OR - BA Helinox Chair One - Kathy Waters

Dear Editors,

 

Below is the text for one of my new favorite pieces of gear.  The HTML is in
the OR test folder at:  http://tinyurl.com/lhvmyl9

 

I look forward to your comments and edit.

 

Thanks for all your hard work!  (raises are in the mail <g>)

 

Kathy

___________________________________________________

BIG AGNES HELINOX CHAIR ONE   

 

Big Agnes Logo 

BY KATHLEEN WATERS

NOVEMBER 11, 2014   

 OWNER REVIEW   

 

 

  

 

TESTER INFORMATION   

 

NAME:    Kathleen Waters   

 EMAIL:    kathy at backpackgeartest dot com   

 AGE:    63   

 LOCATION:    Canon City, Colorado, USA   

 GENDER:    F   

 HEIGHT:    5' 4" (1.60 m)   

 WEIGHT:    125 lb (56.70 kg)   

 

Living in Colorado and being self-employed, I have ample opportunities to
backpack. There are over 700,000 acres/280,000 hectares of public land
bordering my 71-acre/29-hectare "backyard" in addition to all the other
gorgeous locations which abound in Colorado. Over the past 15 years, my
husband John and I have also had the good fortune to hike/snowshoe glaciers,
rain forests, mountains and deserts in exotic locations, including New
Zealand, Iceland, Costa Rica, Slovenia and Death Valley. My hiking style is
comfortable, aiming for lightweight. I use a tent (rainfly if needed).
Current pack averages 25 lb (11 kg) excluding food and water.  

 

PRODUCT INFORMATION   

 

 

 

Manufacturer: Big Agnes

Year of Manufacture: 2013

Manufacturer's Website: http://www.bigagnes.com

MSRP: US $99.95 (Multicam and all the Tactical colors are $109.95)

Listed Weight: 1.9 lb (850 g)

Measured Weight: 2 lb (910 g)

Colors Available: Black, Red, Green, Multicam, Tactical Coyote Tan, Tactical
Grey, Tactical Black, Tactical Snow White, Tactical Desert Tan, Tactical
Multicam, Tactical Green

Color Reviewed: Red

 

Other details: From Manufacturer's Promotional Tag

 

* Packed Size - 14 " x 4 " x 5 "/ 35 x 10 x 12 cm

* Assembled Dimensions - 26 " H x 21 " W x 20 " D/ 65 x 52 x 50 cm

* Seat Measurements - 13.5 "/ 34 cm from ground, 13.5 "/ 34 cm deep

* Load Capacity - 320 lb/ 145 kg 

Helinox Chair One Red 

Picture Courtesy of Big Agnes 

 

 

 

FIELD USE AND PERFORMANCE   

 

When the Helinox Chair One was first introduced, I bought two of them for my
son and daughter-in-law for birthday presents. They do a lot of backpacking
into a site and setting up a base camp, then further exploring/hiking from
the base camp. I thought the Helinox Chair One would work well for them. 

 

Well, the first time I saw them in action I developed a great case of "chair
envy" and I knew I had to get a couple of those Chairs for my husband and
myself. So, I did and we are so glad to have them! In the last 10 months, we
have utilized these wonderful Chairs on every backpack, several all day
hikes, and even casually at our granddaughter's soccer games. My Chair has
cradled my derriere extensively in south central Colorado, including the
Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, northern Colorado, the Wasatch
Mountains near Salt Lake City, Utah, and the Superstition Mountains in
Arizona. The Chair has been snowed on, rained on, endured temperatures well
below freezing and well above 100 F (38 C).

 

 

 

Setting up Base Camp in AZ 

Setting up Base Camp in Superstition Mountains, AZ 

 

Breakfast at Mt. Harvard Base Camp 

Breakfast at Mt. Harvard Base Camp 

 

 

First off, these Chairs are probably one of the lightest camp chairs around
at just about 2 lb (910 g). They come "broken-down" in their own carrying
pouch which is secured by a full-length zipper and sandwiched (on the ends
of the pouch) with very convenient handles/straps for easy carrying and
better yet, easy securing to the outside of my backpack with carabiners. The
full-length zipper makes it a breeze to remove the Chari and to put it back
in. The lightness of the Chair and the convenience of the carrying pouch
make it a no-brainer for me as to whether or not I'm going to take the Chair
into the wilderness whenever I can.

 

There is a video on the Big Agnes website showing how to set-up the Chair,
but really, it's rather intuitive. The Chair is in two sections, the
anodized DAC aluminum pole frame which looks for all the world like a broken
spider when removed from the carrying pouch, and the mesh fabric seat. The
four leg and back sections of the frame are joined together with shock-cords
which quickly snap together and then those sections are inserted into two
connectors which are on the ends of the cross section of the frame. Think
like playing with the old Tinker Toys!

 

Once all the parts of the frame are connected - mere minutes - it's time to
put the body of the seat onto the frame. I generally slip the top rubber
holders on the back of the seat in first and then lay the Chair down so I
can then slip the bottom two holders on. It's a tight fit, but certainly
doesn't take Superman - or in my case, Superwoman - strength to get the
Chair functional.

 

The real value in the Chair is its comfort. No more sitting on wet or cold
ground, a hard piece of granite or a possibly tick-ridden downed tree for
me! Now with the Chair, I can keep my bottom dry, lean back and stretch my
legs out. But I lean back carefully. If the ground is not level, and I
haven't been on too many level mountains lately, care must be taken to
position the Chair in a stable manner. On one memorable occasion, I watched
my daughter-in-law oh so slowly tip over while enjoying a cup of cider at
the campfire! She didn't spill a drop! We all teased her unmercifully the
rest of the trip though. Actually, we still tease her 5 months later!

 

When it's time to go home, the Chair quickly comes back apart, the mesh seat
folds down and all goes back into the carrying pouch to be cinched back onto
my backpack, ready for the next adventure.

 

 

BA Helinox Chairs Ready to GO 

Helinox Chairs Packed Up and Ready to Go! 

 

 

The Chair cleans up nicely with just a damp cloth and I've been careful to
dry it off after a damp overnight. After several months, I see no evidence
of loosen seams, icky metal, seam stress or any other sign of wear. I know I
will be using the Big Agnes Helinox Chair One in the future on every
possible outdoor backpack/hike/snowshoe and should something ever happen to
it, I will be replacing it with another one!  

 

STARRING ATTRACTIONS   

 

1.) So comfortable at a campsite or a lunch break on the trail.

2.) Easy to set-up/take down and stow away on the go.

3.) Relatively lightweight and conveniently can be clipped on my backpack.  

 

MINOR DISTRACTIONS   

 

1.) Ahhh . . . Absolutely, nothing that I can think of!  

 

SUMMARY   

 

I never thought I would ever carry a "camp chair" on a backpacking trip.
Heck! Who needs the extra weight? When I first bought the Big Agnes Helinox
Chair One for my kids, I figured they would only use them for car camping or
base camps. Was I ever wrong! The Chair One is so lightweight, so
comfortable, I can't imagine not taking them on every backpack. I'll forego
something else, if need be. Now that my adult trail mates all have their one
Chair One, I guess I'd better be thinking of buying another one for the
Little Miss! Christmas is coming...

 

Kathleen (Kathy) Waters