Salomon  Active Skin 8 Hydration Vest

I would give it a 3.5 of 5 starts. Love the ‘no slosh’ bladders and overall snug fit and various pockets / compartments to carry things. Bladders hold enough fluid for about a 10m run. Vest is overall a great design and I would recommend it to others. Some improvements: sizing chart is off. I have a 40” chest. Per the dimension guidance (foto #2) I ordered a Medium. However, the actual vest is very tight causing the bladders to be way off to the side (foto #1) making them hard to reach when running - I need to take both hands and pull the bladder towards my mouth to drink. Secondly, it’s pretty hard to get the elastic string inside the clasp. The clasp mouth should either be slightly wider, or have more of an angled bevel to help guide the string to its mouth. It takes about 3-4 tries to get the string inside the claps. Again, I do like the vest, but think these corrections would help.

I got this as a reward for meeting running goals this winter, and soon after buying it was in a car wreck in which I badly broke several ribs. This pack has been an absolute godsend in my recovery. I fill the included soft flasks with ice water, put soft ice packs in the reservoir sleeve and side pockets, and it supports and comforts my ribs with a gentle coolness. I will recover and take this pack on many adventures. I am 6'1” 200lbs, tried L and XL and found XL was perfection, with probably enough room to adjust down to my summer weight.

I have loved this vest for 11 months. It fits so well that I wear it on most runs, even the short ones, because I can carry my phone, resistance bands, a first aid kit, and tote bags so conveniently. Hard paces are no problem. I usually use a bladder instead of the bottles, which is fine except for the indifferent drinking tube management. I wish the inside pocket zipped instead of just folding over, for more security. Finally, the reason for the 3 stars, is that while still under warranty, the outside key pocket zipper has separated from the fabric, so I'll be returning the whole pack (I had the same problem on a Salomon belt that used the same style zipper).

Felt I had to revise my review after returning the original vest and re-purchasing. Though it has the same name, Salomon has significantly upgraded various features of the vest, including the zipper that tore on my original. The zipper is now higher quality and operates more smoothly. They enlarged the enclosed pocket so now it can hold a big phone. They also redesigned the tube restraints on the shoulder strap to be more secure. I was a little nervous trading my gray version in for this "aloe" color, but it's still pretty close to gray and looks sharp. Thanks to REI for the warranty and to Salomon for the improvements.

After spending a long time agonizing over the perfect running vest, I decided on this one. I was worried about the cord being too flimsy. I am large breasted (DDD+) and worried the cord would stretch out too much. I found this vest actually fits nicely and almost hugs me. I really like the extra support the cord and vest give me on my runs. As far as the function of the vest, I feel like the back pocket can fit so much. I love all the pockets on the front and the placement of the water bottles. I bought my daughter the same vest and she is loving it too!

I bought my Salomon Active Skin 8 over a year ago and it is still going strong. I had to replace the bottles but that wasn’t a big deal and I have since added an Osprey 1.5L bladder. I recently loaded up the vest to use it in place of a hiking backpack and it was awesome! I managed to fit my Arc’teryx Beta AR jacket, a first aid kit, headlamp, snacks, beanie, tissues, Garmin InReach, Leatherman, keys, wallet, and the water bottle & bladder in it comfortably for a trail run/hike. The cinch works great, its hand washable and looks brand new every time, and I still believe the cinch closure & overall quality is superior to other brands’ offerings in this category. For the money you can’t go wrong with this vest.

This thing is absolutely amazing. It hugged me like no other pack. Stayed on my back with no jiggle and oh my, the compartments! Held everything I needed (and more, including my drone) perfectly and the access to them was just as good. I’m not a believer in Salomon and will be coming back for more.

I was concerned about the bouncy, but this was the perfect upgrade to my Osprey Dyna 1.5. The reservoir from my Osprey even works with this. The latching system for the reservoir is not the best, it does slip down, but I found that if I run my hose through it, it'll keep it secure enough. Since there's no place to put the mouthpiece I bought a magnetic clasp off Amazon and that has worked well so far. Spacious but doesn't have nearly as much pockets as I thought it would. I do love the chord cinching, though. It feels snug and secure without feeling like I'm suffocating when I try to take a deep breath.

I originally measured and the size guide said a unisex small would fit me but after reading some reviews I decided to size up since I have larger breasts and I’m so glad I did! This vest is incredibly comfortable. For reference I’m 5’6 and 145lbs.

I’m going to be honest, I hate having anything on my body while running other than my clothes, so I was very wary about getting a vest when I started ultras. My biggest concern was bounce. I ordered this vest and decided to take it out on a 26 mile long run. Let me tell you, it is exactly as described: a second skin. The fit, comfort, and utility of this running vest are incredible. I ran with both front soft flasks full and a 2L bladder in the back, and there was absolutely zero bounce. I was honestly astonished at how well it performed. This vest completely changed my opinion on running hydration gear. I’ll be buying Salomon products for a long time.