You’ve probably surmised from our Facebook and Twitter posts that we’re having our first ever GEIGERRIG brand event this week, and that we’re very much looking forward to it. GEIGERRIG has made some innovative changes in the way hydration systems function.
Prior to making any offer to you, we here at The Clymb wanted to test the gear for ourselves to see if it fit its Gear Of The Year billing by Camping Life Magazine and the declaration by Dan Larson of Backpacker.com that “Bottom line, this is the best hydration system I’ve found.” And, after some thorough testing of a GEIGERRIG Ballistic RIG 500 pack, we can tell you that there are genuine reasons why these GEIGERRIG Hydration Packs are taking the hydration market by storm, and why we agree that they are the best hydration systems available today - an endorsement that we make whole heartedly and without any reservation.
To give you a sneak peek into what makes these hydration systems unique, we spoke with GEIGERRIG’s Vice President of Operations, Bob Geiger.
The Clymb: A common request of hydration packs is that they do more than just hydrate. How does GEIGERRIG answer that request?
Bob Geiger: Great question. Because you have to suck the water out of a traditional hydration pack, the water is only accessible for drinking by the person carrying the water. That is, of course, unless everyone wants to suck on the wrap their sweaty, salty lips around the same bite valve and for sucking water. With the patented spray action of a GEIGERRIG, the water effortlessly sprays out providing water, on demand, for cleaning out a wound, hydrating your dog, sharing with a friend, cleaning your gear and spraying the sweat off of your face and body. With a GEIGERRIG, the water is conveniently available for any use that you need or desire… including pumping water through a plug-and-play, in-line water filter for refilling in rivers, streams, lakes or ponds.
TC: There’s been some concern that pressurized packs mean less room for anything else you might need to carry. Need this be a concern with a GEIGERRIG?
BG: Not so. You simply load your hydration engine into the back of your pack and then load all of the gear that you are planning to carry. Once your gear is loaded, then you pressurize the system, and the bladder pressurizes around whatever contents you have in your pack. The more gear you’ve loaded into your pack, the less pumps necessary to achieve your desired level of patented spray from your GEIGERRIG.
TC: How does GEIGERRIG address some of the hygiene concerns when it comes to using hydration systems, particularly sharing with others?
BG: Most often, we enjoy outdoor activity with friends and family. Having the ability to share water without having to swap bits of granola bar and other nastiness deposited on the end of your bite valve is essential. The patented spray action enables your GEIGERRIG to provide cool, clean, refreshing water and spray to you, your friends and your family. It also is great for providing water to others who you may encounter along the trail who could use a little assistance and aid. Its always good to be able to hygienically render aid and to help others.
TC: What are some things GEIGERRIG has done to make hydration pack cleaning and maintenance easier?
BG: We have ensured that our patented, game-changing hydration engines have a slide top that provide a wide mouth opening for easy cleaning and drying. In fact, the GEIGERRIG Hydration Engine can be easily turned inside out and cleaned in the top shelf of the dishwasher. Just reaching inside, grab the bottom of the bladder and pull it inside out. Drop it in the dishwasher, and your bladder is clean and ready for its next use. So even if you left your hydration bladder in the car or the garage for a few weeks, and it has fungus and growth growing in it, all you need to do is put it in the dishwasher, and off you go.
TC: What kind of testing process do you use?
BG: There are all kinds of lab tests and scientific methods used to test the strength, durability, and water tightness of the GEIGERRIG Hydration Engine. However, our favorite tests are the field tests where we detonate bombs placed in our packs to test the durability of our hydration bladders and throw packs out of trucks at 100 mph to test for durability and toughness.
Check out GEIGERRIG’s contained bomb test:
And this 100mph rough asphalt impact test (looked like a lot of fun!):
Our GEIGERRIG event begins tomorrow at 9am PST. Get there early! And check out our Facebook and Twitter pages for more photos, videos and info on GEIGERRIG today.
