It can be hard to find the best concealed carry chest pack for runners or hikers. There aren’t a lot of options on the market, and some of them were clearly designed by people that neither shoot, nor run! In this article I will review a great chest pack that I use when I want to conceal carry outdoors. Keep reading for the full review.
There are a lot of reasons why you might want to conceal carry when running or hiking. While it’s always a good idea to run or hike in safe locations, this isn’t always possible. In fact, there are many national parks where carrying a firearm is required, due to bears, mountain lions, and other natural predators.
I’ve tried a lot of different concealed carry methods over the years, and I’ve come to the conclusion that carrying a firearm in some type of waist band holster is your best carry option. I’m not particularly dogmatic about appendix carry, or other locations on your waistband. There are pluses and minuses to each.
However, it’s clear that this isn’t an option for most runners and hikers. Good luck getting your concealed carry pistol to stay put while wearing a pair of running shorts. Moreover, hikers have a similar problem, as their packs often have waistbands straps that would making carrying a gun on the waistline impossible. Here’s a quick overview of the best concealed carry chest pack for trail runners, hikers, and other outdoor enthusiasts.
5.11 Skyweight Utility Chest Pack
- Adjustable quick release harness system
- Ambidextrous quick access pistol draw
- Sized for Compact Pistols
- Plentiful pockets and organizer loops with easy access
- Can be reconfigured into waistbag / fanny pack
- 330D Nylon ripstop
- 120 Cu inch / 2 liter total capacity
I’ve used the 5.11 Skyweight Utility Chest Pack for over a year now, and I really like it. It’s by far the best concealed carry chest rig for nearly any outdoor activity. I’ve found that it’s my best option for day trips in nice weather.
You can carry your pistol, keys, cell phone, wallet, knife, plus some snacks and a bit of water all day with little fatigue or discomfort. It keeps you from having to carry something like these CCW backpacks from Mystery Ranch.
I’ve also used it as first line gear when hiking with a larger ruck. In my opinion, it works much better than something like chest holsters, belly band holsters, or ankle holsters. It’s a very flexible chest pack. You can see video review of the best concealed carry chest pack for runners / hikers below.
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5.11 Skyweight Utility Chest Pack Review
The Skyweight Utility Chest Pack has two large, primary compartments, with a few additional accessory storage areas. The rearmost compartment is for your pistol. It features a large hook field for holsters designed to attach via velcro, with an ambidextrous design. The opposite side of this field is some elastic organizers, sized for things like additional magazines.
The next large compartment is the primary compartment you’ll use for immediate access in this chest pack. It has a gusseted opening system, which allows for it to open widely, without dumping your items on the ground.
Closest to your chest are two large pockets, and a retention lanyard. I most commonly attach this to my keys. In the middle is a mesh organizer with exterior elastic bands. These are best for small items that you may want to carry, separate from the bigger EDC items.
Furtherest way from you in the middle compartment are more elastic pockets, and organizers. I find I don’t use these a whole lot. I tend to just throw my my normal pocket items in the this compartment loosely, and attach the lanyard to my keys, instead of using something like a dummy cord loop.
Skyweight Chest Pack Accessory Pockets
Furthest way from your chest, on the pack, is an exterior zipper pocket. This is a fairly large pocket that is completely open, and free of organizers. I commonly use this for snacks on longer hikes or runs.
The last pocket is an open top pocket with some elastic mesh. This is where I will put a bottle of water or my phone if I anticipate using it a lot to take photos. While it’s reasonably secure for things like water bottles, I think smaller items would fall out if you were running.
In the next section I’ll review some pistol setup options to make this pack more useful for your activities.
5.11 Skyweight Chest Pack Set Up
First and foremost you need to figure out how you want to carry in the pistol compartment of the chest bag. If you look at the pictures you’ll see that I used a kydex holster shell for an AIWB holster I reviewed a few years ago. If you’re like me you probably have a few extra holsters lying around and this is a great option for several reasons.
First, it’s easy to apply velcro adhesive strips to the kydex. This will make sure that the holster doesn’t move in the bag. I also think it’s important to use a hard sided holster because this will prevent any interference with the trigger or trigger guard. You don’t want an accidental discharge when running !
Next you should size the straps to keep the chest bag comfortably in place where you like it. Runners will probably find they like it higher on their chests, especially female runners. Hikers might want to lower the straps so the sternum strap of your main pack can clear the bag. Obviously this will be dependent on your body type.
I then tighten the adjustable straps to be tight with the biggest breath I can inhale. When I exhale it’s reasonable tight, and keeps the bag from flopping around.
Initially I was worried that it would be hard to breath with the bag on my chest, but I haven’t noticed any issues. If you’re breathing correctly you should be using your diaphragm more than your chest anyway. In the next section I’ll cover a few drawbacks to this setup.
Drawbacks to the 5.11 Skyweight Chest Pack
No piece of equipment is perfect and there are trade offs for everything. The primary drawback for this piece of gear is the pistols you can use. It’s designed for a small gun like snub nose revolvers, and smaller Glocks.
This pack can fit a Glock 43x, and a Glock 19 with red dot. A larger gun will not fit due to the extended length of the pistol grip. Personally this isn’t an issue for me, as I use a compact pistol for self defense.
The other drawback is size. You can see in the photos that it’s a good sized bag. If you’re a smaller person this may be too big to fit on your chest. If that’s the case you may need to look at an off body CCW bag or backpack. In the next section let’s talk about how to practice with and use this bag.
Practicing with Your Chest Bag
I’m begging you not to just buy this bag, and never practice with it. If you’re like most concealed carriers, you normally carry a pistol around your waistline. You’ve probably practiced drawing, and shooting from this position.
Carrying in a chest bag is much different than any other method. It’s somewhat akin to a shoulder holster. This means you need to be very careful drawing, in order to avoid flagging yourself or others.
This bag comes with a “hot pull” tab which allows you to rip the bag open, exposing the gun for draw. You then need to establish your grip on the pistol, pulling it up, at an angle. You then push the gun forward towards your target.
You want to avoid pulling the gun clear, and then swinging it in an arc to the target. Not only is that an inefficient draw, it will likely flag everyone standing near you. This probably won’t be an issue in the woods, but it’s best to practice a safe efficient draw.
If you plan on carrying this setup a lot, then you need to practice this dry fire, and live fire. If you’re range won’t let you practice live fire, that’s ok. You can accomplish just about everything you need with dry fire practice.
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Now that we’ve covered a lot of information on the best concealed carry chest pack for runners and hikers, let’s finish the article off with some final thoughts.
Final Thoughts
The 5.11 Skyweight Chest Pack is a great all around bag for nearly any outdoor activity. In the year or so that I’ve used it, I’ve found that it carries just enough gear for a fair weather outdoor activity. If you’re going to be running quite far, or it’s very hot, I think using something like a hydration pack would be better. This pack can really only carry a liter of water.
You can add additional pockets using the small MOLLE loops at the bottom of the pack. You can also use them for knife sheathes or anything of similar size.
The most important thing for runners is that even when fully loaded the bag doesn’t move around your chest. Nor does it restrict your breathing. I’ve also found that the chest pack doesn’t chafe or develop hot spots on longer runs.
This chest pack is better than most waist packs that you can carry a gun in. I find that those tend to flop a lot. I plan on continuing to use this for trail running and day hikes for the foreseeable future.
If you like this pack then you can pick it up here for right around $50. If you have any comments or questions put them below. Don’t forget to join the email list.
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