For those of you new to fatherhood who may be thinking becoming a dad means giving up an active lifestyle, nothing could be further from the truth. The secret to staying active after kids is finding gear that can withstand the rigors of whatever it is you want to do, all while keeping your child comfortable and protected while you do it. For the avid backpacker/hiker, the new Kelty FC 3.0 child carrier exemplifies this ideal perfectly.
As Kelty’s top of the line child carrier, the FC 3.0 takes comfort during long hikes to an entirely new level. And trust me, as anyone that’s used a child carrier knows, comfort is the key consideration when you have an extra 30+ pounds strapped to your back. Making the FC 3.0 so comfortable, Kelty has introduced a new waistbelt torso length adjustment geared towards a variety of users. The result is a drastically more comfortable, contoured fit, regardless of body type, and one that’s exceptionally comfortable to use on long hikes. The new torso length adjustment also allows your child to ride lower – this serves to create a lower center of gravity, increasing balance while further aiding in your comfort (remember, comfort is key… your back and shoulders will thank you). Another highly welcomed feature of the FC 3.0: the patented auto-deploy kickstand. By engaging as soon as the pack is taken off, the auto kickstand makes loading and unloading a far less arduous task, as you can simply slide it off your shoulders and onto the ground (and vice versa). Storage wise, the Kelty FC 3.0 boasts a total of 1150 cubic inches of storage space divided between under the seat and rear compartments – an ample amount for whatever adventures you undertake.
Of course, it doesn’t matter how comfortable you are if you child isn’t enjoying his or her self, as there’s nothing worse than an unhappy son/daughter five miles into the woods. To ensure your kids comfortable transport, Kelty FC 3.0 boasts a fully padded, ventilated cockpit and five-point adjustable harness, designed to keep your child comfortable and secure. In addition, the FC 3.0 also features a removable sun/rain hood along with a changing pad, offering even more protection and convenience during long treks, regardless of the weather conditions.
Spending some time with the Kelty FC 3.0, I can attest that it is supremely comfortable on longer hikes. I can easily venture out comfortably 2-3 hours into the woods with my wife and son – an impressive feat considering my son’s typical attention span registers right around the 30 second mark. There’s just something about getting outside that mesmerizes him – every time we go for a hike it’s like it’s his first time seeing the outdoors. He’s captivated by everything. And that’s the beauty of the Kelty FC 3.0. You can take your child outside and show them things that without it, it would be impossible for them see. It’s the perfect way to blend your love of the outdoors with family time, which makes it one of our top picks for Father’s Day.
The Kelty FC 3.0 child carrier is priced at $249.95. For more info, you can check out the full details of the Kelty FC 3.0 at the Kelty website.
If you have a wife, girlfriend, female aquaintance, or have simply spent any amount of time with a woman, you know that if there’s one thing a girl loves, it’s her purse. I take that back – it’s her purses, plural. Don’t believe me? Ask my wife. She has half a closet dedicated to housing her collection of hand bags, and I’m pretty sure she’s been secretly meeting with an architect to discuss building them their own guest house.
Men, we do things a little differently. First, we don’t have purses, we have briefcases. Second, we’re loyal. We may own multiple briefcases, but when we find the one we love, it becomes an extension of ourselves. We don’t change briefcases based on our mood or what color pants we’re wearing. It’s like that perfectly broken in baseball glove or the perfectly worn pair of jeans – when you have the one you love, you don’t need anything else.
If you don’t know the feeling, it’s because you still haven’t found that special briefcase, but today I’m going to help change that. Seeking the perfect briefcase, you may be inclined to look at the larger name brands. Forget them. There’s a company in the great state of Texas that goes by the name of Saddleback Leather Co., and they specialize in… you guessed it… leather. Leather luggage, leather messenger bags, leather overnight bags, and the first Saddleback product that came to being: the Saddleback Leather briefcase.
Typically I’d take this opportunity to tell you about Saddleback Leather’s history, but the fact is I really can’t do it justice. I can tell you that the story begins in Southern Mexico, when Saddleback Leather’s founder Dave was volunteering as an English teacher to the local kids. He sought the perfect bag, and after partaking in a bull fight, he found the perfect material to create it. With the help of a small Mexican leather shop, Dave’s first design (and the first Saddleback briefcase) was born, and the rest, as they say is history. Sort of. Because along the way, Dave’s story took a variety of turns. A crooked Federale was sent to kill Dave. On two occasions, Dave traded his black lab Blue’s puppies for 100 tacos. For a couple years Dave lived in a $100/month apartment in Juarez, Mexico with no hot water. And along the way, Dave met his wife (who played/plays an integral role in Saddleback Leather) on MySpace. It’s an incredible story, and well worth reading to gain insight into Saddleback’s history and principles.
Which brings us to the Saddleback Leather Briefcase today. After over a decade of using his briefcases day-in and day-out, Dave has fine-tuned their construction to make them as durable (yet handsome) as possible. First, they’re constructed from 100% thick full grain boot leather. If you’re unfamiliar with the various leather types, here’s a page that describes the differences in leather quality. If you’re not in the mood to read the details, trust me, you’re not going to find a tougher bag. Secondly, Saddleback briefcases feature no breakable parts. If you’re on the road, there’s nothing worse than having a briefcase you can’t use. With the Saddleback, it’s not going to happen. Thirdly, industrial Polyster thread (the best on the market), hidden nylon reinforcement straps and rivets at the key stress points each serve to add another layer of strength to the Saddleback briefcase. As a result, Saddleback Leather backs the briefcase with a 100 year warranty, fully transferrable to whoever’s fortunate enough to get their hands on the briefcase once you’re in the grave.
From a functional standpoint, the Saddleback Leather briefcase works exactly as you’d expect – it protects your gear in ruggedly good-looking fashion. Saddleback’s interiors are suede or pigskin lined, there’s no pretty fabrics to ruin its strength. There’s a key strap, eight exterior D-rings, a couple side exterior pockets for a GPS or water bottle, and a back newspaper pocket. Inside, there’s a pair open pockets for your gadgets along with two side pen pockets. If you’re on the go, the removable shoulder strap can be fed through the briefcases top-most ring, easily converting it into a backpack. Size wise, I find the large to be perfect. It measures 16″w X 12″h X 9″d, making it just large enough to fit my 17″ Macbook Pro (it’s tight but it works). There’s a medium and extra large as well, with the dimensions available on the Saddleback briefcases page (under specifics). As for weight, the large briefcase weighs 7.5 lbs with the other sizes moving down a pound for the medium or up a half pound for the extra large. I can’t emphasize enough the build quality of the Saddleback, and the weight is simply a testament to this fact.
All of this brings to me conclude, if you’re looking for the perfect briefcase, the Saddleback Leather briefcase may very well be it. It’s beautifully crafted, will last a lifetime, and it’s so good looking you’ll likely have to fend off admirers multiple times a day when you carry it. I picked up the large chestnut Saddleback briefcase for $555, and I’d buy another in a heartbeat – it’s that great. If you need a briefcase, get one, you won’t regret it.
In fact, we’re so in love with Saddleback Leather Briefcase that we’re giving one away: a large Saddleback Leather Briefcase in Chestnut, to be precise. As with our previous giveaway, winning it is simple. All you need to do is register with eMercedesBenz, leave a comment in this post telling us you want one, and we’ll pick a winner at random, exactly one week from today. No, we’re not going to send you spam, we’re not going to sell your account info, and we’re not going to harass you in any way. We’re doing it because we want you to be involved with eMercedesBenz, and we want you to experience firsthand the products we love and that we think you’ll enjoy. That’s all there is to it. So sign up, get your comments in (one per account please), and best of luck. And remember, if you don’t win, get one anyways – you’ll love it.
Before I go, a bit of legal info to avoid any potential lawsuits:
*No purchase necessary. This giveaway is void where prohibited by law. The winner(s) will be chosen at random by a member of the eMercedesBenz editorial staff. Taxes if applicable are the responsibility of the winner. eMercedesBenz is not liable for anything relating to this giveaway.
Update: As of 5:00 PM CST, we are no longer accepting new comments for the Saddleback Leather Briefcase Giveaway. We’re going to go through the comments tonight to take out any duplicates, and we’ll announce the winner tomorrow morning after selecting one completely at random. A huge thanks to everyone that entered, and if your name’s on the list, best of luck.
In keeping with this week’s MBUSA sponsored AMG Miami Beach Polo World Cup theme, we’re back with another round of polo-inspired style. But today, ladies and gentlemen, is a little different. Up until now, we’ve only had the pleasure of telling you about the various products we enjoy. The problem is, as much as we love telling you about the products, we want you to be able to experience them as well. So we decided the best way to make this happen is to start giving some of these fantastic lifestyle products away, to you, our readers. Getting you involved with our products is something we’ve wanted to do since we originally envisioned our lifestyle section, so I can’t tell you how excited we are to finally start making it happen. It’s going to be awesome – we’ve got some great products planned, and we think you’re going to love them.
Which brings us to our first ever eMercedesBenz Giveaway. As noted above, it’s Miami Beach Polo World Cup week, so we wanted to bring you something indicative of the occasion. Thinking of Miami Beach, images of the ocean, the sun and the summer all come to mind. And regardless of what your summer activities consist of, whether it’s going to the beach, sailing, boating, etc., one of the accessories you’re going to use the most is a bag to haul your required gear, so we decided we’ll give away not one but two great summer accessories: the True Wind Duffel Bag and True Wind Classic Tote Bag.
If you’re unfamiliar with True Wind, they’re a company that specializes in delivering superbly high quality bags in a variety of nautical themes. Giving them their unique appeal, True Wind bags are constructed from new, high-quality Dacron sailcloth that’s been custom woven in Ireland by Hood Sailmakers. It’s the same material that powers some of the largest and most prestigious yachts in existence, and thanks to its high resistance to sunlight, abrasion, and water (vital attributes for a sail), it’s a material that’s perfectly suited for soft-sided bags. Complimenting the high quality Dacron sailcloth, trigger snaps, D-rings, and sliders are all constructed from solid brass and coated with a nickel finish, ensuring the bags’ metal parts will never rust or corrode. Zig zag stitching (the same method used in sail construction) is utilized throughout the bag, and seams are either double or triple stitched for added strength. Water-repellant treated nylon adds a secondary level of water protection for your contents, and it’s color-fast, meaning the colors won’t run or fade when washed. All of this adds up to a beautiful bag that just as importantly, holds up beautifully in real world use, enough so that it’s guaranteed for life by True Wind.
When choosing which bags to give away, we opted to give away two of our favorites from the True Wind Signals Collection. The first is the large True Wind Navigator Duffel Bag in red with navy stripes ($210). Measuring 24″x12″x12″, it’s the perfect size for a weekend getaway or if you need to carry a little extra gear, but it’s not too large to the point that it’s difficult to carry. The second bag is the True Winds Classic Tote Bag in navy with red stripes ($170). Measuring 20″x14.5″x9″, the tote is a little smaller, and it’s ideally sized for a trip the beach, the market, or any other everyday task. Both are fantastic bags, and the craftsmanship of True Wind brand really is exemplary.
So, you’re probably wondering how you can win one of the two True Wind bags. The answer, ladies and gentlemen, is simple. All you need to do is sign up for a eMercedesBenz account if you haven’t already, and reply in the comment section of this story that you want one. The two winners will be plucked from the comments completely at random one week from today, and we’ll decide which bag each of the winners will receive completely at random as well. It doesn’t get much easier than that. All we ask is that you leave one comment per your account. Of course, if you don’t win, don’t feel bad. You can always head over to the True Wind website (www.TrueWindUSA.com) and get one for yourself.
I’ve included some photos of the two bags in the gallery below (the bags in the grass are the bags you’ll be winning); and I’ve also included some additional color options showing more of the True Wind line. And before I go, a bit of fine print as recommended by our legal team.
*No purchase necessary. This giveaway is void where prohibited by law. The winner(s) will be chosen at random by a member of the eMercedesBenz editorial staff. Taxes if applicable are the responsibility of the winner. eMercedesBenz is not liable for anything relating to this giveaway.
Update: If you haven’t already, sign up and add your comment below to be entered in our True Wind Navigator Duffel and Classic Tote Bag Giveaway. The deadline is Thursday at midnight Central Time, so be sure to get your comments in before then. As of this writing your odds of winning are 1 in 32, and unlike Vegas, you’ve got nothing to lose – you can’t get much better than that.