It’s hard not to scoff at Velomacchi’s whole “privateer” shtick. It makes you wonder if it’s just a clever ploy to cover up the fact that this is just another lifestyle brand with nothing innovative to show for it, save for some glossy photos. Forget the fact that they’re from Oregon.
But then you notice a couple of things you’ve never seen before – what’s the deal with that pivoting shoulder strap or the magnetic coupler? And you begin to think that maybe this isn’t bullshit. Maybe, just maybe, these guys know what they’re talking about and have built gear that actually serves a purpose.
Still, just how much better could a backpack get? Besides tougher materials, deeper pockets, more pockets, a few more pockets, and one of two suspension systems – alpine or daypack – you’ve got two straps attached to a bag. That’s it.
Which is why Velomacchi’s Speedway Roll-top Backpack is so intriguing and, at the very least, fundamentally different than anything else available in the market. So I asked Kevin Murray, Founder and Director of Design at Velomacchi, why backpack design hasn’t really changed.
“Apparel and footwear generate bigger revenue,” Murray tells me. “Most companies are structured around building footwear and apparel lines, which are inherently simpler products and have much shorter timelines. I think many brands also lack the confidence to try something new.”
Murray would know. He’s an award winning industrial designer whose had stints at The North Face as its Design Director of Equipment and later as its Product Director of Europe, as well as Global Director of Design at Columbia Sportswear.
Oh, and he’s President of Syren Industrial, a turn-key technical soft goods consultancy with an impressive list of clients and gear you’ve seen or purchased:
The rise of athleisure and fast fashion certainly haven’t helped the advancement in backpack design/innovation either. With a new collection or a different set of colorways rotating in every few months that generates a ton more revenue, it’s hard not to see why designers or companies haven’t thought to make backpacks any better. Go where the money is, right?
Of course, that’s not to say some outfits aren’t trying. They just get overshadowed and lost in the mix when bigger companies flood the market with copycat products. But Murray is quick to point out that that’s getting harder to do now that everyone and everything is documented online for all to see.
So what is it about Velomacchi’s Speedway pack that makes it so special? To begin to understand that and the whole privateer thing, you need to know the why and how Murray started Velomacchi in the first place.
While stationed in Italy in the early 2000s at The North Face, Murray was, he says, heavily influenced and impressed by the Italian style, riding, and culture surrounding motorcycles. So much so that the name Velomacchi is a combination of Velocità Macchina, or Velocity Machine.
And as an expat living on a continent filled with an abundance of motorcycles and culture and motorcycle culture, how could he not be.
Yet, that’s only half the story.
While on a “spirited ride” from Portland to the coast and back with the Sang-Froid Riding Club, Murray met Gregor Halenda and his Team Incomplete Boxer.
“I’ve had a picture of that bike on my shed wall for years and I couldn’t believe it when I saw it in person,” Murray reminisces of the day. “We struck up a conversation over beers and discovered we had both made a pilgrimage to Rudy Ottenhoff’s garage in the Netherlands. We were Boxer Freund’s after that.”
Halenda, a commercial and advertising photographer, didn’t initially start out as the company’s VP of Marketing.
“I started helping Kevin as a friend but soon I was building bikes with him (the Yamaha XT500 scrambler we used in our photography) and giving feedback on the gear as I tested it,” Halenda tells me.
As a former racer – aboard a Honda RS125 and Yamaha TZ250 GP bikes – his fascination with building motorcycles eventually lead to the Team Incomplete Boxer, which caught the attention of Berlin and a two year gig as a BMW stunt rider.
Rumor has it that bike inspired Ducati’s Sport Classic line. Oh, and he built that two-wheel drive KTM 950 Super Enduro, too.
“That lit a fire in me to shoot motorcycles as most of the people who were shooting bikes were car guys,” says Halenda. “Once I started shooting motorcycles my career took off again and I’ve done campaigns for Ducati, BMW, Rev’It! and Scorpion to name a few.”
All that hard work paid off for Halenda in 2008 when he was named a Hasselblad Master, which he says was attributed to his firm belief in meritocracy and simply working your ass off for what you want.
It’s that spirit and somewhat irreverent attitude that plays a major factor in the gear Velomacchi is building for today’s privateer and “culture of speed”.
The logo, a butterfly, with a wrench and screwdriver hidden in plain sight, serves as a declaration of the brand’s mission to honor the privateers who aren’t too enamored with themselves to pick up a wrench and ride the piss out of anything with a shit eating grin just because.
“We are focused on building tools that help people to be better riders and have more fun,” says Murray.
Though the entire Speedway collection, which includes gloves, a tool roll and gadget bags, was launched at this year’s The One Show, Velomacchi first popped up back in 2014 with a failed Kickstarter campaign.
I asked Murray what, if anything, has changed in the design process or philosophy since then, “It’s just the curse of the designer. A design is never done. Every design that ever went into production was pried from my fingers. I didn’t finish, I just ran out of time. Once the kickstarter finished I had more time to revisit the problems and challenge the status quo.”
What’s actually changed about the Speedway pack is the ingenious suspension system (2 pending patents, mind you) and my favorite feature of all, the magnetic sternum coupler, which allows you to get it on or off without taking your gloves or helmet off.
Features aside, Murray and Halenda approached this first collection and asked themselves whether or not they were solving a problem.
In order to be relevant they focused on trying to redefine the category by bringing to market gear that works at speed, that’s less distracting, and is waterproof. So far they seem to have hit the nail on the head.
Here’s how Murray breaks down the design of the new pack:
“The first generation, like most of our competition, had a modified alpine suspension system on it while we dialed in the bag and roll top features. Once we turned our attention to the suspension we realized that virtually all motorcycle bags use a conventional daypack or trekking suspension system.
The differences are staggering. In a conventional trekking suspension, the goal is to transfer the weight of the pack to the hip belt and lock down the upper body with conventional pre-formed shoulder-straps. It is just the opposite while riding a motorcycle. If you are riding aggressively you need to use your hips and your upper body as you get off the bike to properly turn the bike.
We needed to develop a system that was quick and easy to get on and off, but could hold a load stable on your back at high speeds while getting off the bike at extreme angles. We also added a magnetic sternum coupler to be able to hands-free anchor the harness while wearing gloves and a full face helmet.”
How does this compare to the competition, like Kriega, you might be asking?
Comparatively, the three point hinge system – rotating clavicle points and magnetic sternum coupler – of the Velomacchi seems more infinitely adjustable for all body types and only has one connecting point that’s easier to slip on and off when gloved and helmeted.
Whereas Kriega’s system requires wearers to be a little more adept at zipping and unzipping or unclipping with gloves and helmet on. Not all Kriega packs are waterproof or resistant either.
Of course, materials matter, too. Velomacchi employs a 1000 Denier nylon based fabric with a heavy TPU laminate on the back and an abrasion and water resistant coating on the face that keeps the whole of the pack “water tight.” Which, Murray says, gives the fabric a rigid architecture that “resists cavitation at higher speeds.”
With classic looks and modern materials, the Speedway Roll-top pack attempts to solve the one common enemy for most of us: the morning commute. While also transitioning to a pack (with bladder) that can be used on the weekends. But it’s something you need to see and wear in person to really understand why Velomacchi’s solution is truly different.
Jensen, I hear, hates wearing a pack on the bike, so look for his two cents on this later.
Though this first generation is too big to take on an enduro or hare scramble, I wouldn’t be surprised to see something that’s more dedicated to off-road riding in the future.
The rest of the Speedway lineup is just as clever, too. The tool roll, for instance, includes sleeves for CO2 cartridges, a magnet in the flap to keep everything in order and even corner snaps in said flap that create a tray.
And then there are the gloves. Inspired by flat track gloves that Ray Carroll, Kenny Roberts and Malcolm Smith wore back in the day, Velomacchi’s updated variant takes the old roper architecture and gives it a modern spin.
Deer skin offers superior feel in the palm, while goatskin addresses any abrasive situations you may encounter. Brass rivets and TPU dorsal guards that double as shield wipes round out these $99 gloves. And yes, you can tap and swipe in them, too.
So where does Velomacchi go from here?
“We’re already working on ways to make the Speedway collection obsolete. It is the only way to bring something truly unique to the market,” says Murray.
Source: Velomacchi
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