The Patagonia Slope Runner Vest. All photos: iRunFar/Eszter Horanyi
The Patagonia Slope Runner Vest ($170) is a lightweight, minimalist running vest with functional storage in an everything-you-need-and-nothing-you-don’t package. While Patagonia’s involvement in the trail running world has fluctuated over the years, this vest, when first released in 2019, showed a big step forward in the brand’s commitment to the sport. You can read more about that first vest in our Patagonia Slope Runner 8L review. This newest iteration of the vest offers useful pockets for hydration and enough storage for jackets and snacks to last you for several hours out on the trail, all in a sleek design that stays put on the torso.
This running vest became my go-to option for runs big and small through the canyons of Utah and the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. I loved that it was equally as comfortable when relatively empty as it was when packed full, and I often stretched the limits of the sheer volume of stuff that I could put into its pockets.
Weighing 7 ounces (199 grams), this pack is quite light for the amount of storage it provides. It has a snug fit and sits high on the back. I never felt like this pack, or anything in it, jostled or bounced around while in motion. Patagonia continues to use the same bungee clip system on the front of the pack as it did in prior versions, and while I’m sure most people can get the hang of clipping and unclipping the plastic clips, their fiddly nature is the biggest drawback of this pack for me.
The pack is available in four sizes, from extra small to large, which is good because it has minimal adjustability. Two bungees can tighten down over the shoulders, and the front chest straps are adjustable, but that’s all there is. Since the pack only has the slightest amount of stretch, it’s important to get the right size.
Because it breathes well, this became my favorite running vest for hot summer runs and mountain romps of up to three or four hours that didn’t require more than a first aid kit, jacket, and Garmin inReach as far as gear was concerned.
Its simple design, long-term durability, and functionality landed this hydration pack in our Best Running Vests guide.
Shop the Patagonia Slope Runner VestPatagonia Slope Runner Vest Construction and Fit
The front view of the Patagonia Slope Runner Vest.
The Patagonia Slope Runner Vest features 100% recycled ripstop fabric with a durable-water repellent (DWR) coating to protect it from light precipitation. The inside next-to-skin layer of the vest is a relatively coarse mesh. It’s not a soft fabric, but it is hydrophobic, so it won’t get soaked in sweat, and is quite breathable. While I never wore the pack without a shirt, I imagine there could be potential for irritation from the coarseness of the material. That said, it never felt anything but comfortable over a shirt.
The mesh, and thus the actual body of the pack, has minimal stretch, and two bungee cords adjust the tightness over the shoulders. Unfortunately, when tightened, the mesh on the shoulders folds and creases, increasing the chance of irritation. I never felt the need to adjust these bungees and never experienced any chafing, even after long days out in damp conditions.
The pack comes in font sizes, extra small to large, and I tested a small. For perspective, I generally wear women’s medium clothing and found that the pack fit perfectly.
The back view of the Patagonia Slope Runner Vest.
Over top of the base mesh on the front of the pack are two pockets on each side, and the back has a space for a bladder between the mesh and the rear pockets. A clip can hold a bladder in place and keep it from falling down the back of the pack.
The front of the pack is closed with a pair of doubled-over pieces of static cord with plastic hooks on the end. It’s easy to move the cords up and down the sternum on the daisy chain of attachment points for comfort, and while they’re initially difficult to hook, the clip-on points that you use regularly do end up getting a bit bigger and easier to use.
When tightened down, this pack provides a snug fit. The front and back pockets are stretchy without allowing items inside to bounce, and the whole vest feels quite sleek, even when full. I really appreciated that I could comfortably wear this vest when all I needed was a single bottle or when I was carrying 2.5 liters of water, a jacket, snacks for several hours, and my phone. The arm holes are plenty big while still keeping the vest sitting high on the back, and no part of the vest interferes with swinging arms.
Patagonia Slope Runner Vest Hydration and Storage
The clasps of the Patagonia Slope Runner Vest can be a bit fiddly.
The Patagonia Slope Runner Vest has a lot of storage space for its size. It’s not unimaginable to carry three liters of water, a day’s worth of snacks, and a jacket — though that’s definitely not the volume of gear that Patagonia theoretically designed this pack for.
The front of the vest has two pockets on each side, one of which has a design for a soft flask, and the other that overlays a design for snacks. The vest comes with two HydraPak 500-milliliter flasks, and you can fit nearly any similarly sized flask in the stretchy pocket. The main downside of these hydration flask pockets is that they go all the way down to the bottom of the front of the vest, and partially filled bottles can start to migrate down and be difficult to retrieve. There’s no adjustable bungee on the top of these pockets to hold bottles in place, but due to the overall snug fit of this vest, I didn’t find this to be that much of a problem. The bottom overlay pockets are big. Bars, gels, and small sandwiches all fit easily and securely. Made of a mesh material, the pockets are stretchy enough to accommodate more stuff than I initially thought they could.
The back of the vest has two pockets — three if you consider the space between the inner mesh and the back pockets an additional storage area. This extra area holds up to a two-liter bladder, though it looks designed for a 1.5-liter one. The top pocket on the back is relatively small and has a zipper to keep everything secure. I can fit a windbreaker in here, and it’s perfect for gloves and a hat, but it would be small for all but the smallest rain jackets. It also has a key clip. I often stored anti-chafe cream, sunscreen, and other loose items here.
The Patagonia Slope Runner Vest can hold an array of snacks in addition to hydration.
The bottom of the back has a mesh pass-through pocket. I frequently used this pocket for a jacket that I was taking on and off frequently as weather conditions changed. It’s easily accessible while still wearing the pack — even for those of us who struggle with shoulder mobility — and I never worried about bulkier items falling out, even when I had the pack on the ground. Even when full, the pack is small enough to fit under my rain jacket or windbreaker.
There are two different ways to store trekking poles on this vest. Two bungee cords on the front of each shoulder strap can hold single poles, though at iRunFar, we discourage storing poles on the front of packs due to the increased chance of injury in case of a fall. Luckily, this pack also has two bungee cords on the bottom of the rear pocket that securely hold a pair of poles. These bungees aren’t adjustable, but I haven’t had any issues losing poles off this pack, even when pushing my way through an overgrown trail.
Patagonia Slope Runner Vest Overall Impressions
The side view of the Patagonia Slope Runner Vest.
The Patagonia Slope Runner Vest nails the fine line between a minimalist pack that fits snugly and doesn’t bounce around and one that has enough storage for a substantial run. It doesn’t feel overbuilt in any way, and after a year of having the arguably unfortunate position as “Eszter’s favorite running vest,” it’s held up remarkably well to scootching up, down, and along sandstone ledges in the desert, being scraped against sharp rocks while scrambling, and overall being worn hard and put away wet. The material at the very bottom of the vest has started to develop some holes, but given that I often consider “running” a full-contact sport with my environment, nothing lasts forever when endowed with the Favorite label in my closet.
While I still can’t quite figure out how to use the front clips efficiently, this vest’s other features are functional and intuitive. It’s a great option when you need to carry more gear than a running belt would allow, but don’t need a full-sized hydration vest with all the bells and whistles.
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