My Review of Mammut Lucido TX1 Headlamp

Originally submitted at REI

Backpacker April '08 says, '' ... the Mammut Lucido blasts a tight, square-shaped beam nearly 350 ft. into the darkness.''

Mammut Lucido TX1 Headlamp

Great Headlamp

By Camper Kyle from Lynnwood, WA on 11/14/2009

 

5out of 5

Gift: No

Pros: Durable, Bright, Long battery life

Cons: No Beam Adjustment, Heavy

Best Uses: Hiking, Car Camping, Backpacking

Describe Yourself: Casual Adventurer

I have used this headlamp for almost a year now and still love it. I have used it from overnight backpacking, car camping to around the house. I found it to be a bit of overkill if I'm going for a day hike or a clear weather overnight trip. It does weigh a bit more then a 3 bulb LED but it out performs almost all other LED headlamps.

I really like the spot light, it shines as far as claimed and the high/low settings are nicely balanced. Although I've never used this for biking I could see how this would be an excellent choice, with the rear red flashing LED's and the effect spotlight.

The battery life is absolutely amazing. I used this all spring and summer and finally replaced the batteries not because they went dead but I figured there was no way they could still be good but they were. I just didn't want them to die when I needed them most. This was even after I had accidentally left it on in my pack for 24 hours several times.

(legalese)

Review of Deuter Futura Pro 42 Pack

MAY

31

2009

4.0

The Most Comfortable Pack I've Owned

By Camper Kyle

from Lynnwood, WA

About Me Casual/ Recreational

PROS

• Comfortable
• Easy To Load
• Good Padding
• Highly Adjustable

CONS

BEST USES

• Day Hikes
• Light Loads

Comments about Deuter Futura Pro 42 Pack:

I've used the pack on several day hikes and one overnight. Every time I put this pack on I'm amazed at how comfortable it is. It rides perfect on my hips and the trampoline back allows me to stay cooler when I'm humping up a big hill in the blazing sun. I'm able to pack several days worth of gear, around 30lb. and barely notice the weight. The only thing I have strapped to the outside is my sleeping pad. My only complaint is that I wish it had some bottom straps to carry my pad or tent. I end up having to strap it vertically on the back side.

BOTTOM LINE Yes, I would recommend this to a friend

My Review of Outdoor Research Rocky Mountain Low Gaiters

Originally submitted at REI

The lightweight, breathable Outdoor Research Rocky Mountain Low gaiters are ideal for fast packing through talus, sand, wet brush and light snow.

Outdoor Research Rocky Mountain Low Gaiters

Nice Low Gaiters

By Camper Kyle from Seattle on 11/14/2009

 

4out of 5

Gift: No

Pros: Breathable, Easy To Use, Water Resistant, Rugged

Best Uses: Wet Weather, Backcountry, Rocky Terrain, Leg/Ankle Protection

Describe Yourself: Casual/Recreational

I purchased these last spring and used them all summer. I probably logged a good 50-60 miles in them and have no complaints thus far. I have not noticed any unusual wear with any of the straps unlike the previous reviewer. The straps are holding up just fine. They breath reasonably well and with a pair of wool socks my legs stay dry. One tip is to pull your socks up just past the top of the gators to keep them from rubbing on your leg.

I've owned some mid length gators in the past and had problems with them being not long enough to stay over the tops of my calf's so they would constantly slide down. These are just the right height for 3 season hiking.

(legalese)

What not to tell your family

WOW!!!

Family is your biggest critic. Less then a week ago I sent a link for my blog to mainly my family members with a message of "check out my new blog and please click on the ads." I sent this message out in hopes of not necessarily them being interested in the blog, bonus if they where but to have the click on the ads to get "clicks" for my ad words in my blog.

Well this started a firestorm faster then Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky. I also learned the fasted way to have my father get in touch with me..... All from the post about Cube Doors and my using them at work. I won't even go into details since the post has been edited and repeating it in this post will only repeat what I've tried to undo. I had every family member calling me up going "What are you doing Kyle? Are you crazy?" Ugh.

Bottom line is it has been edited. For those who haven't read it, you don't know what you are missing. For those who did, you are welcome for the anxiety.

Cube Doors

Like millions of Americans I work in a cubicle 40 hours a week trying to make some meaning of my existence in the corporate wheel. Honestly I gave up on trying to figure out the meaning, but more on that another time.

Today I'd like to talk about one of the greatest inventions for cubicles......the cube door. I've had mine for over 6 months now and it has become one of the most valuable items at work to keep me sane. It first started 10 months ago when management had the brilliant idea to "keep things fresh" and move everybody around to different cubes in the office. My move did not pose to be very fruitful as I was put across from a chronic and persistent nosey person. This person would look into my cube every time she would pass by. I'm not talking about a quick glance but a full on head turn as she would pass by. This drove me nuts and I had to do something about it. At first I had the idea of hanging some sort of beaded curtain to give me some privacy but I was afraid that the beads would be too noisy and management would think it would be a distraction to others. So I decided to go with this fringe curtain that I hung from the ceiling. It work fairly well except for the fact that everybody walking by it wanted to touch it and play with it. This too drove me nuts! This started my quest to find the perfect solution, something that I could put up that would give the message of leave me alone and mind your own business.

Then I found it from http://cubedoor.com/! This little genius device is really nothing more than a vertical blind going horizontal but some creative people decided to design it so that it would be able to clip onto the side of your cube. I ordered one right away without even consulting with my manager.....I figured I'd have a better chance of using it and them not saying "no" if it was already up. The screen is black and about 2 and a half feet in height....perfect. You can still see at the bottom but it's large enough to keep unwanted eyes to get the message. My managers were a bit suspicious at first thinking that I didn't want them looking in my cube and spying on me......which was partially true.

I'm alive and killing time!

So it's been a month and a half since I last posted anything. I just can't seem to find the time at home to do it or the will to get on the computer after spending 8 hours at work on the computer. So I decided to start updating it at work. I figure since I don't do much at work anyways I might as well work on my blog and at least do something productive at work. I'll try to fill it with some of the random stuff that I find while surfing or researching at work.....which tends to be a lot.

Take today for example, I found and printed wine tasting sheets for the upcoming wine party that my co-worker Leah and I are hosting. I watched the top 10 summer movie trailers. By the way WALL*E is looking to be a very entertaining movie. I also updated my Google Calender, read the paper, updated my fantasy baseball team, checked out Steep and Cheap for the latest outdoor gear specials and generally just dicked off all day long. More on my job and what I do later but for now this is going to have to be it since I'm almost off of work and god forbid I spend one extra minute here.

This post was all prompted by my off-hand remark to my co-worker about blogs in general. I'll leave you with it:
"A blog is like a poo, everybody seems to have one. They seem interesting and unique at first but in the end it is just a turd."

How to pronounce "Thule"...the car rack company

Have you ever come across a word that you were not exactly sure how to pronounce it or just didn't even give it enough thought that you may be saying it wrong? Usually you end up pronouncing and say the word to the best of your abilities You also keep saying it the way you think it should be pronounced until someone corrects you and makes you feel like an illiterate fool. Well a year ago I bought a car rack for my Mazda 3 hatchback. I decided to go with the company Thule Racks and this started my relationship with this company and my long pondering of what is the correct way of pronounce the name.

By just looking at the name Thule looks like it should be pronounced like "tool" only with a "th" instead of a "t". But I thought I had heard it pronounced different and liked the other version of "too-lee". So for the last year I've been pronouncing it "too-lee", then just the other day I all of the sudden had a sickening fear that I had been pronouncing this name wrong and have been sound like a schmuck this whole time. So I took an informal pole with some co-workers of mine and quickly discovered that there was no clear answer, everybody had their own version. Well this started the ole' Google search to find an answer to my question. What I found out was both a relief and satisfaction that I had been saying the name correctly the whole time...well almost. I've at least been saying the dumbed down American version of "too-lee". I'm going to include some definitions below to also help clarify the origins of the name.

http://www.thuleracks.com

Dictionary.com

Thu·le /ˈθuli for 1, 2; ˈtuli for 3/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[thoo-lee for 1, 2; too-lee for 3] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–noun
1.
the ancient Greek and Latin name for an island or region variously identified as one of the Shetland Islands, Iceland, or Norway: supposed to be the most northerly region of the world.
2.
ultima Thule.
3.
a settlement in NW Greenland: site of U.S. air base. 749.

Downsides of learning to snowboard

Over last weekend and last Wednesday I went snowboarding a total of three more times. Twice at White Pass, WA and once at Snoqualmie, WA.

I guess first I should back up a bit and state that this is my first year of snowboarding or any winter sport for that matter. I've been a total of about 8 times this year and hope to get a couple more in before the season is over. I am not ashamed to say that I think I've come pretty far for this being my first year and only 8 times out. And that is what leads me to the downside of learning how to snowboard.

The first couple of times it was a bit rough trying to stay up-right and even worse trying to turn from heal edge to toe edge without eating it in the process. Eventually I was able to go farther and farther down the hill without falling. Now I have gotten to the point where I can make it down even a single diamond run without falling....sometimes not as fast as a more experienced rider but all the same I can make it down without looking like I have no right being up on the mountain. The problem I discovered in being able to not crash multiple times on the way down is that I now have no time for resting since I'm constantly upright and moving. It now seems as though my thighs are screaming at me to just fall so they can get some sort of break.

Overall though I wouldn't trade the ability to stay up for the whole ride. The feeling you get when all the conditions match up and you are just floating down the mountain almost effortlessly. You seem to find the right lines and make the right turns and find the right snow to just have this euphoric experience of surfing the white stuff.

I've done it!

Like millions of other people I've finally created my own blog! I'm still not exactly sure as to what I'll do with this or even at all what I can do with this. I'll even be impressed if this is something that I'll even continue. This may just turn out to be one of those crazy things that you find on someone when you "google" their name.....who knows....only time will tell.