Bone Dry: Laptop Pack Passes PS Test

Necessity, as the saying goes, is the mother of invention. And sailors tend to be an inventive lot. So, its not surprising that when Ed Kriese, a veteran racing sailor and the owner-founder of Oceanracing.com, became dismayed at the lack of a reasonably waterproof backpack for laptops, he invented one.

“I have a real reverence for laptops, but theyre delicate,” explained Kriese, “and its hard to find a reliably marinized laptop computer.” While sailing in the Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to Montego Bay Race several years ago, the idea dawned on Kriese to design his own solution. “I found a manufacturer whose gear I liked, and I specified some important elements for this product, like welded seams, etc., and we set out to make a prototype.”

Kriese doesn’t claim to make the only waterproof backpack designed to house a laptop, but hell tell you that most manufacturers put out a product that suggests theyre not really serious about protecting the computer.

His backpack offers two layers of protection. Theres the coated nylon case with adjustable straps, and inner and outer compartments, which seals out the water via coated zippers, and theres a neoprene envelope with a hook-and-loop closures that cushions and protects the laptop. Once inside the sleeve, the laptop then can be packed into a compartment thats built out of the same waterproof fabric, and expressly designed to secure and protect its contents.

We closely examined Oceanracing.coms backpack. The seams are both stitched and welded. The back panel has a rigid plastic plate sewn inside to assist in protecting the laptop, and foam-padded bumps that rest against the wearers back. There are four outer compartments, two of which are waterproof, and two of which are constructed of mesh for drainage. The Achilles heel may be the powder-coated metal zipper slider.

This product would be entirely suitable for cruisers who tend to ferry an assortment of sensitive items groceries, laundry, mail to and from the mothership via dinghy. But the big question is, will Oceanracing.coms backpack keep your sensitive instruments dry if the pack goes into the drink? Kriese says the pack wont keep its contents entirely dry if it is fully submerged for several hours, but “if the backpack ends up in the bilge in the middle of the night, and you don’t find it until later, the laptop will be fine.”

By way of a test, we stuffed the backpack full with crumpled paper and a 10 pound weight, zipped it up, and set it adrift for 10 minutes. Then we rotated the pack onto its side, upside down, and onto its other side. Upon inspection 20 minutes later, the contents were bone dry.

Oceanracing.coms backpack lists for $150, about mid range of other “waterproof” laptop packs we came across during a quick web search. A less expensive alternative is to buy a regular laptop pack or case (starting around $30) and put it in a dry bag (starting around $12) when need be.