INOV8 H2O Horizontal Bladder

Two of the golden rules in adventure racing:

1. Never run in competition with anything that is brand new.

2. Test all your equipment, know how it works in the dark and make sure it’s well run in.

In the 250km self sustained multiday events by - Racing the Planet - I live by these rules. I also like to experiment with new equipment.

On this occasion I put my trusted and faithful Salomon 30L bag and Platypus hydration bladder in my running cupboard and purchased an "INOV8" (herein after called useless) 30L pack and (separately sold) bladder. BIG Mistake!

On training day 2 and after 30km with the bladder inserted correctly and not over filled the transparent seal flange separated from the blue bag . . . mmm . . . not good! Had this happened in the desert my reserve 250ml flask would have had to have been used very conservatively just to get me to an aid station.

Inov8 my foot – thankfully they don’t make solid cell sleeping mats or GPS systems.

Happy and safe trails.

Alex Harkess

I have used this hydration bladder with the Inov-8 Race Pro 4 waist pack for over a year. Based on fit alone, I would give it 5 stars. The fit is fantastic--I have a lumbar fusion and it really does cause less spinal loading than a typical waist-mounted reservoir. It's relatively easy to fill, too.

However, I have had to get two replaced under warranty due to valve leaks, and now my third one is leaking. The valve typically wears out within 50-100 hours of use, and as there is only an automatic valve lock, not a manual one, it's impossible to do anything about it.

Since I don't appreciate my hydration pack hydrating my OUTsides and wasting precious fluid, I have to give it 3 stars. I'll try inserting a Camelbak valve lock and see if that works!