in search of awesome... Hawaii part two

SPEAKING OF TURNING 31...
Speaking of turning 31, in doing research for the trip, I read about a series of articles that Mark Twain had written in regards Hawaii while he was here back in 1866 (at the age of 31). At that time he was on assignment for the Sacramento Union and spent four months writing about ship captains, whalers, missionaries, mosquitoes, thickets of flowers and thousands and thousands of cats. Some of these letters were published as part of his "western travel anthology" called Roughing It. I had wanted to pick the book up to read while in Hawaii, but a last minute trip to Powells to pick up another book which I had ordered a week prior on Amazon for the trip... but had not yet arrived by the time I was set to depart, had me looking over Twain's book. I wanted to read Twain's work... honestly I did... but I did not want to carry another book into the thickets of flowers, mosquitos and cats known as Hawaii with me... so I left it for a later time. However, if any of you are Mark Twain fans...I suggest you read it as I've heard nothing but great things about it for the past 31 years of my life. (PS: In Hawaii I started reading "His Dark Materials" by Philip Pullman, which is a compilation of three books combined in one, most notably the Golden Compass -it was made into a movie staring Nicole Kidman back in 2007-. The movie, by all means was a pretty lame retelling of the story, but the ideas behind it and the characters which were created had me captivated, so... when looking for a book that I could read for hours and hours on end on a soft, sandy, warm beach somewhere in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, this was the book I chose.)

PEARL HARBOR

On Friday Sam and I got up early and boarded "The Bus" for cross town transportation to Pearl Harbor. When the thought of going to Hawaii first crossed my mind, the biggest thought aside from surfing that crossed my mind was getting to visit Pearl Harbor. Always a history nut growing up, I had a keen interest in WWII and even wrote a fictional story for a writing competition using Pearl Harbor and the events of December 6th, 1941 as a backdrop. So... needless to say I was more than excited to get to see the site with my own eyes. We arrived in what I thought would be enough time to see everything and leave with enough time to get a half-day of surfing in, but when we went to the ticket window at 11am to get our ticket, the earliest they could give us to catch the boat to the sunken USS Arizona was 1pm. From there it was a 90 minute trip/tour, which put us well into the afternoon and out of the range of surfing. I was mad that I had come this far and had gotten so close to seeing it, only to be dealt with the fact that I had already paid for a day of surfing too. I wanted to be able to have my cake and eat it too... but logicistcal crap was preventing me from doing so. Sam and I sat down on one of the many park benches which lined the displays at Pearl Harbor and talked over our options. I really wanted to go see the USS Arizona, but I also really wanted to surf. Then practically dawned on me... the Arizona is underwater, there isn't much to see in the first place. Realizing this, I took it to be here in this sacred and holy ground as being good enough. And really, you could feel the solemn energy, it was the same as being at Gettysburg or at Ground Zero. You could tell that something big and important happened here and many lives were lost. That was good enough for me.

Pearl Harbor Side Note: So... news to me you aren't exactly allowed to bring in any bags to Pearl Harbor. Which if you've driven there... great, go put your sunscreen and water and rain jacket, etc back in the car. However, if you're like us and took public transportation, the kind security guards tell you that you can check your bags. Seems pretty harmless right? So you go over and there you realize you've gotta pay a fee. Bull shit right? I mean, I totally understand the reasoning and I know our National Parks are in funding danger, but it's also a little bit of an ass-hole move. I mean, what kinda woman who goes to visit PH isn't going to have some bag or purse with them? Men? many pockets and wallets handle that need... but ladies, we normally have bags with us. This is where it comes in handy to travel with a lesbian, preferably one who wears cargo shorts. One fell move... Sam put all of our bagged belongings, even the bag itself (the amazing REI Flash) into her pockets. Bam... eat that Pearl Harbor National Park Bag Bitches!

MINOR OVERSIGHT:

On our way back to Wakiki we were going to quickly change into our suits and then run down to the shop to grab our surfboards and get a few hours in before the shop closed for the day. Which, was a great idea.... providing we could get into our room. It just so happened that there was a lapse in planning and we had booked the condo for two nights, instead of the three (as we were told was the minimum amount we were allowed to stay). So, as you can imagine this created quite a stir when we couldn't get into the room to get to our stuff and try to contact the rental company and Sam's phone was dying. Luckily, everything got sorted out, but it did end up being a minor hic-up in our day and apparently, our planning.

SURF BREAKS:

We learned from the folks that we rented boards from, that Pops surf break is a lot better for the beginner than Canoes. It's not so much abut the waves themselves, but more or less the people who inhabit the break. IE: a lot less ass-holes at Pops. As well, Sam was able to overcome the surfing frustrations of the day before and once again... enjoy surfing. Thank God.

SECOND MINOR OVERSIGHT OF THE DAY

Later that afternoon after surfing and happy hour (which Sam had a much more enjoyable go at it this time around) we walked a mile or so to the local mall to pick up more jet-boil fuel canisters at Sports Authority. See, after tonight we'd be departing for a more rugged and isolated part of the island and camping for the next three nights. I had brought my jet boil as a means of cooking meals, but due to airline restrictions, was unable to fly with the needed fuel canisters. No worries, I thought... I'll just pick some up in Honolulu. So, Sam and I walked into the store and went to the "camping gear section". We finally came to the row with the fuel and there we found, row after row after row of coleman fuel canisters, little green Coleman fuel canisters filled up every row as far as the eye could see and as far as the arms could reach. Back to back, side to side, Coleman, Coleman, Coleman. Upon seeing this, I realized we'd be in luck... if only the jetboil took a coleman fuel canister, which I didn't believe it would.

So I asked a nearby salesman. At first he was like... "yeah, that should work" and then we pressed him and asked him more questions finally he coughed up that he didn't think it would work at all. The funniest thing is that Sports Authority sells jetboils, in fact they had one on hand at that moment for $99; however, what they didn't sell was the fuel to go in them. I asked the salesman if he thought that was ridiculous. He replied that they normally do sell it, but they seemed to be sold out. "Really?" I responded... by looking at the row upon row of green coleman gas canisters... "where do you think they're supposed to go?" - pointing to a small gap right in between the row after row of Coleman canisters. Disappointed, we settled on getting a cheap little backpacking stove with little cheap fuel canisters. Not glamorous and nothing that will boil water in under twenty minutes, but good enough to make some mushy noodles in the backcountry for dinner at least.

My beef with the outdoor apparel and gear industry:

My beef with the outdoor apparel and gear industry:

stop making women's things pink.

....and while you're at it, stop making them soft, flowy, flowery, paisley, rounded, anything really that you think makes stuff "appeal to women". Cause really, honestly, I am a woman and I am a woman who spends a fair amount of my money on gear for athletic pursuits and I hate pink. In fact, I and my friends will run away from anything geared and marketed towards women that are "catered" to us as such. I do not expect you to "cater" to the tastes of women by making things pink with flowers no more than I expect you to cater to men by making things black that have skulls and cross bones. All that stuff, is bullshit.

In some aspects, I applaud you for the good marketing sense to know that yes... some people will buy into that. Some girl somewhere dreams of being a ballerina, living in a Barbie Dream House, and wants a bike. A pink bike. A pink bike with white wheels and a basket on the front. Just like some boy out there thinks that having a bike with big burly wheels with dragons or ninja's and tattoo like tribal designs will make him more manly and less likely to be beat up at school. I applaud you for knowing that you can make money off of it. But really, I'm sick of it.

While for the longest time I used to think that when companies made gear for women, they pretty much shrunk it and colored it pink (aka: shrink it and pink it!). And, for most companies this was and still is the case. But, some companies have evolved since then and have matched the technology they give "men's gear" to "women's gear"... but ideally, there should not be a difference in what is considered mens or womens when it comes to coloring (or cost for that matter too). I do recognize that a woman's fit and sizing is different than a man's. I like how some companies... due to the recent trend in men's clothing being massive and huge... are making things more slim and trim for women, but overall... stop it with the pink and the fuisha and the flowers. And the bling? WTF is this shiny thing doing on my sunglasses?

Basically, I want the cut and fit of my items to be catered to my body and the special needs of women. However, the colors and the style and design? Just go with strong, bold, and basic colors. Don't follow the "trends". I want this coat that I payed dearly for to look just as good and as timely and classic in five years as it did the day I bought it. Give women's gear the same respect you'd give men's gear. Size it appropriately, but treat it with a sense of style that crosses "supposed" gender boundaries.

Take for example, snowboard designs.

Recently REI had a contest sponsored by Arbor. Formerly, I had pretty much liked Arbor boards as the superficial design of them wasn't really gender specific. They tended to incorporate a basic wood grain aesthetic that appealed to women as much as men. I was curious with the contest though, if the majority of the entries would reflect the current horrendous trends in snowboard designs, or if we would be witness to stuff that was really new, exciting, and perhaps....gender neutral? As well, based upon the entries.... would Arbor chose something that dared to be different or would they cater to the unoriginal trends, thereby repeating the cycle?

And the winner is.... a disappointment.

Granted, the hummingbird work in ca-junction with the wood grain is pretty cool... but the hot pink magenta bottom decking? WTF?

The designer said:

"This board was conceived for the main purpose of speaking to Arbor snowboard's female demographic. The bottom design was inspired by elements in nature like the clouds, wind and snow. In order to reference Arbors discipline in sustainable design I utilized natural root-like swirls emanating from the logo and a cloud-like textures in the background. The top of the board was meant to embody a similar type of beauty in nature but to contrast it by illustrating it in a much more grungy, industrialized urban expression."

I'd like to point out several key words here: clouds, swirls, beauty, grungy, industrialized urban expression? (WTF is that?... I'm sure the meatpacking district has art shows every month to express their grungy-ness in their proper urban environment!) Mainly, my main beef is that the designer wanted to speak to Arbor Snowboard's female demographic... and he did so by making it PINK! It's not that I'm bitter that I didn't win the contest or anything... I knew that after I saw what boards were getting votes (tattoos, scrolls, butterflies, skulls, dragons, flames, eye-roll eye-roll, etc) that the general public who prefers those cliched designs that are repeatedly shoved down their throat, were getting exactly what the industry thinks they want, the board that I designed for the contest doesn't fit those permitters. And honestly... that's fine with me.

This is why, when my snowboard was stolen from me in November, I was most upset (not at losing my board... the first board I had seen after months of looking that I had really liked) but upset at having to navigate the snowboard design world, yet once again, in vein attempts at looking for something that spoke to me and my picky design leanings as much as the last one had. This is also why, I got the same board from the same designer that I had prior (as seen below). It was easier that way.

Another example is bikes.

Ugh... once again last year I was faced with the daunting task of finding a new bike... and if you thought choosing a snowboard was hard, I use a bike waaaay more than a snowboard so basically how it looked and how it spoke to me was ten times more challenging than finding a snowboard I like. Once again, much like with a snowboard, I'd enter a bike shop looking at women specific frames hoping I'd find something that I liked... but more often than not I was disappointed. I feel like bike companies have come a long way in introducing more women specific frames... but, when it comes to the stylization of them, it feels like they are one step ahead of putting a basket on the front. Take for example Obrea, a popular company that makes top of the line racing bikes and recently introduced a "women's line" of bikes. To their credit, they did offer one or two "race bikes" in a basic white and black... but the majority of their other bikes (esp ones that bike stores stocked) came in splashes of pink and light blue. How cute? Really....?

This one, the Onix Dama T105 apparently "brings women-specific fit to a new high on an entry-level monocoque carbon frame, and distinctive style and performance to the female cycling market." Wow, did you hear that? A female cycling market? Well, when did they ask us? Did I miss a meeting or a survey or something? And... if you read further in the description, you'll notice the bike even has a butterfly themed saddle! Wow, that even makes it more adorable. Obrea goes on to mention that "through the European design and functional through the women-specific Dama geometry, this bike brings advanced technology and all-around performance to the more sophisticated female rider who may be new to the sport." Which tells me that they think anyone who may be new to the sport of bike racing, will be less aggressive and thereby will be attracted to the light blue coloring of this bike than a red or black one. And... it has a butterfly saddle!

The bike I ended up getting (as seen below) attracted me not because of pastel colors and saddles with butterflies and script writing, but because I was attracted to the strong basic colors and helvetica type face. Granted, if anyone is known for their pastel colors on bikes it's Bianchi, but for them... almost all of their bikes are their famed color of pastel celeste blue (which means even the men's bikes - aside from mine that is, which is rather ironic when you think about it). I applaud Bianchi for their reverse sociology in color themes as I applaud any man who rides one and is not afraid to appear less masculine.

Also, things I've been in the market for was a new snowboard coat and outerware.

I knew I wanted a red coat and I had a basic style in mind. Mainly, as opposed to most popular snowboarding coats these days, I didn't want anything too big and baggy. I wanted it to be a pretty slim and flattering fit. I didn't want tons of pockets and nor did I want any "bling". This task took about a year and was harder than expected. While several companies had red coats, many of these coats were filled with faux fur trim, gold buttons or unnecessarily huge pockets. The coats I found that were rather plain when it came to "flair" were all men's coats and even a mens small was way too huge to ever be effective on the mountain. Thankfully, that's where companies like Orage excel. Not only does Orage, a Canadian company, offer a wide variety of coats for men and women, they also come in a variety of attractive and fresh (and also basic) colors, and they offer a variety of cuts based upon your chosen style of riding and fit. I decided on purchasing one of their coats that came in perfect color of red and had also the perfect slim and minimalist fit without all of that crap companies like to throw on.

At Orage, you can shop for coats based upon the fit...

Another company I applaud for their slim fitting and functional outerwear is Nau. Based out of Portland, not only is Nau clothing environmentally friendly, but they have a pretty consistent basic color palette across their clothes for each season. The women's colors are all pretty basic and range from a clean cream to a gunmetal grey and back to a subdued purple. Strong, basic, simple, and classy. Year after year and season after season.

classic...

It'll be interesting to see what the cycling company known for "the finest in cycling clothing and accessories in the world" Rapha, plans to unleash for their upcoming women's line of clothing. Currently, Rapha is nothing but expensive class and sophisticated style going on with their lines of "gentlemen's" apparel such as jerseys, coats, and shorts in basic and colors and styles (including tweeds!). I've long awaited to see if they would indeed join in with the ladies apparel industry and how they plan on doing so? Will they size down their classic stowaway coats to women's sizes and cuts and offer them in the same color schemes and fabrics as the mens? Or, will they introduce new items in new flashy colors to try and appeal to the "female cycling market" that according to other companies... likes the color pink.

I'd like to see this in a women's please....

As you may have noticed, I can talk or write about this topic at great length. In fact, I recently had the opportunity to discuss my feelings on sportswear - specifically women's sportswear - with some designers at Mountain Hardware. While it was fun to sit back, drink beer eat pizza and talk coats and gloves with a panel of women and designers, it became apparent that women do look for different things in their sportswear. However, hands down person after person said that if they spend a lot of money on an item and expect to wear it year after year and season after season... they want to go with a more tried and true color and style that they will not get tired of. And... for all of us... pastels, swirls, butterflies do not fit that label. Sitting there in the Mountain Hardware sample room, surrounded by coats for their upcoming fall 2010 collection... I looked at the wall of women's coats and became extremely disappointed in the colors they chose for their new lines. My eyes glazed over at the bright teal, fuschia, and magenta, with overly ornate detailed decorative stitching. Instead, my eyes shifted at the men's line which had bright and solid blues, action oranges and reds, vivid greens... things that drew my attention in and warranted closer inspection. Granted, to Mountain Hardware's credit, in each line they do offer most coats and apparel in a basic black for those of us who tend to cringe at teal. But really, how many black coats do I need in my closet?

Basically outdoor industry, stop making women's things pink or putting text in script just cause you think we like things soft and girly (as well, don't make things in pink and try to tell us it's for "Breast Cancer Awareness" to try and sell more things). Give us the same time and consideration you'd give the men and the same strong, active and bold colors. I'm not asking for things to be separate and equal, I'm just asking for things to be equal. As well, don't downgrade our athletic ventures, goals, capabilities, or worry about "scaring" us or being too aggressive. Be more fluid in your design sensibilities and cross more boundaries than gender stereotyping. And... while it may seem easier than faulting on a color choice, we do get a little tried of black.

smorgasbord

A Friday round-up of random disjointed news, thoughts, and things that make me smile.

periwinkle and lavender crayons make me smile.

LAVENDER:

So, Wednesday I walked a few blocks to the Downtown Farmers Market on my lunch break. Summertime in Portland means Farmers Market time and I really wish I made a point to go them more than I do. I hardly ever buy anything, but I love watching the interactions between the fresh faced farm girls and the kindly old men tending their booths and the shoppers. I love walking past the bundles of fresh flowers and lavender, the pints of local and ripe blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, cherries and peaches. I love the crusty artisan breads and potent cheeses. I love listening to the musicians who set up shop and more excitement to the atmosphere and I love the community that happens as a result of it all.

BEARDS:

A few months ago an article appeared in Portland Monthly Magazine that claimed that Portland may very well be the beardiest city in the USA. While I don't know so much about that claim - seeing how I can't grow a beard and all - I often ask of my friends who are girls if they would grow one. While many of my friends have never stopped to think about this, it's something I ponder often. Mostly, I have come to the conclusion that indeed, I would if I could. In fact, I proudly admit to have beard envy. Honestly, I don't know if the guys in my family can even grow facial hair to start with, I've never seen anyone with any thing more than a light peach fuzzy five o' clock shadow sit down at the dinner table... but if I did grow a beard, mine would be a light scruffy outdoorsy woodsman I'm wearing a plaid shirt and chopping wood kinda thing. In the back of my head I'm always on the lookout for the perfect beard and one day I will find it. For the mean time though, I might just have to settle for these colorful standbys available on ESTY.

DREAMS:

-I really wish I had an outdoor shower. One that was surrounded by corrugated steel and had a bed of smooth pebbles underfoot. When the water would hit the panels of the shower, it would sound like rain on a tin roof. Kind of like this.

-One day, I want to live in a place that is mainly powered by solar energy.

-I think if crossed off many of my goals for the year already and it's only July. I should do an assessment soon.

-I want to learn to play the banjo.

SPEAKING OF:

Banjos. I can't wait, tomorrow I'm off to Seattle to see one of my favorite musicians Gillian Welch, headline at the No Depression Festival with other stellar acts like Iron and Wine, Jesse Sykes, Patterson Hood, Justin Townes Earle, Jessica Lea Mayfield and a selection of All Star Seattle Musicians (including Sera Cahoone and Star Anna). I am sure there will plenty of banjo and that makes me very very happy. In honor of the occasion, I think I might sport a rustic plaid shirt or maybe my Miss Ohio t-shirt, I haven't quite decided yet.

IN CASE IT GETS HOT:

I won't be drinking bottled water.

And neither will you if you live in the Australian town of Bundaboon which recently put a ban on buying, selling and consuming bottled water. This is quite possibly the first community in the world to have such a ban. Kudos Aussies! Kudos!!

SO THEN I GUESS I'LL RESORT TO:

I wish I had this new Timbuk2 bag to put frosty beverages into.

What looks like a normal messenger bag is really a cooler! The Dolores Chiller is lined with a waterproof insulated TPU liner (i have no idea what that is really) that keeps the cold and the drips inside, you can bike to your favorite park and enjoy a frosty beverage all summer long! And, what's even cooler (no pun intended) it even comes with it's own bottle opener!

THERE IS A TEAR IN MY BEER:

So, we know it was all over the news this week about MJ's funeral. And while it is sad and yes, I do morn the King of Pop since he had a massive impact on not only the music industry today but also how people see music (maybe even a bigger impact than Elvis since he bridged race, language and pop and dance and all that fun stuff. He made so many see beyond color and spoke messages of love and understanding. But, at the same time... he was a man and men have been setting the standards for the music industry from the beginning. Madonna though, was the first woman to not cater to "the man". She became successful to the main stream on her own terms. Using shock, sex, power all those things men have had in their control... and she set her own rules (much like martha stewart) and was able to rise to the same power. She used sex because she realized the power it had and did so because she wanted to... not cause some dude did. As well, she has been able to successfully create and recreate herself with the times... over the years MJ just got weird, lost touch with reality, spent money wildly and started naming his kids after bed linens. Madonna though, she wears the pants.

I was born in 19**, and while rolled to MJ at the skating rink, Madonna was who I danced to in my room. Much like how when I grew up I had dreams of being a professional baseball player like Pete Rose, but due to my sex - those opportunities were denied. Until the mid 90's, all that had been presented to me as professional role models in sports (aside from tennis players) were male athletes. However, then came the womens world cup in 99... and suddenly, women in sports were shown as not only women, but fierce competitors. From that point on.... girls everywhere had role models in athletics in the main stream media. They were on the Wheaties boxes, on the covers of magazines, posters on walls. They were more than just pretty faces, they were multi dimensional, and they were women. For me in music and tough industries as such - Madonna was the first one. She helped show me what was possible and that it's okay to wear the pants (and take them off) too.

THAT WHICH ALSO INSPIRES ME:

Is the artwork of one Geoff McFetridge. I first became aware of his work on the pages of Patagonia catalogs, where his simple line based illustrations graced t-shirts and other assorted textiles. Geoff is a graphic designer and visual artist based in Los Angeles. The breadth of Geoff's work covers designs for magazines, posters, t-shirts, textiles, motion graphics and advertising as well as film production. I like the way his illustrations, while simple, convey depth in their meaning and interpretation. When up in Seattle sometime soon I'd love to catch his installation at SAM, but until then, I'll just watch the video he illustrated for the Whitest Boy Alive over and over and over again.

IN CASE YOU WANTED TO KNOW:

These are the monthly results from my bike racing in June at PIR, fourth place in the women's division overall... not too shabby.

IF YOU WANTED TO WATCH THE TOUR DE FRANCE IN PORTLAND: check this link out

THERE IS SOMETHING IN THE AIR:

It was last year this time when I got into a bike accident while being doored by someone. It was also this time last year when Portland found themselves in the midst of a massive Bike vs Car War. There must be something in the air in early July because just this week another friend got into a bike accident, one friend was forewarned by a car they were turning right so she wouldn't get run over on her bike, and myself... normally pretty even keel almost went bat shit crazy on another cyclist for failing to stop at two stop signs and one red light and not even having a helmet on. I was so close to shoving him off his fixed gear. Anyways, when thinking about accidents and stuff, I'm glad I didn't handle my dooring accident like this lady who is suing for over $12,000 in medical bills and up to $100,000 for pain and suffering. OMG... really? All I got was a good story about drag queens, firemen, AND and new front wheel.

MY GUILTY PLEASURE OF THE WEEK: this nice little write up that doesn't make me feel so alone when it comes to my fashion choices.

IF YOU LIKE MUSIC: And you like Brandi Carlile, you might want to jump on these tickets for her new upcoming album tour ASAP. Don't say I didn't warn you. And while you're at it... listen to one of my favorite songs, Dreams, wich is off of her new album, Give Up the Ghost. This recording is from the Portland show last month. wheee!

Brandi Carlile - Dreams (Live in Portland) by musictoday

there, I think that's all... let the weekend begin.

Field Report...

So, a few weeks ago I achieved a goal of mine when I summited a true "glaciated peak". Not only was this a big deal for me since climbing these are generally more difficult than taking a hike up a grassy hillside somewhere, but it also allows one to join in a highly respected club here in Portland that has a stature of limitations for those they allow in, the main one is sumiting one such peak. Time and time and time again a glaciated summit has eluded me, but this past Memorial Day Weekend, the summit of South Sister, located just outside of Bend, Oregon at 10,363 feet, was mine.

me on the summit

This posting is not about that climb. If you must know, it was clear, sunny, calm and I had a great time with my friends in the snow and sunshine. We spent the time building snow walls, setting up camp, making food, climbing up mountains, petting dogs, taking photos, glissading down mountains and also falling down them (thanks to inadequate snowshoes carrying me and my 40 pound pack full of gear in slushy soft snow). No, this isn't a post about that.... it's a post about a bag I bought at the last minute before the climb, having to be one of the best $30 last minute purchases ever.

Prior in my climbs, I have my massive pack that I use to bring all my gear to base camp. I can fit pretty much everything in this pack, a two person tent, down sleeping bag, hard boots, crampons, ice axe, shovel, stove, water, food, more food, and a supply of cold weather clothes. In fact, this pack is so big... that it easily carried everything that I needed for a two week stint on the Appalachian Trail back in college. However, when you've got all that gear (tents, food, sleeping bag, etc) safely nestled at base camp, the idea of taking a massive pack up a steep long dangerous climb seems a little ridiculous. Sure, it'd be great to just go and climb to the summit without a pack... but really, one needs to bring with them water, food, the 12 essentials, extra clothes, camera, etc, and even though that may seem like a lot, it's not enough to fill a large pack. As well, one could easily put all those "summit ready" items into a "daypack" but most "daypacks" are too big and bulky and heavy to cram into your main pack to start with. What I needed was a summit pack. Small, lightweight, easily compressible and just big enough and sturdy enough to carry all the things I needed to the summit with out extra weight.

That's where I stumbled upon the REI Flash.

Coming in three various sizes (I got the smallest, the 18) the flash is a lightweight (10z) ripstop material daypack that easily converts into a stuff sack for usage in your large pack. With a top loading entry, it's easy to get your stuff in and out quickly without hassle. As well, inside the pack is a hydration-compatible sleeve with an exit hose port and internal pockets for small items. The shoulder straps are lightweight and durable with sternum and waist straps that make for a close fitting cinching silhouette. An added plus were the external daisy chains and tool loop which personally extended the amount of gear this bag could carry quite seamlessly.

I had read prior reviews which raved about the pack... but thought that if one thing was missing, it was some kind of cinching system (shock cords) for the daisy chains to secure more gear to the outside. Thinking about this and not having much time for shopping before my trip, I thought about what I had laying around the house. Being a biker, especially one that gets lots of flats... I have an ample amount of tubes sitting in my "lobby" waiting for patch repair. Seizing the opportunity, I cut one of these tubes up into strands and weaved them through the daisy chains and bam... instant lashing straps for external gear carrying.

This is my flash pack in where I had used the bike tubes lashed through the daisy chains to carry my crampons.

my friends with their massive packs...look at Liz, she doesn't seem that excited about carrying that pack up a few thousand some feet.

Anyways, it wouldn't surprise me if that after the trip... my climbing friends all went out and purchased this great little summit pack. It's great as well for an airport carry on, stuffing in a larger bag to then take out and use for carrying groceries or small adventures, and I highly recommend using the daisy chains to expand the amount you can carry. And, just as I reused old bike tubes for lashing straps, look around your house and see what items you have that can have other purposes beyond their initial intention.

As well, if you'd like to see the complete album of photos from the climb, you can take a look at them here.