I’ve used both, hated both and loved both. I’ve traveled with two messengers for a weekend trip and hiked with one, and I’ve cycled with very heavy backpacks that almost took me down with crosswinds.
I get a sweaty back; so I was carrying a messenger bag this summer and fall. But usually I hate adjusting them (even with the cross-strap) and the Messenger Bag Should Sloop (where you’re just bent from those things). I used to like that carrying a messenger bag identified me as “a cyclist.” But, for one, that’s not really true. Just as everyone with a backpack is not a backpacker, traveler or vagabond, not everyone with a messenger bag is a cyclist. Secondly, I don’t want to be identified by my favorite mode of transportation. I do also walk and take transit a lot. Plus, well, if we want everyone to cycle, the cyclist/non-cyclist distinction is counterproductive.
I do notice that I over-pack with backpacks. Right now I have 17 pens and four Moleskines on me. No kidding. Add work papers, dissertation drafts, a 40 oz water bottle, lunchtime book and other junk, and it’s a lot more weight on my back. Sweating is not usually a worry this time of year, but I think my high-riding daypack can get in the way of my helmet a little.
Lately, I’ve been throwing my stuff into an old totebag and strapping it to my rack. I do feel like a sucker with a bag on and an empty rack. I call it my Bike Bindle. I’ll have to do a post about that.
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02.02.10 at 7:02 pm
Gary
Yeah, I’ve been experimenting with different ways of carrying my stuff lately, and haven’t found anything that I like.
I’m waiting for someone to invent a backpack that doubles as a pannier . . .
02.02.10 at 9:10 pm
Backpack, or Messenger Bag? « NORTH BALTIMORE BIKE BRIGADE Terms
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02.03.10 at 12:43 am
Liam
Solutions : Baileyworks Gear bag. Mix between a duffel and a messenger bag, with the bonus of two straps so you can carry it around easily without putting it back on your back just to walk somewhere for a couple minutes. That plus a cetma rack and bungee’s for larger stuff.
02.03.10 at 9:55 am
dukiebiddle
Messenger Bag or Backpack? Easy, neither.
I use a Wald 157 giant delivery basket, but I know such a solution isn’t for everybody. I hate carrying weight on my body so much that if I can’t fit everything into my basket, I’ll strap my backpack to the rear rack with bungee chords.
02.04.10 at 11:14 am
steve
I use a bookbag for pretty much anything, but when on my bicycle I drop it into the crate I have zip-tied to my rear wheel rack. An elastic web serves as a lid for my crate.
I recommend a crate, basket, or other receptacle lashed to the bike; that way, you can drop anything you want in it, in whatever container you want to use. Your bike carries the weight, and you have the advantage of additional mobility (when nothing is hanging on your shoulders), either while riding or avoiding accidents/bailing.
02.04.10 at 11:40 am
Johnny
I used to be in love with a red milkcrate Dan hooked me up with on my last bike. I sawed off a black one to make it shorter, but I fell out of the habit of using it. I think I might get one of those back on there one of these days. When I started taking my bike to my office, it made it harder to squeeze into the crowded elevator.
You’re right, though — incredibly useful. I used to leave work, throw my lock and wheel cable in there with whatever I had with me that day and be off up Charles Street.
02.04.10 at 2:10 pm
a parent
Depending on how much off bike distance you’ve got there are plenty of rear pannier grocery bags available, many with shoulder straps. I can’t stand riding with stuff on me – that’s what the bike is for.
02.14.10 at 4:57 pm
Marc Hummel
My solution: the Knog Hot Dog. Sort of a backpack, sort of a messenger, and it even transforms into a downright sexy pannier.
http://www.knog.com.au/Product.aspx?productId=163
It even has a built-in reflective raincoat thingy for rainy days (or nasty slush from several feet of snow).
I got mine for a better price than the aforementioned link, but it’s worth every penny to me.
Cheers,
Marc