ROVR arguably kicked off the wheeled cooler trend when they developed the RollR in 2016 and trundled it out on Kickstarter. Still kings of cool, their smallest offering, the RollR 45, offers tons of utility, long ice retention, and category-leading functionality in an easily packable package.
Coolers have gotten tougher, pricier, and better at keeping your cool things cold, but at the expense of your back. Hefting a fully loaded, thick-walled, long-lasting cooler from any of the high-profile brands out there is usually a two-man job, even for the standard-sized 45-quart options. And for all of their expense, most the new-fangled coolers don’t really do anything but provide a sealed space to store stuff you want to keep cold (or safe from animals).
Enter one frustrated Boulder, CO, man who was tired of having to make multiple trips from car to campsite or beachside, lugging heavy coolers, bags of food, and other outdoor living essentials. His idea was to make a multi-function cooler that could carry more than just some ice and cold brews, but would be a whole, rolling platform that would easily support your adventures with little strain and less pain. That cooler he came up with was the RollR 60 and it was quickly and fully funded on Kickstarter in 2016.
The line has now expanded to three options—the 45, 60, and 80—and has gained a loyal following and won high praise. This review focuses on the 45 version, which is what most regular folks would need to pack for a weekend overlanding trip. Oh, and they are also rated as being bear resistant—when you bolt or padlock the lid shut—by the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee after being tested against grizzlies. (This review didn’t try to replicate that protocol.)
ROVR RollR 45 Review
The first thing that stands out when unpacking a ROVR is noticing the wheels. In designing the RollR cooler, lots of attention and care was put into the rolling system—instead of slapping some cheap wheels with hollow plastic “tires” molded with a plastic rim, ROVR fully committed with actual air-filled all-terrain tires mated to trick aluminum, five-spoke hubs. That detail alone is impressive.
Using real pneumatic tires means you get fast rolling and quick maneuvering cooler that also has a lot of shock-absorbing capabilities that can easily handle bumpy trails knotted with roots or rutted asphalt. I found that they work especially well when shooting down a short set of concrete patio stairs—you can quickly take a loaded cooler down them without having to worry about cracked plastic or breaking anything inside or out.
They also work great on sand, I had no problem navigating the beach at Fort Fisher, NC, with a filled cooler. Though there’s one caveat that makes them slightly less reliable than standard plastic wheels: You have to worry about possibly getting a flat, even though ROVR bills them as “puncture-resistant” tires. And they did come out of the box with an off-putting, chemically tire smell that often comes with any set of new tires you buy, but that faded over time.
The cooler itself, at least with the 45, is a more cube shape than your typical rectangular cooler. It has a 14-inch deep well that’s stepped up to 11 inches to allow clearance for the stainless steel axle underneath. This shelf gives you a spot to set the included (and removable) Dry Bin, which is perfect for securing foodstuffs and other items you don’t want to mix with ice but still want to stay cool.
The other item that really sets the RollR apart is the included Wagon Bin. This is a foldable, reinforced bag essentially, that stays flat and attached to the top of the cooler by hook and loop attachments when not in use, and then can be opened up and reattached to the top, to fill with dry goods and other essentials like towels, Bluetooth speaker, snacks, etc. It’s eminently useful, providing a large, extra storage solution where you can cram everything that’s usually tumbling out of your arms as you struggle to get everything to your favorite outdoor spot.
Other awesome (not included) accessories that make this wheeled cooler the best are the Umbrella/Rod Holder, bamboo Prepping Board, powder-coated steel Cup Holders, and nylon Stash Bag, which all can attach to one of the six mounting/tie down points around the lid. To up the cool, and utility, factor even more, you can get a special BikR Kit, an aluminum bar that allows you to quickly connect your bike to the cooler for even easier transport to and from your adventure spot.
Pulling the cooler comes in two configurations, depending on what size you get. The 45 has a telescoping handle like the ones you find in a piece of rolling luggage (but much sturdier) while the 60 and 80 have a more standard, rigid flip-up bar. I’ve used the normal bar on other wheeled coolers, but not the RollR, but I have to say that the telescoping handle is a delight—quick to deploy, easy to maneuver, and a snap to get out of the way. The long, attached bars on other coolers often get in the way or snag on something when pulling the cooler in and out of vehicles.
My final (and admittedly non-scientific) test with the RollR 45 was to load it up with 20 pounds of ice and leave it outside for a few days to test ice rendition. I ended up dropping 19 pounds, 15 ounces of ice into the cooler, which had been sitting in my 70-degree house for a few days. The inside temp of the cooler was about 72 before the icy plunge. I then wheeled it outside (gleefully bouncing it down my back steps), and let it sit in the summer sun and shifting shade from 3 p.m. on a Saturday to Monday at 3 p.m.
The outside temperature over those few days was 82 degrees with partly cloudy skies and a few showers. On Monday afternoon I strained out the remaining ice and weighed it, which came to 7 pounds and 1 ounce. That means that there was a net loss of 12 pounds, 14 ounces over the 2-day course of the test, for a 65% decrease in ice. This was a pretty impressive result, but not quite in line with the companies claim of “up to 10 days” of ice retention, which was probably done using a pre-chilled cooler, the recommended move when wanting to get the most out of your cooling abilities.
The Bottom Line
ROVR’s RollR 45, which retails for $369 and includes both bins (and comes in four colors), is a the must-have wheeled cooler for summer fun and outdoor adventures in general. The fact that it offers so much utility and is easy to pull around when fully loaded means less time hauling gear and more time having a blast in the outdoors.
Plus, it’s made in the U.S., has a 5-year warranty, is made of quality materials, has great ice-retaining ability, and allows you to hook it up to your bike? There’s no reason to even look at another wheeled cooler if you’re in the market and want one that will last and provide the most for your dollar.
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