F.I.R.S.T is a lightweight meal replacement suitable for extended use that provides all necessary daily nutrition – Photo courtesy Feed It Global

For more than two decades, outdoors instructor, Tom Daniel, has been leading thrill-seekers and adventurers into the bush in his native Australia. His primary focus during these excursions has been on climbing, though throughout his career his work has run the gamut, providing a broad spectrum of outdoor education and guiding for diverse groups ranging from school-aged children to executive clients. He’s admittedly been blessed with the opportunity to do what he loves. He’s also, however, seen firsthand the ill-effects that nature’s elements can wreak on a person’s physical and mental condition if they are not putting the right amount of the right foods into their bodies.

Focus on nutrition

“While it’s all nice at the end of the day to enjoy a good meal, and it’s satisfying to cook a number of different things up and to feast on a variety of foods,” acknowledges Daniel, “ultimately, in particular in an outdoors context, it’s all simply to do with nutrition. Everything else is secondary to the fact that food has to provide the fuel you need to recover from the expenditures of the previous day, and to get you ready for the next day – simple, simple stuff. There’s no trick to it.”

And, just as fundamental as the need for nutritional balance is to any seasoned outdoors-person, so too was the reasoning for Daniel to develop F.I.R.S.T. (Feed. It. Replacement. Sustenance. Technology.) – a revolutionary, super-portable, lightweight energy product for the serious outdoors enthusiast.

F.I.R.S.T., a powdered drink which will almost assuredly be lauded by outdoors-people in the years to come as the only sustenance required on any extended trip or expedition in the outdoors, is available in both 100 and 1,000 gram sachets. And, each of its variety of four flavours contains the full spectrum of vitamins, proteins, fats, minerals and carbohydrates required to not only sustain human life, but to keep the human body functioning in peak form for prolonged periods of time.

F.I.R.S.T. is here, and it’s now… but, as Daniel explains, the journey to F.I.RS.T. started a while ago, and demanded a lot of effort and testing along the way.

“Some years ago someone I’d been in contact with, Roger Chao, came to me as he was completing his studies at Monash University in Victoria. Oddly enough, he was studying philosophy. But he was also looking at nutrition, attempting to metaphorically boil food down to its intrinsic component parts to determine what someone who is exerting themselves to the extreme would need to sustain themselves.”

<b>Extreme testing</b>

By the time Chao, a decorated expeditionist and fellow native of Australia, had completed his initial preparation and research in nutrition, he had developed the prototype for what was to become F.I.R.S.T. He advised Daniel of the academic possibility that the product could sustain him and provide him with what he needed on a long journey, and set out to test his theory in the most extreme

way possible – a five-week winter expedition in remote Tasmania in 2006, crossing two of the most significant mountain ranges in the region.

“His plan was to go with a colleague and consume F.I.R.S.T. wholly and solely – every meal, every day while pack carrying and river-crossing this very cold and wet environment,” explains Daniel. “And when he arrived back, he let us know that it absolutely worked. That he had proven it.”

In fact, Chao has twice sustained himself solely on the sustenance of F.I.R.S.T., following his Tasmania trip with a Greenland Icecap crossing in 2007.

The product has also been used positively and effectively by many others, but, it was after only Chao’s first trip that Daniel, from the perspective of an outdoors-person, saw the potential for the product.

 
<b>Developing a taste for the product</b>

However, even though all of the all of the preliminary research, tweaking and changing had been conducted, and the product had been put through rigorous tests in two of the most extreme environments on earth, it was still a prototype at that stage. There were a couple stumbling blocks before bringing the product to market.

“Figuring out what a human needs with respect to nutrients is straightforward,” explains Daniel. “Roger had already been through many weeks of experimenting, primarily concerning the way the fat was delivered. He was the tester of the product

and was able to make changes to the product accordingly. That’s easy enough.”

But, what’s not so easy, he points out, is arriving at a taste that the customer will buy into.

“All of our research had been done with the product tasting appalling. There was a key component that we couldn’t get commercially. Once we sorted this out, we had a product that we were sure was ready.”

And, how long could it take to get the product to market once all of the necessary tweaks and changes have been made to its components and ingredients?

“We figured that from production to making it available for sale was going to be a quick journey… but we were profoundly wrong,” admits Daniel. “Because when these things are made by a commercial contract manufacturer, they deal with thousands of kilos of product per mixing cycle. We weren’t aware of this going in, and so the process to find a manufacturer in Australia who would work with us and further develop the product took a lot longer than we had anticipated.”

<b>Reducing pack-size and weight</b>

Good things, however, sometimes come to those who wait. And, as Daniel explains, the wait was well worth it.

“When you’re serious about expeditions or are used to making long ventures into the outdoors, food and fuel and pack-size and speed of preparation are all very significant factors. In the outdoors a lot of time you just want to achieve your aim – get up in the morning, continue during the day, have food as fuel… nothing much more. F.I.R.S.T. provides this for its user.”

It’s with respect to this pragmatic approach to the outdoors that F.I.R.S.T. is perhaps most useful. If the product is to be consumed as a sole source of sustenance, it offers a volume reduction of over 60 per cent and a weight saving of more than 50 per cent compared to similar foods.

“F.I.R.S.T. allows you to be as brutally simple as necessary to get more sleep, carry less or no fuel, and have a smaller sled or pack,” Daniel says. “These are the critical reductions and savings that every outdoors-person will see as highly valuable when going out on their next journey.”

It’s a sentiment echoed by Graeme Joy, an Australian outdoors enthusiast whose 19 expeditions in 22 years have included kayaking around the Southwest coast of Tasmania, climbing the likes of Denali, Mount Vincent and Mount Kilimanjaro, and sledding to the magnetic North Pole. Graeme has used F.I.R.S.T. while hiking the mountains in Victoria, and has witnessed the benefits of this compact nutrition source.

“When the weight of your load is an issue, when cooking time is an issue, and when the ability to ingest something that gives you the full level of nutrition without leaving you depleted physically is a concern – F.I.R.S.T. represents a huge advantage.”

Joy admits that it would take supreme focus to commit to living on F.I.R.S.T. three meals a day, but is looking forward to using it in combination with other foods on his next major expedition – a trek to the high arctic in eight month’s time.

<b>Taking testing to the extreme</b>

Daniel and his team have expedition-tested F.I.R.S.T. as the sole source of food for 100 days. During these tests, they found that, aside from its obvious benefits as total or added nutrition, there were no adverse effects reported in the areas of flatulence, gas, bloating, heartburn or bowel movements.

The product also meets all of the guidelines and requirements as set by Australian law and has a suggested shelf-life of 12 months. In addition, F.I.R.S.T. is also suitable for vegetarians as it does not contain any animal bi-products.

F.I.R.S.T. is currently available on the company’s website (<a href=”http://www.feedit-global.com”>www.feedit-global.com</a>) with plans to further distribute the product through four retail channels in Australia and New Zealand. And that’s not all.

<b>Use for the greater good?</b>

“We’ve had discussions with a global aid organization,” Daniel explains. “They see great value in the product, not for aid recipients, but for aid providers. That’s where we’re having conversation.”

Daniel’s covered every inch of the Australian bush and has gone on many expeditions in his days. But, it’s his journey with F.I.R.S.T. that has been most rewarding.

“Before all of this I didn’t know anything about nutrition,” he admits. “But, it’s simple – this stuff has to go into our bodies or we fall apart. It’s been fascinating for me to understand an entirely new world.”
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For more information about F.I.R.S.T., vista the website, <a href=”http://www.feedit-global.com”>www.feedit-global.com</a>. If you’d like to comment on this article or product, send us an email, <a href=”mailto:letters@geareditor.com”>letters@geareditor.com</a>.

The blade on the SOG PowerDuo opens easily with one hand and is sharp enough for routine outdoor tasks – Photo Gear Editor Test Team

The multitool has been striving to replace the traditional folding pocket knife since the first Swiss Army knife came off the line in Ibach, Switzerland in 1881.

The concept of having a small and utilitarian cutting tool close at hand at all times is a staple of woodcraft, hiking, camping and general outdoor training. There are simply so many uses for a knife during day-to-day adventures. However, there are other tools that have the potential to be just as useful. Combining these with the knife into a pocket-sized package is the purpose of the multitool.

SOG certainly has the knife part of the tool covered, having over 25 years of experience in crafting knives and winning awards for their design for almost as long.However, it is interesting to note that they have been in the multitool game for nearly as long, releasing their first product, the Tool Clip, in 1990.

SOG and other multitool makers tend combine a large number of tools and bits. The are designed to spring from increasingly unlikely hiding places. Many times, the first minute of using such a tool is remembering which corner your particular option is hidden away in.

<b>Refreshingly Simple Multitool</b>

The pliers are the star of this show. Each lever arm measures about 1.5 inches, slightly shorter than those on a Leatherman Wave. Combined with a noticably more pointed end, these should reach into all but the smallest places.

The lever arms are joined at a fulcrum that is different from standard offerings. instead of a straight join, a gear ratchet and crossbar amplify the pressure on the levers, allowing the tool a harder grip. This is assisted by a swept back lever arm. The Combined Leverage system, as this gear and crossarm is known, is a patented SOG feature.

The average human hand has a grip strength of about 40psi and our test team estimates that the PowerDuo system roughly doubles this. That makes it easier to cut through wire or get a good grip on bike nuts for emergency roadside repairs. Not enough to cut through chain link fence however, so sneaking into out of bounds areas will require another dedicated tool.

<b>Quality and Reliability</b>

The knife is a simple enough 2.5 inch blade with an oversized thumb ring that makes it very simple to open with one hand. The blade lock is released by a push switch on the back of the handle. This release is tucked up close to the swing arm for the pliers and can be tricky to get to if you have larger hands or are wearing gloves.

The knife steel is a workaday 9Cr18MoV, often found in Chinese produced blades. A slightly higher than average quality steel, it should hold up to routine use and camping chores.

The knife also includes a can/bottle opener and a selection of screwdrivers. The tools themselves also lock with a release system separate from the knife.

Other nice features include the toothpick and tweezers tucked into the handle. A mainstay on many pocket knives, these are usually absent on mutlitools but are a welcome bonus here.

All around, this is a good basic carry for those who want a high quality knife and plier combo without the addition of the rest of the kitchen sink.

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<b>The Sog PowerDuo is available at select retailers and on the company’s website for &#36;80. For more information about Sog Speciality Knives & Tools, visit the company’s website at www.sogknives.com.</b>

Bike Tracks from CoreCoders is available for iOS

Gear Editor’s all about innovation and inspiration. But, much more so than that, we’re about providing our readers with the coolest gear, gadgets and technology that will add a layer of functionality and enjoyment to your next outdoor adventure. Whether it’s a piece of apparel, an accessory, or anything else in between – if it’s out there, we’ll bring it to you. And that goes for resources as well. Resources like Core Coders’ Bike Tracks mobile app.

The app is multifunctional, allowing the serious biker to prepare a route for their ride, record the ride, and then show off afterward to friends… if they feel it necessary.

Bike Tracks includes both open street map and open cycle map displays, providing you with information about their surrounding area, like suggested nearby trails and routes, as well as terrain details. In addition, once you’ve viewed the map on your phone, it’s saved and stored so the user can view the map at any time during the ride without requiring a data connection. The app also includes Google Standard and Satellite maps to preview your upcoming ride.

The app allows you to analyze their ride based on a number of different in-depth statistics, including Speed (Live, Max, Average); Distance (Total, Climb, Downhill); Vertical (Total, Climb, Downhill); Elevation (Live, Max, Min); Slope Angle (Climb, Downhill); Duration (HH:MM:SS); Split your cycle ride – climb/downhill, distance or time – display stats and profile graphs for each split; Complete speed and elevation profiles.

You’ve just returned from an amazing ride and wish that your friends could have experienced it with you. With Bike Tracks, they can. Photographs taken during your ride will automatically be Geo-tagged to your track. Then, share your route, photographs and more via email/iTunes Document Sharing or directly to Facebook.

For more information about Bike Tracks, check them out on Facebook

The Ribz Front Pack is designed to fit along the front of your chest to carry up to 10 pounds of gear in an easy to access style. Virtually any normal backpack can be worn with this system and the weight and straps will fit normally – Photo courtesy Ribz

You’re on the trail and making good time. You recognize the synergy that exists between you and your surroundings when you strike that good hiking rhythm. Your blood is pumping through your veins and your muscles are working in near-mechanical unison. In short – you’re in your element, until you realize that you need to stop to retrieve that one little item from your pack to help you continue on that good rhythm that you’ve discovered for yourself. You break your stride, swing your pack off of your back and unzip it, take a knee to the side of the trail and peer inside your pack to locate the desired item.

Before long, you begin to experience that inexplicable frustration that mounts when that one little item that you’re looking for is not so easily found. It could be anything: a flashlight, a tool, a spare part, a snack. Unable to feel or see the item in question, your frustration boils over, turning to full-on hiker’s rage as you turn your pack upside down to empty its contents on the trail. By this point your rhythm has broken, the synergy between you and nature has disintegrated. And, your element? Well… you’re not in it anymore.

How many times have you found yourself in this situation? For even the moderate outdoors people among us, the answer is likely – too many times.

Access to essentials

Finding himself in this predicament on one too many occasions is what led San Diego, California-native Ray Richardson to develop the Ribz Front Pack.

“Keeping your essential items close at hand is a hard and fast rule when outdoors,” says Richardson. “A lot of people carry the same kind of gear on most trips that they go on. A survival checklist, you might call it – your headlamp, first aid, gloves, tackle kit, GPS, bear spray, map, and maybe a couple small snacks. These seem to be the standard items, and you want constant and immediate access to them. That’s the genesis of the Front Pack, really. I just became tired of going back and forth to my backpack for the same key items over and over again.”

Functional… and cool

Beyond this practical reasoning for the development of the Front Pack, Richardson, who grew up in close proximity to an American military special operations training base, also admits to admiring “how cool” U.S. Navy Seals look when they’re fully geared up in the field.

“I remember thinking to myself, ‘I’m going to battle with Mother Nature out here. Why don’t I have some kind of front system?’” So, it was in the early nineties when he built his first prototype.

“I just wanted it for myself,” he explains. “Then, when my friends saw me getting all kinds of use out of it, they all started to ask me for one.”

Richardson obliged, making a pack for each of his friends. And, it was only when experiencing them enjoy many of the same benefits as he had enjoyed, that he thought, “Maybe I should see if other people will get as much use out of this this as we do.”

Durable and reliable

Each pocket has an interior mesh divider – Photo Melissa Owen

The Ribz Front Pack is made of 210d water-resistant ripstop nylon, ensuring ultra-durability, allowing it to be used in the most extreme conditions. It weighs in at just 9 ounces, and retains a storage capacity of up to 800 cubic inches with strength to carry up to 10 pounds. And, although the Front Pack was designed to carry ultra-light hiking loads, supplementing your backpack for increased functionality, it can also serve as a single application and is suited for just about any outdoor enthusiast.

“Literally anyone who’s ever used a backpack in the outdoors will find benefits,” asserts Richardson. “In just about any situation where you’ve used a backpack you can complement it with a little up front and really add to your whole setup. Backcountry fisherman, hunters, cavers, snowmobilers, kayakers, adventure runners, horseback riders, bush pilots – they’ve all told me that they find it equally as useful.”

Outdoors benefits

In fact, Richardson, who grew up in a family in which camping and spending long hours in the outdoors was a prominent pastime, used the pack exclusively for his own use for a good ten years before producing it for a larger audience. And, during this time, he saw firsthand the multiple, near endless, benefits that the Pack presents to the outdoors person.

“I did one trip when I covered a lot of ground throughout Baja,” he remembers whimsically. “I started in the mountains and ended down in the Sea of Cortez. I wore the Front Pack on the whole hike, going four-wheel driving on back roads, and when I was fishing out in the ocean. It worked just as effectively in every situation.”

He also points out its usefulness as a solitary carrying system, if the need ever arises.

“If you find yourself in a situation somewhere when you want to get really adventurous and ditch your backpack for less encumbered movement and mobility – say when you’re bushwhacking – you don’t even have to think twice about your gear. Simply load it in the Front Pack, and you’ve got everything you want, where you want it.”

Product breakthrough

The Pack has seen numerous iterations through its 20 years of development. But the real breakthrough was made when Richardson was introduced to George Marks, co-founder of Sierra Designs and creator of the Walrus Tent, at the 2011 Outdoor Retailer show in Salt Lake City, Utah.

“I had a Walrus tent my whole life and always kind of looked to that tent as a benchmark for high quality stuff,” admits Richardson. “So, it was obviously an honour to speak to George and a massive boost to find out that he was impressed with what I was doing. But, what was most important was the fact that he was aware of certain

manufacturing specifics that I wasn’t familiar with – like the types of stitching required in sewing. I told him the direction that I wanted to go with the Pack, and he was able to let me in on every trick and stitch needed to shave off the excess and really bring high quality to the entire package.”

Tried and tested

The Front Pack has sold somewhere in the range of 20,000 units to date, without any formal testing being performed on the product. And, when asked to comment on the distinct lack of testing that was conducted, Richardson’s response is simple and to the point.

“The kinds of people that use this pack are pretty serious about the outdoors. And they all provide their two-cents.

In my estimation, there’s no greater “test” than the adventure gear enthusiasts of the planet thrashing around in it!”

And Gear Editor couldn’t agree more. In the field, our team of testers found that the Front Pack performs extremely well, complementing the standard backpack, or on its own, and can securely and comfortably hold ten pounds of hiking items, and then some. Our team also reported that its durability is of the highest rank, and that its design was very well received, providing intuitive accessibility to items.

And, yes – the Pack is exceptionally water resistant. During our testing, we subjected the Ribz to a full minute submerged in water; its contents remaining perfectly dry.

“It’s one of those items that you look at in the package and think ‘what the heck?’” said a member of the Gear Editor test team. “But once you have it in place it seems so completely intuitive. You really have to wonder why the “front pack” space is not filled with as many manufacturers as the backpack space?”

For now, Ribz has the market pretty much to itself. Our research uncovered a few other small competitors and of course, the military systems that originally inspired the Ribz design have large production forces behind them.

Currently, the Front Pack comes in two standard colours – black and green – in two different sizes – regular and small, and is available for sale on the Ribzwear website (www.ribzwear.com). Richardson says that the company’s goal is to roll out one new colour variation each year and fully expects to make his product available in retail establishments in the near future. But, for now, his focus is on continuously improving the functionality of the Pack.

“The feedback has been amazing from users of the Pack. They all offer their own suggested improvements to it. I’m constantly looking to make tweaks and changes to its design to improve its overall usefulness. And, I’m always looking at it through the lens of the outdoor enthusiast. This product was created for them, and they’ll continue to be at the heart of its development.”

For more information about the Ribzwear Front Pack, visit the company’s website, www.ribzwear.com. If you’d like to comment on this article or product, send us an email, letters@geareditor.com.

TAD Amphibious Cargo Pants dry almost as fast as you come out of the water. Made for three season use, their bombproof design would seem capable of handling pretty much any outdoor action – Photo courtesy TAD

To Triple Aught Design (TAD), exciting its fanbase has become customary, and with reason. The San Francisco-based provider of apparel and equipment has become legendary within the industry for its creative approach. Combining innovation, design and technology, the company has developed some of the most high-performing tactical product, with a distinct urban appeal. And, few of the company’s current products reflect this approach more accurately than its Amphibious Cargo Pants. Yes… amphibious.

The quick-dry pants have been engineered for a degree of breathability that is second-to-none with a straight leg relaxed fit. And to allow the wearer ample storage and accessibility, the pants boast ten pockets in all – two front welt pockets, two hand pockets with coin pocket, two thigh cargo flap pockets with hidden dual button closure, two rear flap pockets with hidden dual button closure and two hidden passport pockets. They’ve also been designed and developed to be extremely rugged and durable, with features that include knee reinforcement pockets that accommodate T-Pro knee armor, a reinforced seat, gusseted crotch and triple and double needle stitching.

Through researching, testing and evaluating a variety of textiles, the company arrived at the selection of a nylon-spandex fabric, treated with a durable water resistant coating, that provides the pants with a quick-dry quality – a tactical element that will excite any outdoors enthusiast. Eyelets and slit drains in the Cargo Pant pockets were also introduced to facilitate drainage of water during wet-immersion conditions.

But, as Michael Weiss, head of marketing at TAD, points out, considering all of the tactical elements designed into the pants, the functionality of the product in the field is what impresses most.

“The single biggest benefit of the Amphibious Cargo Pants is the range of movement,” explains Weiss. “You’re never going to be restricted. There are also certain elements in terms of the ruggedness and durability that we’ve improved. We’ve tried to look ahead and figure out where key wear-points might be, and have reinforced them for longer-lasting quality. And, in addition to all of the tactical enhancements, the look, fit and feel of the pants are great.”

The Amphibious Cargo Pants have been tested in various outdoor environments such as the High Sierra, river canyons of Central California, the sub-tropics, the Outback of Australia, and the rain forests of Central and South America.

And, of course, Gear Editor tested the pants as well. The team found them to be extremely lightweight and easy to pack, making them ideal for trips. They were also found to be very well constructed – durable and rugged. And, as might be expected from a pant that brags an amphibious quality, they excel in water. The test team noted that the pants didn’t absorb any liquid at all, and that they’re not weighed down when swimming or fully submerged. And, incredibly, they dry within minutes. The team was amazed to observe beads of water actually roll off the pants when removed from the water, and also noticed that after becoming wet, there was a distinct lack of bleeding ink.

The pant knees have a pocket to insert kneepad style “armour”. While tricky to get in through the small pocket opening, once they are in its a great lightweith addition for kneeling around camp or the bottom of a canoe – Photo Gear Editor Test Team

It was pointed out that the size of the openings for the knee armour are very small, making it tricky to insert the pads. However, once in place, the Velcro closure is very secure. And, though the lightweight qualities of the pants might indicate that they are better suited to warmer weather, they do guard against wind quite effectively, making them suitable for multiple environments and conditions. And that, according to Weiss, is what TAD and the company’s philosophy is all about – catering to both the tactical and stylistic desires of its customer.

It didn’t exactly start out this way, however, as Weiss explains. An evolution has taken place within the company over the past decade, with the adoption of a more style-driven approach to design in an effort to appeal to a broader audience, while maintaining their original clientele and beliefs.

“When we were founded 15 years ago, we were known as the place that had all of the cool, different, unique equipment and items that hadn’t hit the mainstream yet,” says Weiss. “We were always trying to be at the bleeding edge of what was new and interesting and relevant. But we always had the intention and the purpose of being what we are today, which is a maker and provider of high performance apparel and equipment.”

The company prides itself on its independent roots, and its reputation as being a sort of bad-ass REI, which it gained early on for their involvement in the knife industry.

“We’ve always done everything our own way,” says Weiss. “And that meant working very hard and long with the top custom knife makers early on to provide our customers with top quality knives. And then, we eventually started to work with them, as we do today, to have our own variations and specific designs developed.”

But in making the transition through the years from bad-ass REI to quasi hip-urban apparel provider, one must assume that a shift in its customer-base must have occurred. Not necessarily so, says Weiss.

“Our customer today is the modern day adventurer. It’s who our customer has always been,” he says proudly. “It’s always been someone who appreciates not just gear, but someone who’s about seeking and exploring, in all facets. Not just going out into the back country and losing themselves for two days, but urban exploration as well. Even going to work, people want to be prepared, to be ready. Preparedness and capability are definitely needs of the people who have always been attracted to us. We deliver on these needs.”

TAD has also evolved into a complete brand, designing, manufacturing and distributing only its own product – a decision that was more than a decade in the making.

“Our goal has always been to make our own gear – apparel and equipment, as well as knives,” explains Weiss. “It took a few years, but about ten years ago we were finally able to dip our toes in the water. Our first two products were the Force 10 Cargo Pant and the Ranger Hoodie. From there it sort of took off.”

Took off, indeed. By 2002, helped by the start of U.S. operations in Afghanistan, followed shortly thereafter by operations in Iraq, the company had strengthened its following among the American special forces community because of the products durability and ruggedness.

“We were told over and over again by men and women serving in the forces that other people’s gear was wearing out after a couple missions. Ours was lasting much longer than that, and could weather whatever was thrown at it.”

In the years to follow, the company continued to make more products on the apparel side and introduced a pack line. Then, about two years ago, Weiss recalls, TAD found that it had reached critical mass with its fanbase.

“We clearly had a following that had a clear need and desire for more TAD designed items and gear. Recognizing this, we decided to focus solely on building TAD and building up our gear and equipment, and to produce the best stuff on the market.”

As part of this evolution, it became a real focus of the TAD design crew to blend the tactical functionality and characteristics of their military-inspired products with a more urban aesthetic that would appeal to a broader audience.

“At TAD, one of our guiding principles,” explains Weiss, “is that our customers shouldn’t have to sacrifice performance for style or style for performance. Our whole approach is to blend them both, so no matter the environment – be it urban or back country or wherever – you’re functional and comfortable.”

But, what exactly is the difference between tactical gear and virtually everything else on the market? What makes a piece of gear tactical?

“A tactical product at its core is built on function, because in certain environments – your gear cant fail,” explains Weiss. “On the back-end there’s also a layer of ruggedness and durability that doesn’t exist in other products necessarily the same way. A lot of companies make a lot of really great stuff that’s performance driven, but the difference is in the details and the materials used and the specifications adhered to – be it making something flame-retardant, water-resistant, extra-durable – to withstand harsh environments and situations. Tactical is also about precision. We make products for folks who demand the best and need the best.”

The culture at TAD really feeds into this philosophy, too, says Weiss, which from the start has helped create a liberal working environment wherein the sharing of ideas and innovative thought is seamless.

“We work in an open office space and are lucky enough to have everything, minus manufacturing, right here at HQ. Our design, development, marketing, sales, as well as our retail store are all in one place. In that environment we can quickly solve problems and engage with each other to brainstorm and collaborate in a really effective manner.”

And this, according the Weiss, is critical in ensuring that the company continues to deliver what its fanbase expects from them.

“Whether you’re talking about functionality, comfort or style – our whole point is to provide our customers with what they need when they need it, without having to think about it. And we’re not just here to sell product. We want to provide the very best gear for our customers who demand it.”

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TAD Amphibious cargo pants might be the only pair of pants you pack – Photo courtesy TAD

For more information about Triple Aught Design’s Amphibious Cargo Pant, visit the company’s website, www.tripleaughtdesign.com. If you’d like to comment on this article or product, send us an email, letters@geareditor.com