My Review of VIBRAM FIVEFINGERS Men's TrekSport

Originally submitted at Eastern Mountain Sports

With an emphasis on traction and performance, the FiveFingers TrekSport features a cleated 4 mm Vibram rubber outsole and a Coconut Active Carbon upper for natural breathability and abrasion resistance.

VIBRAM FIVEFINGERS Men's TrekSport

Five fingers will change your life.

By Captain Hitop from Poughkeepsie NY on 12/23/2012

 

5out of 5

Sizing: Feels true to size

Width: Feels too narrow

Pros: Comfortable, Durable, Lightweight

Cons: Not Water Resistant

Best Uses: Mixed Terrain, Grass, Around the house, Rocky/Unstable Terrain, At The Gym, Everyday, Paved Trails

Describe Yourself: Recreational Walker/Hiker, Survivalist

Was this a gift?: No

Vibram five fingers are by far the most comfortable shoe you will ever wear. I have been wearing these every day for about a year and I now own three pairs. They are really comfortable and lightweight. Humans are not built to wear shoes, so why wear something that is bulky and impedes natural movement? Ever since I started wearing these all my back problems have dissapeared. I feel less fatigued after walking and they are just flat out more comfortable. They can be a bit cold in the winter so I recommend buying a pair a size up to accomodate socks. My only complaint is that they no longer make this model in leather, and that they don't offer enough models in earth tones. Try them out, they will change your life.

Bailey, uninterested in my new footwear...

Tags: Using Product, Picture of Product

(legalese)

Tinder

Dry tinder is the first and most important ingredient in a fire. Building a fire is all about adding bigger and bigger pieces slowly until it can sustain itself. It all starts with a tiny ember, unless you're using gasoline that is. For most of my fires I use a farrow rod, and I have dozens of favorites for tinder. In this post I will outline a few of the best ones. One you can make, one that is plentiful in urban areas and two that can be found in the wild.

The first can be made at home or at the campsite, it's called charcloth. To make your own charcloth start with any cloth made of 100% cotton. Place it inside a tin that can be sealed, an Altoids tin works well, and puncture a small hole in the top with a knife. Place the tin in the coals of a fire and give it about five minutes, it should stay in until you can no longer see smoke coming from the hole. Remove the tin and once it's cool check the cloth. It should have turned totally black and be very delicate, ripping easily. The cotton has now turned to pure carbon and will take the tiniest spark. Keep it dry and it will light first try every time.

The second is simple steel wool, found at places like Home Depot or any automotive shop. Steel wool takes a spark easily and will glow red hot when blown on. Lighting it with a match works well too. Placing a 9 volt battery on the surface of the wool will also cause it to ignite.

Cattail is going to be the easiest to spot, everyone knows what they look like. Not only are they edible, but at this time of year they are great when gathered for tinder. By now they are all dried out and the normally densely packed seeds have now turned to a fluffy white mass. Simply place in the middle of your tinder bundle and drop in an ember. If they are still fresh and brown they can be dried for a few days after breaking them off the plant.

The fourth is a bit harder to find, It's called Chaga. Chaga is a fungus that grows exclusively on birch trees. Birch bark has an oil in it that is extremely flammable, and this fungus absorbs this oil. Birch bark itself is an excellent fire starter, but this stuff takes it to a whole other level. Once it takes a spark it's actually hard to put out. I carry a chunk with me in my bag at all times. To find it you want to look for a large black mass growing on a birch tree. When broken open, it's a reddish orange inside.

Maxpedition Fatboy Versipack

Those that know me have seen my "Survival Attache" before. When I first got into all this survival stuff I realized that in order to be prepared at all I would need more than what I could carry. So my approach has become somewhat akin to not keeping all my eggs in one basket. If I lose one cache of gear, I have another backup. The basic idea is to have everything you need to survive within your home. Then to have enough to survive till you get home within your vehicle, and enough to survive till you get to your vehicle on your person. Go bags are pretty easy, just imagine you're going on a camping trip with the possibility of being robbed or shot at. Now it is certainly not possible to carry all that crap around with you all day, but you can carry the basics. I won't go into everything I carry as I already did a blog post on that. ( It's not a purse, It's a "Survival Attache" )





What I want to talk about is my new bag, the Maxpedition Fatboy Versipack. I heard about these bags from an ad in a magazine, they looked pretty good so I did some research. The reviews were overall very good aside from the occasional complaint that it was too small. (I can see that complaint, it seems bigger in the picture. If you want something bigger they do make the jumbo model, which I haven't checked out yet. ) There are many options with these bags, for this model there is the regular one and the GTG. This is the standard one. (The video below illustrates the differences) So you will have to decide what suits your purposes best.

First impressions are, damn, this may be too small. After a few days though that feeling has passed. It really forces you to prioritize. So I am carrying a smaller water bottle, but all the other essentials I was able to fit after organizing a bit. The construction is very heavy duty and it is quite obvious this will outlast my off brand bag. With many pockets and compartments it makes excellent use of the limited space and has molle style webbing so it can be expanded if needed. The major selling point for me was the dedicated concealed carry pocket at the back. Any hook and loop (velcro) universal holster fits but you can get one right from them for about ten bucks. The bag being a bit small it wont accommodate my 1911, but the XD fits (barely) and my little Smith and Wesson is the perfect size. If you don't plan on using it for this purpose the back pocket would still come in handy.




My complaints are few, but they should be noted. The "cell phone pocket" is a joke. Even a bottom shelf free phone barely fits. You could never fit a smart phone in it. The GTG model has eliminated this pocket, and put molle webbing in its place. I wish this was the case for mine, but I decided the rear pocket with the molle and the magazine pocket was worth the sacrifice and went with this model. I do wish my 1911 would fit, but I didn't expect it to. I am not a fan of off body carry, and rarely do it. If anything I wanted options. Now if I'm just running out in shorts and a t-shirt I can sling the bag with the .38 in it and not worry about a bulky holster. It also gives me an option for a backup in the bag with a primary on my hip. My final complaint is that It's made in Taiwan. Now I am not one to avoid a product based on it's country of manufacture, I would just prefer it was made here. If it is a quality product, I will deal with it. Overall an incredibly comfortable and well made little bag. At 78$ it seems like a very good deal. The quality being way higher than many bags I've seen. The bag can be purchased through the Maxpedition website, but I found it a bit cheaper on Amazon.