@ravenbait@achadwick@cycling Recumbent low-rider racks put the front panniers in splatter range of the front wheel, while the rider stays high and dry. Of course, the great thing about Ortliebs is you can just run them under the tap.
The over-the-top strap is incredibly useful for overloading the pannier gracefully, dangling random things from, or crossing over with the pannier on the other side for additional security, and I do miss it on my flap-closure Altura panniers (which got relegated to shopping duty when I discovered they were being eaten by the disc brake on my tourer).