REVIEWS

If Carlsberg made rucksacks…

Finding a good rucksack can be an absolute minefield, but I stumbled across a winner when I discovered Karrimor Special Forces. As soon as I ripped open the packaging of the new Karrimor SF Sabre 80-130 I could see and feel that it was totally different from any other rucksack that I’ve used before. It felt very much like it ‘meant business’.

The first time that I used the Sabre 80-130 was in the Arctic Circle whilst I was training for next years expedition to reach the Arctic Pole of Inaccessibility and it performed brilliantly. The huge carrying capacity of the main compartment swallowed up my kit with ease and the pockets with big chunky zips made accessing equipment like the GPS really easy, even wearing big gloves.

I’ve also used the Sabre 80-130 on training trips in the UK and France. As well as all of the above, the ‘on the move adjustability’ gave me the ability to be comfortable with the pack all day (no sore spots or aches) and helped tremendously with shifting the load on hilly terrain. Thankfully, the Sabre 80-130 comes with a rain cover – an essential bit of kit for the British climate!

Fully loaded the pack is so comfortable it’s a bit like wearing a sleeping bag; with plenty of padding in all the right places and the strapping is fully adjustable to get the best fit.

I will be, at some stage, adding to my Sabre with a couple of the attachable pockets so that I can carry even more kit and have more ‘external’ space for items that I need quickly to hand, and the KSF hydration system to make my life far easier when it comes to drinking on the move.

Now that I’ve tried the KSF Sabre 80-130 I don’t see any reason to ever use anything else. KSF have proven, with this one pack alone, that they are market leaders when it comes to load carrying equipment.

Justin Miles – Just for the Challenge www.justforthechallenge.com