I met June Angus of Amphiphod this past summer at the Outdoor Retailers show. June was one of the friendliest exhibitors that I had met at the show and was very thorough in showing me the Amphipod line of products. June later sent a box of Amphipod gear for TriHive to check out. Two things caught my eye: the RunLite 4 hydration belt and the Xinglet visibility straps/harness.

Hydration concerns me on runs longer then 70 minutes and I’m not quite there yet (I’m at 70 min now). Another week or two and I’ll wear it during a run. I plan on sneaking in a few 1.5 - 2 hour runs in Thailand in a few weeks and will bring the RunLite 4 with me to test. So far though, it looks like a solid product. They sent two sets of bottles (Four of the 8oz bottles and four 10oz bottles). Each bottle size works with the harness without belt adjustment. Bottles snap in easily and can be adjusted to hold the bottles horizontally or vertically, which is a unique feature to hydration belts. This gives runners a few different options so they can find the best position for their specific needs. There is also a small pouch for gels, money or ID and a hidden slot too.

I was most excited to try the RunLite 4, but the product that I’ve used the most is the Xinglet visibility straps/harness. I do the majority of my running in the late evening and I frequently look over my shoulder when crossing streets in my attempt to save myself from a driver that cannot see me. The Xinglet’s bright green straps lined with reflective material gives me some peace of mind that I’ll be seen. More importantly though, is that it gives my wife, Glenna peace of mind. Glenna really didn’t care about the hydration belt gear I was pulling out of the box, but when she saw the Xinglet, she was thrilled. I would no longer be a shadow in the night.

Amphipod’s Xinglet is lightweight and does not interfere with running at all. I’m dressed heavily in my winter gear and it doesn’t rub at all. It may be a burden when I scale down to a tank top in the summer but the days will be longer then and I shouldn’t have to wear the Xinglet.

Thanks to June and Amphipod for letting us try out the great products. Check out Amphipod online at www.amphipod.com.

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