Dakine Hot Laps 2L on review – cheap and cheerful: our undisputed Best Value Tip.

The Hot Laps 2L is the medium-sized option in Dakine’s hip pack range and comes at a very competitive price of € 40. And that’s by far not the only reason why it deserves our coveted Best Value Tip.

**Price:** € 39.95 | **Weight:** 209 g | **Volume:** 2 litres

Apart from the loud Electric Mint colour scheme, the Dakine Hot Laps 2L makes a rather plain impression. There are no outside pockets, no compression straps and only the small side flap gives away a hidden feature. If you take a closer look, you’ll notice that the concept is rather simple yet very effective.

Apart from the loud colour choice, the Dakine Hot Laps 2L looks incredibly humble, And yet, it convinced us in all respects.

The interior is well organised and the padded phone pocket is lined with fleece.

The buckle is fixed to one side which is easy to use and works efficiently

With two litres of volume in a single large compartment, the Dakine Hot Laps 2L offers a perfect compromise and allows for a versatile use. On the inside there’s a large, padded and fleeced phone pocket, two more small compartments and a segmented rubber strap, which can be used to secure small items such as a minitool or CO2 cartridge. Nothing will fly around inside the pack, even if it’s half empty. There’s also room for a windbreaker and an energy bar.

Like with the larger Dakine model, the hip belt buckle of the Hot Laps 2L is sewn into one side of the fin, which means there’s only one adjustment strap. This makes for an easy fit and comfortable sit. Overall, the Dakine Hot Laps 2L is very stable and unobtrusive, even if it doesn’t wrap around the waist as snug as other models, i.e. the Bontrager Rapid Pack. In return the back plate absorbs a lot less sweat and dries even faster.

Missing a bottle cage on your bike or not interested in carrying a second one? The practical, fold-out bottle holder works well…

As a bonus for all riders without a bottle holder on their bike or those who simply need more water on a ride, there’s a practical and very discreet fold-out bottle holder on the left side. This holds the bottle in place very well and prevents it from moving around even on rough technical descents. However, you’ll need to use both hands pretty much every time you want to put away the bottle. But since in this case we see the bottle holder as a nice addition and not as a key feature – like with the Bontrager Rapid Pack and Deuter Pulse 2 – this won’t cloud our overall impression. On top of that, the holder doesn’t take up any space when not in use.

Comfort

uncomfortable
unobtrusive

Stability

low
high

Compartment Layout

poor
excellent

Climate

unpleasant
pleasant

Ease of Use

fiddly
straight forward

Price/Performance

poor
very good

Conclusions

At just € 40, the Dakine Hot Laps 2L is a clean, no-frills fanny pack. The volume can be used in many ways, the compartment layout is sensible and there’s even a padded phone compartment. On top of this the Hot Laps 2L features a practical and functional bottle holder, which folds away discreetly when not in use. In addition, the Hot Laps 2L provides a comfortable and stable fit. What else could you ask for? Our undisputed Best Value Tip!

Tops

Good compartment layout
Versatile
Padded phone pocket
Discreet bottle holder
Excellent value for money
Zipper on both sides

Flops

Back padding absorbs sweat
Colour

For more information head to dakine-shop.de

The test field

Click here for an overview of the best MTB hip pack in test

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Words: Photos: Andreas Maschke, Christoph Bayer