In this article I will test the Waterfield Club Cycling Pouch, a vertically oriented pouch designed with ELEVEN vélo that is optimized for packing cycling tools and phone in your back jersey pocket with minimal bulk.
Protecting your smartphone during rainy conditions in spring, fall and winter is key. Furthermore you want to take some essential tools, cash and a spare home key with you on the road. Lets find out if the Waterfield Club Cycling Pouch can pack it all in a clever way that keeps your ride comfortable.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CLUB CYCLING POUCH DESIGN
Until now I have been using the Lockbox Wallet to take essential cash, my health insurance card and a spare home key with me during a ride. I pack my smartphone in a cheap zip-lock bag, while I keep my essential repair tools and a spare tire in compact saddle bag. So basically I take three “bags” with me on the road.
Exterior design Club Cycling Pouch
The Club Cycling Pouch version I’ve ordered is made from black ballistic nylon, which is the same material used for bullet-proof vests. This is very tough and durable material, which Waterfield has been using for other products like the Waterfield Sleevecase or Waterfield Dash Sleeve. On the front side there is a leather black patch with the Waterfield logo on it.
A premium YKK self-locking zipper keeps the top opening from the vertically oriented Club Cycling Pouch waterproof. Competitive products like the Rapha Essentials Case or Bellroy All-Conditions Phone Pocket have a different type of zipper that runs completely around the long side of the pouch.
In the side view of the Club Cycling Pouch you can see a rubber-like material that has some stretch. The orange/gold liner, the YKK zipper and the rubber-like material are perfectly sewn together. No “open spots” where water potentially could enter, and this detail speaks for the high quality finish of the product.
Internal Compartments Club Cycling Pouch
There are two compartments in the Club Cycling Pouch:
- Phone Compartment
- Main Compartment for tools and “stuff”
First the phone compartment that easily fits my Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 smartphone. The phone compartment has soft plush inner surface and a good volume of impact resistant compression foam that will protect the screen of your smartphone. Even if you will put essential repair tools in the main compartment, the screen of your smartphone is well protected.
Second the main compartment for tools and all other necessities. The essential cash, my health insurance card and a spare home key easily fit the main compartment. A spare tire, Topeak Micro Airbooster with CO2 cartridge, Tacx Mini Tyre Levers, 11-speed KMC Missing Link, and the Lezyne V10 multi-tool easily fit the main compartment.
The internal compartments feature the well known Waterfield orange/gold liner.
The only improvement in the design that I would love to see is an extra card pocket within the main compartment that could keep health insurance card, paper cash and my spare home key in place. This would even increase the organization of tools and essentials. However in practice I keep paper cash and health insurance card in the phone compartment, while I put my spare home key in the main compartment.
CONCLUDING THOUGHTS AND WRAP-UP
The design of the Cycling Club Pouch is a brilliant collaboration between San Francisco based Waterfield and Australian Cycling Clothing Manufacturer ELEVEN vélo.
My first impression when I unpacked the Club Cycling Pouch was “hmmm that’s a wide pouch” However it is a design feature where the Cycling Club Pouch takes advantage of the entire surface area of the middle back-pocket of a cycling jersey. There is a minimal amount of bulk sticking from the top of your jersey pocket and the large flat surface makes sure the ride is comfortable. 🙂
The price-point of the Waterfield Cycling Club Pouch is $49,– which doesn’t sound particularly cheap. You can buy a lot of zip-bags for that amount.
However compared to Rapha Essentials Case or the Bellroy All-Conditions Phone Pocket the price-point is good. Waterfield makes very robust and durable products, and the owner brings his experience as a bike messenger to the table.
The Bellroy All-Conditions Phone Pocket is more stylish and has some more organized pockets, but it doesn’t allow you to pack essential tools. The Rapha Essentials Case doesn’t have a water resistant YKK zipper. Personally I think the Cycling Club Pouch even beats Waterfields own Club Ride Pouch in terms of value and features for money.
The Waterfield Cycling Club Pouch can replace your cycling wallet, your saddle bag and the zipper that protects for smartphone. You get a high quality and durable product designed by cyclists for cyclists.
Please check out Tim Wiggins review with pictures of the brown canvas Waterfield Club Cycling Pouch.
AND 6 YEARS LATER IN 2022
In 2022 roughly 6 years later the Club Cycling Pouch is still in a perfect condition and I use it when I switch between cycling, running and hiking and using the Craft Cadence Essentials Case side-by-side.
SFBags also has upgrade their cycling pouches to these two models:
Where the jersey pocket tool case seems to be the successor of the Waterfield Club Cycling Pouch. All Waterfield / SFBags products have a great lifecycle, they simply don’t wear. And while not cheap they last … probably longer than the technical life span of your electronic devices.
