Bicycle panniers have a lot of features in common with backpacking gear because because of similarities in needs and functions. And for both bicycle touring and backpacking, you will find proponents for either top-opening or side-opening pack designs. The bags you choose are as much a matter of function as your personal packing style. (I discussed difference between water-resistant and water-proof packs in earlier posts.) We are currently stocking both types of packs at Bicycle Garage Indy.
Side opening bags with lots of pockets are good for the organizer. They offer a place for everything with everything its place. Your front pannier, rear pocket will have your sunscreen, and your rear pannier right pocket will have your headlamp and matches. You get the idea. A side opening pack also lends it self well to stuff sacks or zip-lock bags to further sub-divide and organize the gear.
Side opening bags are also good for easy access to gear during the day. You can easily stash jackets and arm warmers as the day warms up, and put away the groceries acquired throughout your day of riding. At the end of the day, side opening allows you to quickly find the one the item or bag of items you are looking for, without having to unload everything else in the pack. Some of our side opening bags include the Arkel models T-42 ($219.99), XM-28 ($219.99) and T-28 ($169.99).
Top opening bags, with either a roll-up water-proof closure, or a drawcord and flap closure, are best when you are closing your bag once in the morning; you pack it and forget it. It is also important to pack these bags with a plan, so that items you might need during the day are not under everything else, especially if this is a bag with few pockets.
Some top opening bags may have external pockets, and you can pack the main compartment with things you will not use during the day. This would typically be the case for your rear panniers, which may have additional gear (tent, sleeping pad, etc.) strapped across the top opening. In this case access is not issue except when the unexpected comes up. Our top opening bags include the Arkel Dolphin-48 ($244.99), KoKi Rover II ($149.99) and Bontrager Basic Panniers ($99.99).
So which is best? Depends on your intended usage. For the touring bicyclist, I recommend the side opening, with pockets, as the most flexible option. The organization it imposes saves you a great deal of time in the long run, and that time savings adds to your enjoyment. The one exception is in extreme touring where a truly water-proof bag is required. For the commuter, a single opening bag may be just right for quick loading on unloading after each leg of the commute.
Bicycle Garage Indy is now offering TouringWise classes to help you plan and equip for you bicycle adventure. Learn more at bgindy.com/for/tourwise.
Find a full selection of bicycle packs from Arkel, Bontrager and KoKi bicycle packs at all three Bicycle Garage Indy locations: Bicycle Garage Indy North (Indianapolis, Dean Rd at 82nd St.), South (just west of I-65 on County Line Rd, Greenwood), and the new BGI Downtown, in the Indy Bike Hub YMCA at City Market.
So how is a bicycle pack made to be "water-proof", and how is it different from a water resistant design (
Some of the bicycle packs made in this waterproof design approach the protection offered by a canoe/kayak “dry-bag”, that are designed to protect gear that is at risk of actually be immersed in water. A road touring cyclist may not need this level of protection, but for off-road mountain bike touring, fording a stream and needing a dry-bag pack is real possibility.
Most nylon fabrics used in bicycle packs have an internal coating that is water resistant. This coating that holds a nylon fabric together will also keep items inside dry through the occasional shower However, this water resistance is compromised where the bag is sewn together. Also, the outer fabric layer can still get wet, and gradually soak through the internal coating and sewn seams. So most fabric manufacturers will add a external fabric coating (Scotchguard or similar products) that repels water and also prevents stains. Water will bead up and run off the pack, slowing down the process of soaking through. You can also improve water resistance with design features like flaps over zippers, (or using water resistant zippers) and seam placement. 
When there are multiple pockets and zippers on a pack, the only way to completely keep water out is with an accessory rain cover. The rain cover will typically fit around and over the pack like a shower cap, will have as few seams as necessary, and may include a drain at the bottom. Rain covers are usually very light fabrics, and intended to be used only has needed. This will keep the rain cover from loosing both its external and internal coatings (and water resistance) from daily wear and exposure to sunlight. 
Want to plan the bicycle touring vacation of a lifetime, and aren't sure where to begin? Bicycle Garage Indy is now offering 
Your Tourwise class will be customized instruction that will help you with gear selection for extendended bicycle travel, including bicycle choice, racks, bags, and clothing. We will also show you what to carry and how to pack it. Whether it is a 3-day charity ride, a week-long cross-state ride like 
You tell us what you need or want to learn and we will give you one-on one personalized training for in a one hour session for just $40. Your needs, your schedule! Your TourWise classes will be offered at BGI North. Just complete the form at 
When we were planning our family, we knew we wanted our kids to be a part of our bicycling. And even in the early `90’s, the first name in child trailers was 
In the years since, Burley has added more models, and added innovative safety and comfort features that we had to improvise. The entry level 
year, when the rain was so heavy on Sunday that they pulled all the food and entertainment back to the school and only ~400 people rode. I have never walked any hills. I have ridden the Hilly on my single bike and on our tandem. I have low gears on my bike and on the tandem (lowest gear is 24T front, 32T rear – 22" gear). The low gears make it a bit easier to climb the hills (although the challenging hills are still challenging, but spinning up them at 5 mph is easier and faster than walking up them). I don’t stand when I climb hills – I use the gears to help me maintain momentum and cadence (pedaling speed).
The challenge of the hills at the Hilly Hundred is one thing. The sheer amount of people surrounding you and varying skills levels/speeds on the hills is another. At the Hilly you may not have the luxury of going a steady speed up the hill due to others around you who may stop and start walking at a moment’s notice.
The Mayor's Ride will bring along the 15-person 
This spring I replaced an older GoreTex cycling jacket with a Showers Pass Event 2.0. My original jacket had a GoreTex laminated outer fabric, a lightweight liner, pit zips and a vented back panel. Originally purchased for a 2-week bicycle tour in the Canadian Rockies, this jacket has seen thousands of miles of bicycle touring and commuting, along with hiking and cross country skiing. 
The Elite 2.0 is not intended to fit in a jersey pocket; but the fabric is durable enough for bicycle touring and the grind of regular bicycle commuting. It has proven to be a good replacement and addition to my cycling wardrobe. I look forward to using it this fall and winter, and will update you next spring after a year of use. 
Typical features of technical bicycle rain gear may include a vented back, with a covered mesh panel, a zipper or mesh opening along the arm and arm pit, zipper storm flaps and/or water resistant zippers, adjustable wrist openings, a cycling cut waist line, and an adjustable collar. Some will have an attached or removable hood. 
Bicycle Garage Indy's light-weight offerings include the 
Before the wide array of miracle fabrics available today, bicycle rain protection was typically waterproof capes or jackets with mesh panels. All this was combined with the original miracle fabric, wool, which insulates well when wet. 
In the same price range, one breathable, water resistant fabric option is available in the O2 Original Cycling Jacket ($34.99). Made from a lightweight polypropylene, it provides basic wind and rain protection, with some breathability. However, you will build up some humidity under the jacket first, since there are no extra ventilation features like mesh panels or pit-zips. The O2 fabrics is more durable than the Vinyl jackets and also packs well. 
We had almost a dozen bike commuters today at Bicycle Garage Indy North. The bikes are as varied as the staff at BGI: state-of-the-art road bikes, a hand-built touring-cyclocross bike, and a menagerie of older road and mountain bikes adapted specifically for commuting. 
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