, it's fairly trivial to satisfy these two items with equipment/clothing that are both very lightweight and highly compressible.

If all we have to do then is add the commensurate amount of food for the expected duration of the trip, along with some other essential items, then many people might be surprised at just how little pack space and weight support is really required for a multi-day backpacking trip. At this point, pack considerations come into play. I actually played around a few times seeing how much stuff I could pack into my generic daypack. The end result was I realized I actually needed around 25-30L.

Material like Dyneema 140/210 were all developed for military specifications (as well as GoreTex, ad infinitum) In fact, backpacking, like many other things, owes a ton to military R&D. (Wetsuits were developed by the Navy - it took Jack O'Neil to realize the potential for surfing.) So, if all you need is a 25L+ day-pack with material strong enough to carry the (minimal) load, why does it need/require any extraneous attachments like a hip-belt and/or sternum strap?

Even better, if you know how to sew, you can handcraft a custom pack (along with other equipment) tailored to your exact specifications that can significantly increase comfort and durability. So, to inversely answer your question, it's really just about achievement - knowing you are doing "some thing" at its highest, most refined level of execution possible.

If that's not your bag (pun intended), then I would agree it would seem to be unimaginably boring when one can just throw on any old pack, stuff in a bunch of clothing/equipment and go.

[longri]

Hobbes, thanks for taking the time to try and answer my question. But your response comes across as tautological.

I understand well the desire to go as light as possible. That ideal of "day hiking" when on a back packing trip is something I've had the pleasure of experiencing. But whether a hipbelt is necessary or not is in many ways a separate question.

Suppose I could carry everything in a big fanny pack? That's what I prefer when the load is light enough as shoulder straps are kind of drag after a while. Would you then say "ban the shoulder straps"?

[rlown]

There are a few talus slopes where I actually cinch down on the hip belt; gives better control over the load. Not seeing the need to abandon it.

oh, and c) bring some fun along and not just survive.

[Wandering Daisy]

Modern materials do not per se, solve the problem of staying warm and dry. In the big picture of mountain ranges, the Sierra is pretty mild with a big difference- summer storms are short lived and even if you get cold and soaked, 99% of the time the next day is sunny, or at least has some sunny stretches, and you can dry out. Even with this advantage, I have been chilled to the bone in less than an hour, soaked and drenched in a long downpour that then turned to freezing night time conditions. As a very cold blooded backpacker, too old to hike 16 hours a day in order to stay warm, I have to disagree with the concept that gear to stay warm and dry is nowadays not an issue, just trivial.

And all you big shouldred strong guys forget that we women have abotu 40% less upper body strength and that pack and hip belt is just right for us. We actually have hips that we can set the hip belt on! Our packs usually weight a bit more percentage of our body weight - manufacturers are reluctant to make small or x-small tents. A bear can is a bear can whether it is 2 pounds out of 100 lb body weight or 2 pounds out of 200.

[longri]

Daisy, that's a good point about female upper body strength.

I don't think Hobbes was saying that modern materials "solve the problem" of staying warm and dry, just that they allow one to do so with less weight. That's indisputable, regardless of whatever mountain range or wilderness challenge you're talking about. Now whether the weight is low enough for a particular person to carry on their shoulders alone is a different question, and kind of what I was getting at.

I carry day packs all the time. I've gone for a week of walking with just a 10-12lb day pack and didn't need the belt. But those weren't super long days. Sometimes I walk 12-14 hours and shoulder fatigue gets to me at some point, even with a relatively light pack. Maybe a different pack could solve that problem. I suppose I could sew packs and experiment. But I don't have to. I have a hipbelt.

I think Hobbes is using the hipbelt as a kind of symbol for the pursuit of going light. It's a Ray Jardine meme, for sure. I get it, and I'm on board. It is indeed my "bag" (I really don't get his pun). I've eyed those 3oz of hipbelt as a possible weight savings many times when preparing for a trip.

It's just that, well, I like my hipbelt sometimes. It's a tool I use.

[Wandering Daisy]

What any particular person needs to stay warm is very individual. Example, my last trip with my husband. He hardly ate anything and never was hungry; I ate 3/4 of the food and was always hungry. He was always toasty warm (he is my tent heater); I was often cold. And I lost more pounds than he did.

Do not get me wrong- I love all the new gear and high-tech materials; lighter stuff has really allowed me to keep backpacking. I wish I could afford to get the latest and greatest. For me, it is one aquisition at a time, as needed, when old stuff wears out.

I sew and have also had fun redesigning my Kelty pack. Not in the same catagory as Hobbes, but I did get a 7-pound pack down to 3.5 pounds in my prototype. Now just have to make it out of better material.

What do you do if you have to actually carry a day's worth of water? That gets heavy really quickly.

[balance]

Consider the biomechanics. The hips are designed to carry weight much more effectively than the spine. The comparison is not even close.

Peace.

[Hobbes]

https://www.instagram.com/p/BKtdoAZgSKn ... ound&hl=en

[Gogd]

I can barely accommodate my lunch in the bleeding edge trend of minimalist volume packs! Ok so I exaggerate, but find a minimal day XC ski pack size for the eastern Sierra is about 30L, due to the volume of warm gear, and weighs almost 15#, due to additional safety items and snow/ice tools/equipment. And that just covers the potential of a forced, uncomfortable, overnight bivouac. And that pack has a hip belt to keep the load from shifting while under way.

If I were just doing an overnight "slumber party" style hike, the small packs would suffice. Due to the distance from home of my venues, however, my trips involve longer stays in the BC. And while I am camping I prefer to enjoy the comfort of warm layers while hanging out at night and early morning, a stool (bear canister) good food, and other "luxury" items the minimalists do without. If your pack fits properly, one's capacity and comfort is more a function of conditioning, and eliminating excess body mass. Of course those who are fixated on maximum miles have a different agenda, and sacrifice all for the sake of miles. Twenty mile days are had at the cost of passing up too many great opportunities to soak in the scenery, smell the flowers, do little fishing, and still have time to enjoy the finest R&R possible on planet earth: an afternoon nap next to a Sierra lake, stream or peak top.

Ed

[sparky]

after reading this thread I am goign to look into external frame packs haha
I havent owned one since i was a teenager