LivingOverland.com's Camping and Travel Gear Reviews

2013 Outdoor Retailer Summer Market

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Each year the outdoor industry's top textile companies, equipment manufacturers, stores, and media all converge on Salt Lake City for four days of gear nirvana. Booths are laid out as far as the eye can see, and each year gets larger and larger. This year a third off-site pavilion was setup to house the growing number of manufacturers wanting to attend the show. Unlike the last two years we have attended, we never heard much buzz about next year's 'it' item. While there were some remarkable products at the show, nothing stood out as game-changing.

Columbia Sportswear
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We started our whirl-wind tour of the OR show by talking textiles with the folks at Columbia Sportswear. 2012 saw the release of their OMNI Freeze Zero fabric. The fabric's "blue rings react with your sweat to lower the overall temperature of the material, accelerate the wicking process, and provide instant and prolonged cooling." This year Columbia Sportswear has introduced the technology into a whole host of shirts, including the Men’s Terminal Zero™ Long Sleeve seen below. This really looks like a great way to beat the summer heat while traveling.

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Click here to read more about the companies we visited at the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market.
 
Well it has been a while since I was last one here and figured I would share our latest review, the TRAVELCHAIR Joey Chair.

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Specifications:

  • Dimensions (Closed): 4"X4"X14"
  • Dimensions (Open): 21"x21"x28"
  • Seat height: 16"
  • Capacity: 300 lbs.
  • Frame: anodized aluminum
  • Seat: Ripstop fabric with breathable mesh panels
  • Price: $69.99

Our Thoughts:
I have grown tired of the standard camp chair. They take up a lot of storage space in the back of our 4Runner and right now space is at a premium for us. I have been looking at, what I call, 'Ultralight Chairs' for a while now and never found anything that was quite right. I am 6' 6" tall and I have found that most of the chairs that fit into this category sit incredibly low to the ground (7"-13"), causing them to be very difficult for me to get in and out of.

TRAVELCHAIR® has been designing camping chairs in, Gig Harbor, Washington since 1984. I was excited when they announced the new Joey Chair (Model 7789) at the Outdoor Retailer Summer Market in August 2013. Finally, a company designed an ultra-light chair that provided a reasonable seat height. The design, which packs down to almost nothing, assembles quickly and supports seated person's weight on four aluminum legs capped with knobby-rubber feet.


Click here to read the rest of the review and why I think the Joey Chair is a sweet ultralight camping chair that won't break the bank!
 
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Is this version 2? I think I've seen these before but they sat lower, like without the 4 lower legs?
 
Mitch said:
Is this version 2? I think I've seen these before but they sat lower, like without the 4 lower legs?
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There are a couple of companies making chairs like this, including Big Agnes, Alite, and REI, the Joey has the tallest seat out of the lot.
 
Oh, and I just got an press release from TravelChair and they have some more ultralight camp chair models they will be revealing at the Outdoor Retailer show next month! I already have an interview scheduled with them, so be sure to check it out. I will be posting my daily log on the blog and on the forum.
 
Review: Grand Trunk Goods Travel Pillow

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Specifications:

  • Fabric: Water-resistant polyester
  • Stuffing: High-loft poly
  • Dimensions: 8"x6" (stuffed)
  • Dimensions: 20"x16"x7" (fully-expanded)
  • Weight: 12oz
  • Price: $19.99
Our Thoughts:
There is nothing better than a good night's sleep to get you ready for another day of exploring. I have, for nearly every camping and backpacking trip I have ever been on, just rolled my (clean) clothing up to use as a pillow at night. I have never given much thought to the use of a travel pillow but when the opportunity arose for me to get one of Grand Trunk's Travel Pillows I jumped.


Click here to read the rest of my review and why I have reservation on buying one.
 
Review: GSI Outdoors Java Mill

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Specifications:

  • Weight: 9.3 oz.
  • Dimensions: 2.50" x 2.00" x 6.30"
  • Material: Co-polyester, Ceramic
  • Grinder Mechanism: Burr
  • Price: $29.95

Our Thoughts:
A good cup of freshly-brewed coffee is becoming something I get excited about; it is what propels me out of bed on those cold mornings in camp. Morning coffee has become somewhat of a ritual; grinding the beans, heating up the water, brewing, and enjoying the coffee as I gaze over whatever vista we happened to be camped next to. In year's past we used GSI Outdoors' Java Grind, which was awkward to hold and even more awkward to use. In short it was rubbish.

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GSI Outdoors went back to the drawing board, after talking with their end-users, and at the 2013 Outdoor Retailer Summer Market announced they had designed a new coffee grinder. The Java Mill, which incorporates a fully-adjustable ceramic burr grinder was to replace their old design. Things were looking very positive and I even noted in my OR Show coverage that, while we were only able to handle the prototype, the ergonomics had improved significantly and I was excited to bet my hands on one.

Click here to read the rest of the review and why I would recommend the Java Mill to anyone looking for a coffee grinder to add to their camp cooking gear collection.
 
I can't seem to find any info on how much coffee this thing will grind in one go. It's not specified on their site, or REI's, and I didn't see it in the review.
 
David Croyle said:
I can't seem to find any info on how much coffee this thing will grind in one go. It's not specified on their site, or REI's, and I didn't see it in the review.
Click to expand...

Great question! I just measured, and the bottom cup will hold just shy if 1/3cup of ground coffee. I will add this info to the write up!
 
(EO)2 Fastener Mounting System

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In my initial review of the (EO)2 Fastener I talked about how excited I was to find the mounting system and all of the possibilities I had thought about for using the bottom and top rails. By mounting a set of bottom rails to our Subaru, 4Runner, and Land Cruiser, I could easily move equipment from one vehicle to another or keep it stored, out of the way, on a set of rails in the garage. So after testing the system out over the last few months, which included a few road trips, am I still in love with the system or is the 'honeymoon phase' over?

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Click here to read my final thoughts and why I would recommend the (EO)2 Fastener mounting system to anyone looking for a quick and easy way to configure, reconfigure, and store equipment.
 
Review: UST Duro 30 Day Lantern

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Specifications:

  • Output: 300 Lumen (maximum)
  • Light Modes: High, Medium, Low, SOS Flashing
  • Run Time: 30 days (low), 32 hrs (high)
  • Beam Distance: 7 meters
  • Water Resistance: IP x 4
  • Impact Resistance: 2 meters
  • Height x Diameter: 7.2" x 3.75"
  • Weight (w/ batteries): 1.13 lb
  • Power Source: 3 D batteries
  • MSRP: $49.99

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Our Thoughts:
We picked up the UST 30 Day Lantern up from our local sporting goods store a back in 2013, more or less on a whim. We had grown tired of our old/heavy/big led lanter and were looking for something that had enough output to illuminate camp but could be dimmed so as not to blind oneself when using it in a tent. The 30 Day Lantern seemed to fit our needs and has since lived in the back of our 4Runner, traveling with us on every adventure since then. The old adage, 'Big things come in small packages', rings true with this lantern. The whopping 300 lumens produced is staggering and we have used the 30 Day Lantern as the sole source of camp light on all of our camping trips since purchase.

Click here to read my final thoughts and why I am still smitten with this camping lantern.
 
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