GREENROOM136 METRORUNNER: REVIEW
Metrorunner is right at home in the urban setting and in the wild
FOREWORD
2020 has been a year like nothing else. Back in February, many thought that the wildfires in Australia with hundreds of thousands of acres and animals affected would be the worst highlight of the year. Alas, we were met with the COVID-19 pandemic and the consequent quarantine, changing the definition of a global crisis. Because of these unprecedented times, a reassessment of what is essential everyday carry is due.
Just a few years back, the most conservative of folks would have been content with just a phone and keys. Now, however, the face mask and hand sanitizer have taken center stage. A spare mask and also documents like a passport (required in many countries to be on the person at all times to verify identity) are also becoming more common.
These factors, like a perfect storm, created an opportunity for a new carry solution - an oversized sling of 5L and up.
The latest offering from already fabled in carry community Malaysia-based Greenroom136 occupies exactly this new growing niche. Meet the Metrorunner. I took it with me for a month-long trip to Turkey and used it on a plane, on a beach, while roaming through farmers markets and everything in between.
Let’s dissect together this interesting new addition in the Metro line and my somewhat complicated relationship with it.
I found Metrorunner very handy in my adventures
WHO IT SUITS
Those who are looking for a workhorse of a bag with solid durable materials, including the liner. Great to throw around and not worry about it
Those who can’t fit their essentials in a standard 2-3L sling
People who seek the most compact mobile office solution possible (Metrorunner fits up to 11inch iPad Pro with keyboard case)
Those who love to personalize their carry with morale patches (relevant for Tactical version of the Metrorunner)
WHO IT DOESN’T
If you have sworn an oath not to carry a sling bag of any shape or form
Those who are looking for a carry solution fit for the business environment and worn with the suit
If you were looking for a sling big enough to carry a laptop
Personalisation of Metrorunner with morale patches is very satisfying
ABOUT THE BAG
* PRICE: $89 Tactical with Fidlock stabilization strap. Minimal in base configuration is ~ $70
* DIMENSIONS: Length 33 cm x Width 12cm x Height 15 cm
* WEIGHT: 720 gr
* CAPACITY: 6L
Metrorunner comes in two different models - Minimal and Tactical. They are essentially the same bag and differ only by the extra Velcro area and PALS webbing on the front in the Tactical option.
In my daily use, the Metrorunner proved to be a capable crossover between a regular sling and a messenger bag.
Taking the existing 2L sling and just bloating it to 6L would not really be innovative, wouldn’t you say? What Greenroom136 did is that they took the best from the existing product line (Metromonger for instance) and incorporated it into something fresh and new.
COMFORT
Despite a modest size, the Metrorunner features a full-scale harness system with generous back padding, wide and well-padded shoulder strap, and an optional stabilizer strap (a big win in my books). I did get my unit with an extra Fidlock stabilizer strap and was using it consistently - a highly recommended upgrade if you are on the move and want to keep your bag in place. The stabilizer strap can be tucked away into the D-ring on the back of the bag, unfortunately with my larger frame the strap end did not reach the D-ring so I added an elastic band to keep strap from dangling.
The padded shoulder strap is great and the padded section is secured by 3 Velcro points that allow the padding to be configurable based on how you choose to carry. . It makes sense that this sliding solution was meant to allow right shoulder carry ( the default configuration is set for the left shoulder), but I could not brush away the annoyance when using the bag daily.
Even though I appreciated this flexibility I found it somewhat irritating that the padded section was sliding up and down slightly even when secured. I would much prefer it if the padding was non-removable and fixed to the strap permanently.
The shoulder strap is wide and nicely padded. This is one of the most comfortable oversized slings out there
DESIGN & FEATURES
There is no way around it - the bag is very jingly and demands some sort of zipper pulls installed (not available out of the box). I strongly recommend adding the zipper pulls during checkout when placing the order or attaching the paracord pulls yourself which is quite easy and also gives another chance to personalize the bag (this is what I did).
Adding your own zipper pulls is a simple yet necessary modification
The bag fits many things, including my iPad Pro 11 with the case on. Sure it won’t leave much space for other items (you have to choose between say a water bottle or a tablet in the main compartment, both is not an option) but it also made me more conscious when deciding what to take with me.
My typical EDC with Metrorunner:
iPhone 11
Wallet
Keys
AirPods Pro
IPad Pro 11 (with keyboard case on)
Hand Sanitizer
Universal Charger
Sunglasses
Couple of patches to swap
Extra face mask
Behold, my EDC
The top grab handle is great and I would argue is a must on any sling bigger than 3-4 liters. Don’t expect any padding there but it is sufficiently reinforced with a layer of folded fabric.
The side compression allows cinching the bag down and making it quite flat - in case you don’t carry much and want to manage the volume. Personally I used it a few times but don’t see utilizing it very often in the future, since the bag looks perfectly fine when empty.
Burly materials, a full-scale harness system, oversized build - all these things come together as a very capable bag. It is not ultralight with a weight of 700 grams.
The hidden pockets on the bottom of the bag are flat and secured by Velcro. The idea is to put a metro card in and be able to scan it by slinging the bag to the side closer to the terminal. I personally did not use it much and I found that this would work if you are OK to keep the card semi-permanently in that compartment. Placing and removing the card is finicky and Velcro is a bit inconvenient to operate. Not my favorite feature, but I could see how someone would love it. Perhaps making the closure magnetic instead of Velcro would be a better, more convenient option for this feature
MATERIALS & ORGANIZATION
The outer fabric of the Metrorunner is a tried and true 1000D Cordura. It has become almost an industry-standard material for the best ratio of durability/cost/weight. It is highly abrasion resistant, has water repellent properties, feels nice to the touch, and manages to look good in the process. One of the benefits of the fabric is a sheer amount of different options and colors, GR136 allows you to select from 6 different colors - Black, Green, Coyote, Navy.
The inner liner features 420D Cordura 420 with polyurethane coating
Metrorunner offers 2 compartments:
The main compartment (big enough to fit 1L Nalgene OR up to iPad Pro 11 in case) has 6 organization pockets. They are flat and don’t offer many dimensions but sufficient to throw a phone, wallet, AirPods, power bank, etc.
The front compartment is noticeably smaller, also has pockets for internal organization and also a plastic D-ring to secure your keys. Be mindful of what you put there because the keys can easily scratch other items like a phone if you put it there.
In my estimation, the volume of the main compartment is around 4L and the front one is approximately 2L.
Both compartments feature signature grey nylon liner that even though won’t win any awards, but is quite robust and durable. Not for a second, I was concerned about leaving a stain, mark, or scratch on it. I personally love when the bag is not asking the user to be gentle with it and everything about Metrorunner basically screams at you -“Do your worst, I can handle it”
Each compartment is closed by a pair of big chunky YKK 10 RC. I appreciate when the zippers are doubled to allow closing the bag from either left or right side, or even in the middle. There is a small gap between the zipper heads, so be mindful of this when it rains as the gap will get some of the drops inside, especially if zippers are not closed tightly.
This is an exaggerated example of the gap between two zipper heads
WHAT’S HOT
Durability and build
Big enough to carry most of the things you could possibly need
Excellent bang for the buck
Personalization option
Wide and comfortable padded shoulder strap. Comfortable to carry even when filled with heavy items
PALS strip on the front to add external accessories
Stabilization strap to prevent sway
WHAT’S NOT
the weight to size is slightly higher than what I would have liked
The fiddly shoulder strap moves up and down and I would have preferred if the strap was sewn in and fixed for good
Jiggly out of the box - be prepared to add your own zipper pulls or order the ones as an add-on during the checkout process
The top grab handle is a must on oversized slings and it’s excellent on Metrorunner
WRAP-UP
The Metrorunner proved to be an excellent companion as a grab-N-go bag, beach bag, baby bag, and surprisingly even a portable office bag (fitting iPad Pro 11 with a keyboard case, chargers, etc). I used it for grocery runs (reusable grocery bags were carried inside the Metrorunner) and as a personal carry-on item in the plane on my recent one month trip to Turkey.
To sum up, Metrorunner is a bag that most of us need, even if we don’t realize it yet. With enough volume to carry all the new essentials, plenty of durability to last a couple of lifetimes and added personalization option (on the tactical version) - Metrorunner is a highly recommended bag.
Disclaimer
The Metrorunner was provided by Greenroom136 as a sample for review purposes, the content of this review was not shared with Greenroom136 before publishing.
My goal is to share an honest, unbiased review that is not tailored to keep the brand happy.
If you find the bag interesting, consider the purchase using my Affiliate link
https://www.greenroom136.com/shop?afmc=1m. Your support would mean a lot to me and of course, contribute to the growth of Greenroom136 as an independent bag company.