The Sprints Sling It Bag: No Bounce, Yes Self-Flagellation

I would call the Sprints Sling It bag a hidden gem, but I don’t think it’s particularly hidden. You’ve probably already heard about the no-bounce cross-body running bag. And if you’re a regular around this here blog, you also know I abhor running leggings and shorts with no side pockets, and refuse to purchase any gear that lacks this key feature.

I stand by this policy, but I must admit that even two side pockets isn’t always enough for everything I need on a long run or in a distance race. Plus as a complete paranoiac I avoid bringing certain important items because my pockets lack zippers. No matter how deep the pocket, I don’t trust it with my credit card or driver’s license. Even the occasional run with my car key freaks me out. What if it slips out of my pocket when I grab my fuel??? What then??????

Which is how I became the proud owner of a Sprints Sling It bag.

WHAT’S A SPRINTS SLING IT BAG?

I could explain the Sling It bag to you, but wouldn’t it be easier to let the company do it? Per the Sprints product page:

Sprints cross body Sling It bags are here to revolutionize your run. Designed to keep up with your every move, you can say goodbye to annoying bouncing bags and focus on what really matters – rocking your run. At 8” x 4.25” x 1.25” they are the perfect size to fit any iPhone, keys, workout gels, headphones, your wallet, chicken tenders, and more. Two zippered pockets for easy organizing, a removable second strap and a loop for hat storage, so your Sling It isn’t lonely.

Main strap has an overall circumference of 46″.

Sayonara Bounce strap is designed to keep the bag snug to your center of gravity so you can enjoy a bounce-less run. The strap can be fully removed or stowed within the bag when not using.

And if you’d like a visual, Sprints provides that too:

SO DOES IT BOUNCE OR WHAT?

If all we had to do was determine if the bag does in fact not bounce, we wouldn’t even need this blog post. The product reviews are overwhelmingly positive, including endorsements from larger-busted individuals.

I myself can confirm. I donned the Sling It bag as instructed and did not suffer any annoying bouncing, swinging, or thumping during my run.

One caveat, though: while some straps do have tabs to keep the excess in place, some do not or don’t stay well. Make sure you’ve tucked/wrapped/otherwise secure extra strap length after you’ve tightened everything to your liking. Otherwise the unused lengths will slap you around as you move. (Please see “Eleventh Hour Bonus Testing” below.)

Right, so we’ve established the bag won’t fly about when you run. Great! I have some additional questions, though…

IS THE SPRINTS SLING IT BAG SWEATPROOF?

Short answer: no! Despite its polyester construction, the Sling It Bag is not sweatproof. I tested this by putting a dry paper towel inside the main bag compartment, then running nine miles. After the run, the paper towel was extremely damp – borderline wet through, although not sopping. So if you’re the sweaty type (me), don’t put anything in there that can’t take a little liquid.

I repeated this experiment with the paper towel in the front pocket, and while it was much less damp, it still was not dry.

Now, to be fair, Sprints doesn’t claim the bag is waterproof or even water resistant; I just wondered if it might be due to the nylon-y quality of the fabric. And I did test the poor bag in Puerto Rico in September. I don’t know if you’ve ever been in Puerto Rico in the back end of summer, but it’s about as close as you can reasonably expect to get to running through a rainforest that is also on the surface of the sun. Sometimes merely existing makes you sweat.

So I definitely tested the sweat-resistance of the bag on Nightmare Mode. If you’re in a colder climate or one of those mythical beings who don’t sweat much when you exercise, you may not have these problems.

DOES IT CHAFE OVER LONG DISTANCES?

Okay, we previously established that the Sling It bag does NOT bounce, a rare example of truth in advertising. But does it chafe if you take it for a long run? Especially a sweaty one?

I am genuinely shocked to report that over the course of nine miles my Sling It bag… DID NOT CHAFE. Maaaybe my skin was a little pinker where the bag strap was, but that could just as easily be a product of the extreme Puerto Rico heat. Even then, I experienced no pain in the shower (real ones know the pain of hot water hitting chafed skin in the shower), so color me impressed.

WHAT IF YOU’RE ONLY WEARING A SPORTS BRA?

Sure, sure, so the bag doesn’t chafe. But what if you’re someone who likes to wear a sports bra with no shirt? What then?

I hope you’re sitting down, because here’s the truth: the above experiment was performed shirtless. What, you think I’m gonna wear excess fabric as I run through my rainforest on the sun? Surely you jest ([Leslie Neilsen voice] Don’t call me Shirley[/LNV]).

Heck, I bet a shirtless dude could even harness into this bad boy bare chested and never suffer an ill consequence… UP TO A POINT (please see “Eleventh Hour Bonus Testing” below). Whether all your chest hair survived would be a separate matter. You’ll have to figure that bit out yourself.

ELEVENTH HOUR BONUS TESTING

In the interest of science, I took my bag out on another long training run, this one eleven miles.

Chafing results: I did chafe a teensy bit on my chest this time. I don’t know for sure that this was the body of the bag or my sports bra or some combination thereof, or if eleven miles in high humidity is when my skin starts developing complaints. More and lengthier study is needed. My only note here and now is to make sure you take this baby on a long test run before you bust it out for distance races. That way you can know your chafe points in advance, and lube up accordingly. (This is probably common sense, but you know how I love to play it unsafe on race day.)

The cold straps didn’t seem to bother me anyway, which leads me to…

Strap flappin’ results: Okay, this is not a matter of distance but preparation. I might just need to work on my strap adjustments, but the tails of both the large and small (bounce) straps slapped me around this time from the beginning. Simply tucking them in didn’t work; this includes the strap with the hold tab. I wound up tying the large one to itself with the small one and then periodically tightening it to keep it from getting loose. Again, I may need to play with the adjustments, but the best solution here might be a couple safety pins.

SHOULD YOU BUY A SPRINTS SLING IT BAG?

As per usual, whether a Sprints Sling It bag is right for you is dependent on personal factors. Casual runners who largely cover short distances probably don’t need one. As noted, it’s not waterproof, so triathletes will need to look elsewhere. And if you’ve just never felt like you needed help carrying your stuff on a run, there’s no sense in dropping the money on a novelty.

If, however, you find you never have enough pockets, you carry a lot of stuff on your runs, and/or you would appreciate the added security of a zippered pocket, I would very much encourage you to give a Sprints Sling It bag a try. Someday they may actual card you at the post-race beer tent, and you want to be ready, don’t you?

This post is completely unaffiliated with Sprints. I purchased the Sling It bag with my own money. All opinions are my own.

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