WE’VE USED – AND DESTROYED – MULTIPLE PACKS DOING UNSUPPORTED TRIPS TO REMOTE PLACES. THE HEAVY LOADS, FOR WEEKS AT A TIME, ACROSS A SPECTRUM OF CONDITIONS, DRAGGED UP MILES OF ROCK, FROZEN WHEN WET, COOKED BY UV, SLEPT ON, DROPPED DOWN APPROACHES, FLOATED ACROSS RIVERS, STRAPPED TO BOATS, HORSES, CAMELS & OPEN VEHICLES; THE CLIMBING BIT IS THE EASY STUFF. WE KNOW WHAT A GOOD PACK NEEDS TO BE.
WE ALSO KNOW THAT NOT EVERY PACK NEEDS ALPINE CLIMBING AS IT’S PRIORITY. FOR A DEDICATE TRIP LIKE THE NORTH SIDE OF K2, CLIMBING IS 75% OF WHAT MATTERS AS IT’S 75% OF WHAT WE ARE DOING (THE OTHER 25% IS YOMPING 25kg LOADS UP & DOWN GLACIERS), BUT FOR OTHER TYPES OF TRIPS THERE ARE OTHER FACTORS. FOR TRIPS THAT INVOLVE SMALL BOATS, LONG APPROACHES ACROSS ICE, THROUGH SNOW, DUST AND SAND OR VERY LIGHT TRIPS THAT MEAN YOUR PACK WILL SPEND A LOT OF TIME OUTSIDE A TENT, PROOFING THE CONTENTS IS PRIORITY STUFF, AND NO OTHER EXPEDITION PACK DOES THIS.
YES, THERE ARE OTHER ROLL TOP BIG PACKS OUT THERE, BUT NONE ARE RELIABLY IMMERSION PROOF OR MADE TO CARRY BIG EXPEDITION LOADS – THINGS THE CRUX AK70 IS EXPLICITLY PRODUCED TO DO.
PROOFING
PROOFING IS A MATTER OF MATERIAL AND CONSTRUCTION; THE FABRIC NEEDS TO REJECT WATER AND AVOID PUNCTURING, AND THE SEAMS, STITCHING & DESIGN NEEDS TO FOIL INGRESS. CRUX DO THIS BEST IN CLASS, AND THAT INCLUDES UHMWPE LIKE DYNEEMA AND SPECTRA.
CRUX USES A KEVLAR/CORDURA BLEND ORIGINALLY FROM MOTORBIKE RACING SUITS. LIKE DYNEEMA COMING FROM MAXI YACHT SPINAKERS, WHEN A SPORT WITH BASICALLY BLANK CHEQUES FINANCING IT USES THE STUFF YOU CAN CALL IT GOOD. WHAT MAKES THE ‘KEVCON’ BETTER THAN ANYTHING ELSE IS IT HAS A HIGH MELT POINT, WHICH MEANS IT CAN BE HYPERSONICALLY WELDED AND BINGO – NO MORE STITCHING – GONE ARE A PACKS WEAKEST POINTS. HARNESSED WITH VERY CLEVER DESIGN ELEMENTS, THIS RESULTS IN A PACK WITH MASSIVELY HIGHER ABRASION RESISTANCE THAN NON-WOVEN UHMWPE (90% OF WHAT YOU WILL SEE IN PACKS), THAT’S SMOOTH (UNLIKE SOME TOUGH FABRICS THAN THEN ABRAID ALONG THE REINFORCED PARTS) AND HAS A LITERALLY SEAMLESS CONSTRUCTION. THIS IS SIMILAR TO HOW SOME DRYSUITS AND SMALL BOATS ARE MADE.
CRUX PACKS THEN ARE DESIGNED WITH ROLL TOPS AND LIDS THAT SEAL OFF THE SINGLE OPENING TO THE MAIN PACK. NO USELESS EXTRA ZIPS OR POCKETS AS WEAKNESSES, ROLL 3 TIMES AND THE PACK WILL HOLD AIR LIKE A BALLOON, AND THOUGH THE LIDS ZIPS ARE NOT RATED AS WATERPROOF, CINCHING THE LID DOWN PREVENTS THE ROLL TOP FROM CREEPING AND MAINTAINS THE SEAL.
LOAD CARRYING
OF THE FULLY PROFFED PACKS AVAILABLE THE AK70 CARRIES MEANINGFUL LOADS THE BEST, MAKING IT THE BEST-IN-CLASS PACK FOR EXPEDITIONS WITH LOTS TO CARRY THROUGH MESSY CONDITIONS FOR A LONG TIME. TRIPS THAT DEMAND CARRYING THROUGH RAIN FOREST, LOTS OF SNOW, DOWN OR ACROSS RIVERS, DUSTY AREAS etc WILL SEE THE DIFFERENCE BY HAVING A DESIGN SPECIFIC TO +35kg LOADS THAT THE UL CROWD WILL NEVER KNOW.
AMONGST THE CRUX RANGE THE AK70 STANDS OUT BY IT’S UNIQUE HIPBELT THAT IS DESIGNED FOR HEAVY CARRYING. THE DUAL, ARTICULATING BELTS COMBINED TO SPREAD AND TRANSFER THE PACKS WEIGHT EFFECTIVELY, LOADING THE ENTIRE BASE OF THE PACK ONTO THE HIPS RATHER THAN JUST A SINGLE BAND AS PER A NORMAL BELT, THE DIFFERENT LAYERS ALLOWING YOU TO SHIFT THE WEIGHT AROUND AS NEEDED OVER THE COURSE OF A LONG CARRY.
THE PACKS INHERENTLY RIDGID MATERIAL PROVIDES NO STRETCH, SIMILAR TO DYNEEMA, MAKING ANY LOAD STABLE AND ANY COMPRESSION MORE EFFECTIVE. THE AK70’S COMPRESSION WORKS REASONABLY WELL, COMPRESSION ABOUT 60% OF THE PACKS GIRTH, WITH ROOM FOR ADDING EXTRA STRAPS WHEN THE LOADS GET REALLY UNFORGIVING.
CLIMBING
THESE ARE NOT THE BEST CLIMBING PACKS BUT THEY ARE PLENTY GOOD FOR ANYTHING BUT TECHNICAL STUFF. THEY ARE CERTAINLY LIGHT ENOUGH, BUT FOR A 70L PACK TO REALLY CLIMB TECHNICAL STUFF IT NEEDS A LOWER PROFILE SHAPE, DRAWCORD THROAT & REMOVABLE BACK PAD, BUT THE CRUZ AK70 WILL DO EVERYTHING UP UNTIL THAT VERY WELL WHICH INCLUDES ALMOST ALL 8000m ROUTES. FOR A PACK TO SIMPLY LOAD STUFF INTO, THE AK70 IS GOOD, BUT IT’S HARD TO ACCESS ON A STEEP ROUTE, NOT IDEAL TO DROP COIL ROPES INTO, A BIT TOO BULKY AROUND THE HARNESS REGION, DOESN’T FUNCTION FOR BIVYING AS A PRIORITY AND DOESN’T STRIP AND COMPRESS AS MUCH AS YOU’D WANT IT TO, BUT FOR THE LARGE LOADER MOVER OR SIMPLER CLIMBING IT CERTAINLY WILL WORK.
