Your phone rings. You answer. The short conversation tells you that you have to go. You grab your 3-day pack, already stocked because you maintain it that way, pick up your truck keys and head out the door, locking it behind you. Some readers are wondering: What pack? What’s in it? What was the phone call about and what mission are you heading out on? There could be a million different answers and a million different missions – and, in fact, there have been.
Enter the 5.11 Tactical RUSH series of backpacks. Available in four sizes, over a million RUSH packs have been sold meaning over a million RUSH packs have been taken on missions. What missions? Any and every mission you can think of. Let’s take a look at the packs and then we can discuss the missions further.
The RUSH pack line includes four different sizes. The packs have number designations in their model name to show the length of time, in hours, the pack is meant to support on a given mission. The RUSH12TM, RUSH24TM and RUSH72TM were designed and meant to support 12-hour, 24-hour and 72-hour missions respectively. The RUSH12TM is meant to be a day pack; the RUSH24TM an overnight pack and the RUSH72TM a 3-day pack. There is also the RUSH100TM and while the name indicates it will support 100 hours in the field, it was recently used on a five-day backpacking trip by one editor, managing 120 hours+ with no issues.
To improve on an already rugged dependable design, 5.11 Tactical just released the RUSH 2.0 series. Let’s take a look at the packs so we can fully appreciate the design features that make them so popular across the plethora of so many mission lengths and types.
The Commonalities:
Each pack in the RUSH line is manufactured using 1050D nylon material. This version of nylon is the perfect mixture of relatively lightweight but strong and durable material. While it’s not as light as the nylon used in so many other backpack designs, it’s far more durable than most. The barely noticeable addition of weight is far offset by the increase in durability and survivability.
All of the zippers operate smoothly, and pulls are a combination of paracord and rubberized pull-ends that are easy to grasp even in severe cold or wet/slippery conditions. Each compartment has a full width zippered opening or, even better, an opening that extends beyond “full width” to wrap sides or open in two directions.
All the seams are heavy-duty double (and in some places triple) stitched. While the packs aren’t waterproof, thanks to the tight construction and material used, they are highly water resistant.
The 2.0 major upgrades include a padded laptop compartment in each size of the pack. Obviously, what size laptop the pack will hold depends on the dimensions of the pack and the laptop. Each pack also has a larger tech/eyewear compartment enabling a broader fit for the variety of handheld electronics each of us carries daily. Finally, each pack now has a concealed carry compartment that is both hidden yet accessible – if you know what you’re doing. We’ll look more at this compartment as we examine the details of each RUSH pack.
The RUSH12TM 2.0:
The smallest of the RUSH line, the 2.0 version of the RUSH12TM is still big on capability. With a published 24 liter total capacity, the pack has 1,476 cubic inches of storage space. The main compartment measures 18”x11”x6.5” and the bottom front compartment measures 12”x9”x1.75”. The hydration pocket is designed for a 1.5 liter bladder and, as with all 2.0 versions of the RUSH pack, the hydration port has been relocated to make it even more convenient to channel the tube where you need it. Inside the main compartment, the padded laptop sleeve is padded on the front (to protect your laptop from the other items you drop into the pack) and bottom (to protect your laptop when you put the pack down – sometimes not too carefully), and the pocket stop 1” from the floor of the pack. This offers additional protection to your laptop – arguably the most expensive piece of equipment you’ll put into this pack.
The concealed carry compartment is closed with hook and loop rather than a zipper, increasing the ease with which you can access your concealed weapon. This compartment is located between the main compartment and the outer compartment of the pack. That means that whatever you put in the outermost compartment helps to camouflage the presence of your weapon. True to the goal of concealing a weapon, you should be the only person that knows it’s there with no visible clues or signs otherwise.
In all of the RUSH 2.0 version packs, the admin pocket has been redesigned for greater utility with an increase of organization for the most commonly carried items. That outermost pocket, and the top tech/eyewear pocket has a center-seam creating the 5.11 signature Center LineTM design. This is a distinctive and easily recognized design feature that makes 5.11’s packs easy to pick out of the industry crowd.
The RUSH12TM is available in five different colors: Black, Double Tap (combo black and gray), Kangaroo (a shade of tan), Ranger Green (more sage than OD) and Multicam.
The RUSH24TM 2.0:
A step up in size from the RUSH12TM, the RUSH24TM extends the operator’s ability to stay in the field thanks to the ability to carry more equipment and supplies. With a published 37 liter total capacity (a 50%+ increase from the RUSH12TM) the RUSH24TM has the following compartments with the specified measurements:
· Main compartment measuring 20”x12.5”x8” and including the padded laptop sleeve you’ll find in all of the 2.0 designs.
· The front (outer) pocket measuring 12.5”x11”x2” and sporting that center seam easily recognized 5.11 signature design feature.
· The 2-liter hydration pocket measuring 17”x12.5”.
· The fleece-lined eyewear/tech/media pocket.
· The Concealed Carry Compartment.
Thanks to the larger measurements of the RUSH24TM, the padded laptop sleeve/pocket inside the main compartment should hold a larger laptop as compared to the smaller RUSH12TM. The front/outer pocket is also slightly larger and since that’s what hides the Concealed Carry compartment, you should be able to conceal a slightly larger weapon with the RUSH24TM than you can with the RUSH12TM. All of the material and construction features are the same.
The RUSH24TM is available in a wider range of colors with a total of seven that include: Black, Double Tap, Kangaroo, Multicam, Ranger Green, Python (a color that looks like gray and tan mixed) and Dark Navy.
The RUSH72TM 2.0:
The RUSH72TM has the largest capacity in the 2.0 series, adds two additional pockets, one each on the left and right side of the pack, and has the largest hydration system capability. With an overall storage capacity of 55 liters (more than double that of the RUSH12TM), the compartments and pockets measure:
· Main compartment is 23”x13.5”x8.5”
· The front/outer pocket measures 15.5”x11.5”x2”
· Each of the side pockets measures 16.5”x6”x1.75”
· The hydration compartment measure 21”x13.5” and will hold a 3-liter hydration bladder.
These pockets give the RUSH72TM its total volume of 3,342 cubic inches. That’s a big pack and certainly plenty of space for a 3-day mission! Remember that behind that front/outer pocket is the concealed carry compartment and with a 15.5”x11.5” “cover,” you can easily hide a full-size handgun in that concealed carry compartment – along with an extra magazine or two, flashlight, etc.
The addition of the side pockets on this pack gives you more options for equipment you can carry or how you can organize what you have. They are more than big enough for water bottles, increasing your hydration capacity, or to carry water filter kits, cook kits and more. With the bigger size of the pack overall, a reinforced back panel with an aluminum stay bar was designed in along with a waist strap to increase stabilization while you’re moving. The RUSH72TM is also available in five colors including Black, Double Tap, Kangaroo, Multicam and Ranger Green.
The Missions:
Above we discussed “a million missions or more” and how those missions were empowered for success by the packs carried. Every day, day in and day out, plenty of people fill their pack with what they feel they’ll need to get through their workday or day out of the house. For law enforcement professionals there is always the possibility that when we leave the house, we’ll be gone for much longer than the standard duty shift.
If your standard shift is eight hours, the RUSH12TM is perfect for carrying your necessities and the few extra items you might need if you get held over at work for any reason. The “for any reason” can be a great many events so having a pack that gives you the room to pack not only some food and water but also a couple extra magazines and some trauma care supplies is ideal.
If you work for an agency that uses 10 or 12 hour shifts, you might want to bump up to the RUSH24TM so you can carry a few more extras. After all, working a double shift when your normal shift is already half-a-day long means overtime and double shifts can really test your fatigue endurance. In addition to the extra food and water you’d be wise to keep available, and the extra couple of magazines that never hurt to have on hand, you’ll want to add emergency toiletries and fresh undergarments. Fresh clothing against your skin can go a long way to making you feel refreshed when fatigue starts to set in or you’re feeling grimy.
And then there are many scenarios that would call for the extra space available in the RUSH72TM. Many officers work in areas that are pretty remote or with populations so spread out you could actually get lost or disabled in between them. In such situations, what you have in your pack is literally what you have to survive until help can get to you. All of the items already listed above to have available for standard or extended shifts would be needed but you’d also have to add in extra food, more water or the ability to filter it and potentially some emergency shelter supplies as well.
Another role the RUSH72TM would excel in would be carrying trauma supplies for treating multiple casualties in an active shooter situation. It’s an unfortunate reality that these events keep occurring, but we have to be prepared not only to neutralize the shooter but also to treat the wounded. The RUSH72TM has plenty of room to carry dozens of tourniquets, pressure bandages, varying sizes of nasal pharyngeal airways and more. Properly stocked, this pack could carry enough trauma kit to let you treat a dozen or more casualties.
Finally, if you’re one of those officers who works in extreme remote areas, where you have to travel on foot and may be on patrol for extended periods of time, the RUSH100TM is the way to go. With an eye on efficient equipment both for function and weight, you could easily live out of this pack for four days or more. You wouldn’t have to worry about whether or not the pack will survive “in the wilds” because it’s already been tested in realistic conditions more than can be documented.
All in all, you’d be challenged to find a series of packs, each designed for a specific mission length, that empower you to successfully prepare for and complete whatever mission it is that you face in the day.
For more information about the RUSH 2.0 series visit https://www.511tactical.com/rush-packs.html
Lt. Frank Borelli (ret), Editorial Director | Editorial Director
Lt. Frank Borelli is the Editorial Director for the Officer Media Group. Frank brings 20+ years of writing and editing experience in addition to 40 years of law enforcement operations, administration and training experience to the team.
Frank has had numerous books published which are available on Amazon.com, BarnesAndNoble.com, and other major retail outlets.
If you have any comments or questions, you can contact him via email at [email protected].
