Introducing TrailKube: How discarded wine boxes and disorganised packing led to the creation of the ‘ultimate kit organiser’
Owen Jones’ frustration with forgetting essential race equipment has seen him seek out new ways to perfect race prep
We’ve all been there. The race we’ve been preparing months for is about to start, but that one essential piece of equipment is conspicuous by its absence.
It’s a scenario ultra runner Owen Jones is well aware of. At one recent race, he came close to falling foul of a last minute kit check and unintentionally joining the ranks of the DNS brigade.
Owen, who admits his race preparation generally consists of throwing his equipment in a bag, panicking, unpacking, and starting again - several times, decided it was time to come up with a permanent solution to this constant problem.
That was when he created TrailKube, described as the ultimate kit organiser, with the intention of bringing the sort of calm to race preparation that many runners can only dream of.
“When I was preparing for longer races, I’d have stuff all over the house,” he explained.
“My head torch would be in my sock drawer, and my emergency blanket would be at the bottom of the wardrobe. Goodness knows what was in the gels and stuff in kitchen cabinets.
“Pulling it all together was a pain, and I’d end up just shoving it all in a bag. And then a few days later, I’d ask myself if I had such and such, and tip everything out to start again.
“I’d go through this routine goodness knows how many times.”
Owen’s pre-race organisation - or lack of it - reached a low point when he accompanied a friend on what was to be their first marathon in North Wales.
“It turned out to be 30 miles, so he knocked out not only his first marathon, but also his first ultra,” Owen said.
“But at the start, I’d forgotten a couple of pieces of kit, because I’d once again just shoved everything in a bag.
“We had Mountain Rescue as the kit checkers, and they basically said I couldn’t go. So, I’d taken my friend, John, for his first really long run and I wasn’t going to be able to join him.”
Fortunately for Owen, he was able to borrow the kit he needed from the race director, who had some spare equipment in his van.
Owen had not only learnt a valuable lesson. He had started to form an idea.
“A lot of the time you take stuff and never use it,” he told Running Tales, “but there is always the chance of that time when, all of a sudden, you snap your ankle, or something, between a couple of rocks on the mountain, and the weather comes in.
“If you haven’t got some food to keep you going, if you haven’t got your emergency Bivvy bag, who knows what’s going to happen?
“I’ve seen people carried off mountain sides in a race because they’ve broken something.”
Owen started to think about whether he was alone in facing mandatory kit anxiety before an event.
When, after some social media investigation, it became clear he wasn’t the only person facing “kit explosions on the bed,” his mind started to tick over with potential solutions.
One day, when he found himself experimenting with cardboard inserts from wine cases, the answer reached him.
He said: “I put them on the floor, and dropped a head torch in one, food in another, this, that, and the other.
“And, I thought, ‘you know what? This works’.
“I shrunk it down and came up with TrailKube.”
The product is the size of a compact briefcase, with a series of adjustable inserts in the middle, each able to hold different bits of essential kit.
One of the main benefits is users can simply lift the lid of the case and see all their equipment in one place, without having to hunt through a bag to find whether they’ve packed it or not.
There is also room inside for items such as a race vest and hydration pack.
“Rather than getting to a race and having to take off your bag and ferret round to find the thing that’s right at the bottom of it, often having to take everything out and start again, you can easily load up with what you need, ready to go,” Owen said.
“You can leave the TrailKube behind at the bag drop, pick it up later and refill it when you get home.”
Owen said another benefit of TrailKube is that it can double as a suitcase when travelling to races overseas.
“The last thing you want is for your bags to go missing, and end up in a different airport, or be stuck back at Heathrow,” he said.
“The TrailKube can be used as hand luggage or even as a handbag. I’ve done numerous overseas races, and people have had kit not turn up.
“There have always been enough people who’ve got bits and bobs so you can cobble something together to get you round, but it’s not exactly ideal.”
The concept of TrailKube is based on simplicity and a desire to provide runners with the perfect system for making sure their preparation goes smoothly.
As such, the next stage in the product’s journey is focused less on ‘TrailKube2’ and instead on finding other ways to enhance the pre-race journey.
This has seen Owen expand the TrailKube website to create a one-stop shop for trail and ultra runners.
The site cover four main areas: Events, Training, Kit, and Nutrition. Within these sections are everything from race reviews, detailed training plans, and advice on energy bars, gels and supplements to guides on the best shoes and other essential kit.
Owen is also currently in talks with a venue to set up an Introduction to Trail Running Day event that he hopes can be held regularly.
“It’s for people who are interested in, but have never done, trail running,” he said. “The aim is to cap it at six to 10 people, and have a day away introducing the concept of, and the do’s and don’ts of, trail running.
“We would throw a couple of runs into the day as well. That’s coming soon and I’m really looking forward to it.
“It’s all part of the TrailKube ethos of ensuring calm preparation and arriving relaxed and ready to go at events.”
Race vest? Check? Training plan? Check? Pre-race camp? Check.
TrailKube? Check it out.
Further reading:
Find out how Owen Jones went from alcoholic to ultra runner…
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This is such a simple yet creative idea. Awesome concept!
Wow, such an amazing idea!