ROB WEINSTEIN

I ordered this tent a week ago and was stoked to get the chance to try it out this weekend. Took a 20 minute car ride to my favorite spot with some friends.

For the first outing, this tent preformed beautifully. The two pole design gives it about a 2 minute (sober) set up time, without the fly or guy lines. I was alone, but there is plenty of room for two.

A major selling point, for me, were the mesh walls. Being able to lay in your bag, stare up and see the clear Wyoming sky is a fantastic thing. After many beers, cheers and cheap wine it started to rain. It's alright, though. Weather happens.

In an inebriated state, the fly was equally as easy to set up. With the Flint 2 being only a single-door tent, there's not really any way you can put the fly on incorrectly, if you match zippers. Having said that, the fly was not easy to open on the first try (while in aforementioned state). It is important to remember that where there are two zippers, use the bottom zipper and go up...Yeah, I know. Oops. And as far as the vestibule goes--it's just big enough. Without the end guy-line of the rain fly being in use, there was enough room to put my wet rain gear and muddy hiking boots. It's simply enough to tuck the end of the vestibule under a boot to secure it down.

In five hours of steady to hard rain, the tent stayed very dry inside. The fly goes down to the very bottom of the tent, so leakage isn't an issue.

Besides the light weight, real stoke came from a couple simple features inside the tent. It didn't have actual, hanging pockets to put little things in (car keys and the like), but it has two triangular pieces of fabric sewn into the sides that hold whatever. Easy to access without unzipping the door fully.

The other thing I really like are the gear loops systematically placed throughout. There's a little loop directly under head that is perfect to hang a lantern from if the headlamp isn't cutting it for the moment. I rigged my small but heavy (two pounds or so) lantern onto it for reading and it held perfectly. It was intentionally left on overnight to test the character of the stitching. So far, so good.

Setting it up in my living room this morning to dry out, it seems to be going fast. 30 minutes later the rainfly and any dampness that the tent acquired from being rolled up together with the wet fly seem to be almost gone.

If you're looking for a light, airy, idiot proof tent to get you through a solid three seasons then you would be hard-pressed to find something better.

Bought these after I was cleared from my latest knee surgery. Absolutely saved my knee's. Knocked out 12+ miles with these things and couldn't even tell I didn't have any meniscus left.

I feel like I'm not completely sure-footed when I'm hiking over rocky trails...so I tend to look down a lot. It's hard to enjoy nature if you're stuck looking at your next step. This pole helps give the support needed to be able to look up.

Aside from the fantastic impact-absorbing shock, I feel like the flick-lock mechanism is miles ahead the system that Leki uses. I wouldn't trade these for any other pole out there.

This seems to be the same adapter that came with my Katadyn Pro water filter. A flick of the knife, cram those bad boys in and you're ready to go. About six to eight inches in from the bite valve seems to be a pretty solid location.

While this is definitely a plus when in the outdoors, I feel like this adapter really shines in cramped quarters. When you're filtering terrible looking water from a plugged up sink at a hostel and you'd rather not risk contaminating something by filling a bottle and pouring it into your reservoir... you'll be glad you spent a few bucks on this guy.

I've always been a fan of a widemouth Nalgene, but with the bite valve on this bottle it's just that much more convenient to drink without having to actually stop doing what you're doing.

It seems like the ring/handle could be a point of weakness. I've abused mine pretty badly since work got them for us and no stress marks yet, but I could see it happening.

I think the biggest pro for me would be the ease of hydration. When you're sucking on a valve it's not the same, mentally, as chugging from an open faced container. Sounds silly, but you'll drink a lot more water with this bottle--which is great when you're trying to stay constantly hydrated in prep of something.

Absolutely worth the price. Bought it for camping, but I end up using it as a chair inside more often than not. Makes a good bed-top chair for when you're banging out emails or blogging. At the moment, I have it pinned into the wall on top of a really old backless chair that I repurposed. Once these are back in stock I'll probably snag another to keep in the back of my truck. These are one of those items that always comes in handy.

Spoon is deep enough to actually be used as such; teeth are aggressive enough to grip meat and fish with. The goat love is nice and it has a pretty cool look to it.

Seemingly bulletproof, I see this as a permanent fixture on my utensil keyring.

Also used this to bump my order up to free shipping. Thanks for that...

As far as actual fork goes--the center groove makes it feel awkward in between my fingers. The teeth feel like they may break if not carefully put into my pack. Still keep this on a metal shower ring with my other utensils--light enough to not matter.

I wouldn't suggest making this anyones primary eating utensil but worth every penny as far as a back up in case someone forgets theirs/one gets lost.

**update
After packing the board, boots, bindings, and stuffing all open space with articles of clothing et. al., the board made it from Wyoming to Brasil in prime condition. If anyone was worried about this as a travel bag I would say don't.

As everyone else has said...it's just a sack. Having said that...for the price, it's great. Snagged one of these for my girlfriend on her plane ride back. She rides a 156. I ordered the 166 and it fit her board, boots, bindings and enough clothes to make up for the lack of padding. The lipstick color looks pretty steezy, also.

I have faith that the canvas won't tear anytime soon. Contemplating ordering another one for myself, just so I have something for my board to stay cozy in while sitting in the garage.

This thing has gotten me through multi-day's in Yellowstone, a month in Peru and even urban backpacking through Brasil.

Beat the crap out of it being tossed in packs, back of trucks, airport security...The only weak point that revealed itself is that little nozzle where the unfiltered water comes in. I took some gorilla glue and reinforced the stress marks.

The attachments for a nalgene and to splice into your camelbak are worth their weight in gold. The only downside is the length of the tubes in certain situations. When going through hostels in South America, the long hoses got in the way...about a foot on each side seems to be sufficient when filtering suspect sink water. Picked up a few extra hoses and trimmed to manageable sizes.

I'm yet to have this fail on me, but it's also a good idea to pick up some purifying tablets to toss in the case with this.

Picked this bag up a couple years ago, love it. The only downside is it's bulk. Takes up a good portion of any pack I've stuffed it into.

Draft collar and array of snaps and draw-strings make it perfect for those fall, Wyoming nights when all you have is a sleeping pad and this bag. Plenty of times I've woken up with frost around me, but was perfectly dry inside.

Seemed to make me look like a fat-head at first glance, but once it was on and I was suited up that problem ceased to be one. The leather cover has held up good for a couple of seasons, no major scars. Banged my head eating it once or twice playing on the wall ride and did what a helmet was supposed to do. Giro always makes quality noggin covers and this one was definitely worth the cash.