The market for an effective means to transport all your cycling gear is not ultra competitive. When Oakville, Ontario based Cat5Gear set out to enter this small corner of the cycling accessory world, they had one thing in mind, it’s NOT a bag, it’s a case!

Cat5Gear Cyclist Cases were in development for over two years and as avid cyclists, they spent time ensuring that all essential cycling gear would fit into a case securely and conveniently.

I spend most of my racing as a slightly addicted cyclocross racer and what comes with that is the need to bring a ton of gear to races. With ever changing fall weather it’s essential to be properly prepared for any weather condition. So, when I first pulled the Cat5Gear Cyclist Case out of the box I gotta admit I was somewhat skeptical about fitting my endless list of ‘required’ gear into this case.

A Lot of Empty Space

To my surprise and delight the Cat5Gear Cyclist Case has more space than what meets the eye, approximately 2000 cubic inches of volume to be exact. This space is neatly divided into four internal main compartments, four internal mesh pockets that close securely with velcro, and two exterior adjustable water bottle holders. And to keep this all contained is a vented full zip lid that allows all your gear to breathe. This is where a design feature could be improved slightly with a double zipper, which would add functionality and ease to open / close.

Over the course of the cyclocross season I had many opportunities to pack the Cat5Gear Cyclist Case with a variety of needed items. One specific race takes the win for “who can pack the most stuff into their Cat5Gear Cyclist Case”. I recreated that packing in the video below, which you can see I managed to successfully, but also neatly, pack a substantial list of gear into the case.

For the skeptics, here’s the inventory list.

1 Helmet, MTB Shoes, 2 sets of gloves, 2 sets of glasses, 2 sets of arm warmers, knee warmers, leg warmers, shoe covers, multiple base layers, team kit,  ear warmer, embrocation, Garmin, 2 water bottles, 2 towels.

Once the Cat5Gear Cyclist Case is ready to go you’ll find that having two options to carry the case is appreciated. A durable padded hand strap makes it easy to load and unload the case from your vehicle and the adjustable padded shoulder strap makes it very comfortable to bring the case to team tents, start areas, into hotels, etc.

Cat5Gear Cyclist Cases come in 6 different colors and they will ship anywhere in North America, Puerto Rico, Great Britain, France, Germany, and Denmark. They can also be found in local bike shops throughout Canada and select locations throughout the USA. Check Cat5Gears website for distributors near you (www.cat5gear.ca).

What’s Good…

– More space than you think

– Great design allows for organized packing

What could be Different…..

– Double Zipper (Adds flexibility and ease to open)

– Optional lid for smaller internal compartments (Contain smaller items and ensure they don’t get tossed around)