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Camelbak Streamlines Podium Bottles While Easing Cleaning

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While most of Camelbak’s pack range sees little change for 2014, the hydration company has made a number of changes to their Podium and Podium Big Chill bottles to make them easier to use- and to clean.  As nice as the original Jet Valve is, its design left a few nooks and crannies that were hard to get clean.  The fact that few knew that the bite piece could be removed made for more than a few funky bottles- and prompted the redesign.  More after the break…

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Original Podium (left) and 2014 prototype (right).

With a sleeker new “Velocity” shape, the small and large Podium bottles maintain their 21oz and 24oz capacity but get smoother and slightly shorter.  The change makes for a bottle that not only looks better on aero frames but is easier to squeeze. The self-opening Jet Valve has been moved to the cap, which can now be removed more easily thanks to a pair of pull tabs.

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Despite the upgrades, prices for the single-walled Podium and insulated Chill bottles largely hold the line at $9 and $10 for uninsulated models and $13 and $15 for insulated models.

camelbak.com

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24 Comments
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Joey B
Joey B
10 years ago

Cool! This remains to be my favorite bottle.

MissedThePoint
MissedThePoint
10 years ago

*checks to see how the original’s valve comes off*

pmurf
pmurf
10 years ago

While I looove that they redesigned the valve for easy cleaning, I’m really not digging the new styling. The older design with its angular ribs and sharp features is so unique amidst a sea of boring-shaped bottles. This redesign brings it back to boring for me….and so it would look good on aero frames? A lot of aero frames have creased, kinked, angular geometry and graphics (foil, propel, aeroad, 7 series, TMR, Alize…) that IMHO the older bottle would complement better anyway.

Cory
Cory
10 years ago

That rubber end is a spit magnet. I didn’t like it at all, until I found out I can remove it, not to clean, but permanently. It’s not necessary to work, but I guess that will change with this new design.

Ck
Ck
10 years ago

Happy for the changes, I have to clean my CB caps too much right now to keep the mold away. It’s enough to make me consider ditching valve bottles altogether, or at most trying a Purist bottle. I may consider this one when I see it in person.

Tom
Tom
10 years ago

I’ve never understood how people get moldy bottles. I almost never wash mine and they never get funky. I think the key is to leave them mostly full when you finish a ride. Either way, these are my favorite bottles by far.

Justin
10 years ago

That thing comes off?!

Batson
Batson
10 years ago

@ CK: A lot of drink mixes mold up pretty quick when left in a bottle/bladder.

MS
MS
10 years ago

So …. how do you remove the valve from the originals?
I too never have real problems with mine getting too funky. Typically, I wash them with dish soap & hot water after about 1-week of use. I don’t even use a brush. I have had some extreme cases where I needed a splash of bleach to kill some growth in the valve.

MS
MS
10 years ago

Whoa, nothing special? Just pull the rubber tip off?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eATl8ZPRp7g
I never wanted to try it for fear of breaking it off. It certainly does not come off as easily as the bite valves on their Nalgene-type bottles.

Ck
Ck
10 years ago

@Batson. I hot-water rinse my bottles immediately after a ride and then fully wash them with the evening dishes and they still mold up.

Fatso
Fatso
10 years ago

Still one of the best bottles out there in my opinion. I like the Purist bottle but really don’t like the nozzle. I’ve had 3-4 of each bottle and the Purist seemed more likely to leak and took a bit of getting use to the oversized nozzle. The Podium sure does blast out the water though if you’re not expecting it and squeeze like a normal bottle, it always makes me laugh.

JL
JL
10 years ago

My trick is to rinse the bottle with water after the ride, and store the lid and upside down bottle on a tea towel to let them both dry completely. I just leave them sitting like that until the next time I ride, keeps it dry so no mold can grow! At least it works for me.

RUSTYDOGG
RUSTYDOGG
10 years ago

Used these for years on and off the bike. Never would go back to traditional bottles. I pry that rubber tip off sometimes with the help of a butter knife or one of those rubber gripper pads you use to open jars. Small brush to clean nooks and crannies and bottle brush to clean inside. Always dry upside down in dish rack. Ride in the dishwasher every now and then.

The only problem these bottles have is the damn squeaking sound they make from the valve from the pressure differentiation. Anyone who uses one off the bike knows what I am talking about. Its friggin irritating. All mine do it and always have. Still, I always have one filled in my possession, car, office, etc…

Limba
Limba
10 years ago

or … get a Purist bottle.

bk
bk
10 years ago

I swear by Purist bottles due to their intelligent internal coating of the bottle, however the valve and moving part is simply too hard to clean. When I first started using them I would pull the entire black portion out so I could clean the docking portion of the lid along with the inside/outside of the black cylinder containing the valve. After you do this about 5 times the rubber O-Ring gets stretched and makes it very hard and nearly impossible to push the valve down to the ‘closed’ position and once it’s there you need two hands and twisting motion to get it to the open position.
Wish the CB lid fit the Purist bottle = problem solved!

Fabricio
Fabricio
10 years ago

The best bottle used in my own experience, I own 3 of these and no complains, maybe I will buy one of the news to see the improvement

Tes
Tes
10 years ago

I like old bottle and the new top, but I can’t tell if they’re compatible. Anyway, I’ll wait for the carbon version.

Andy
Andy
10 years ago

Will they be offering a mud cap for the new bottles?

Yoshi
Yoshi
10 years ago

They are way to heavy

Velo
Velo
10 years ago

I never ever wash my CamelBak Podiums, and they never get moldy.

Nathan
10 years ago

Yoshi – try drilling the bottles to save weight.
My biggest question is always “do they leak”? I’ve lost a few bikes to sugar ants carrying them off at night after nutrition product leaked all over the frame.

Adam
Adam
10 years ago

Not a fan if new aesthetics either,

But better is better. Function > form,

Never really had isues with mold, use low sugar NUUN, quick rinse and store in frig.. 1/wk or biweekly dishwasher cycle.

TK
TK
9 years ago

When I removed the Jet Valve assembly from the cap it separated into three parts – plastic Jet Valve cylinder, o-ring, and soft outer tip. I wasn’t sure where the o-ring fit as the Jet Valve fits tight in the soft tip. At first I left it off and didn’t notice leaking. Then I went online to Camelbak to find where to place the o-ring – no luck. Anyway, I slipped the o-ring over the smaller diameter of the valve cylinder and pressed both into the soft tip. This seemed to work. I can remove the tip without the cylinder and o-ring getting separated. If you are wondering about this o-ring you should be able to see it between the tip and Jet Valve after you remove the assembly from the cap. Phew!

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