Mafia Tour Pack backpack review

As the name of the Mafia Tour Pack backpack suggests, this product was not originally made for cycling, but for generally touring. But it does fit very well for riding, though.

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The bags made by Mafia, a manufacturer based in California, are truly unique. As their main material is old sails, you can easily understand why these bags are not replicable. Two bags might come from the same, big, old sail, but their final cut will definitely be exclusive.

The design of the Mafia Tour Pack backpack is simple and clean, and apart from the internal storage, this backpack has just one front zippered pocket, a lateral opened pocket that can fit bottles and an internal sleeve that separates the main space from the back pad. I used this space mostly to put in paper or magazines, or eventually for my laptop, as the sleeve keeps this section separate from the rest from the rest of the stuff in the backpack.

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Let's make it clear: this bag was not specifically designed for cycling, but despite this it is still very suitable. The shoulder straps are really comfortable and so is the back pad, and while you're riding the bag is not moving much on your shoulders. However, the material is not the most breathable I have tried and you can end up with a sweaty back, particularly if you're riding in a t-shirt rather than a cycling jersey.

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The top of the bag features a rolling closure which can extend to fit more things into the bag. Even though the space inside is quite large at 24 litres, I found it a bit chaotic to just throw all my stuff in the same space. What you can do is dividing them with extra bags, or put more into the front pocket, which is definitely large and suitable for wallet, cellphone, keys and other values.

To make it more fitted for cycling, an extra sternum strap and a waist belt would have been just perfect. But despite the fact that this backpack is cool and actually fits well while cycling, the down sides are the the non breathable back pad, the big and unique interior space and the price: £115.

For more details visit the Mafia website.