I was going to post something new today, but there are so many questions on the 2011 Gear Post that I figured it's better to answer them in a separate post rather than the comments, since blog commenting systems suck.

What happened to the Vibrams / huaraches?

Vibrams are gone. They just smell too bad too quickly. That includes the Smartwool ones, which I was very hopeful about. They seemed to take longer, but still not long enough. I still have the huaraches, and love them. I roll them up and stuff them at the bottom of my bag and always wear the Terra Planas when traveling (in general, always wear your bulkiest items and pack the other ones).

Where do you get the wool pants? Would they work for bartenders / rock climbers?

I got them off eBay. You probably won't be able to find the same ones, but there are always some on there. Make sure to get a 100% wool pair, not a blend (unless blended with cashmere or silk).  I'd link to some now, but the links would be useless within a week or so. It might take time to find some that you like that are the right size. In general they will be black or grey. Once I wear out this pair, I will test dying them with indigo to see if it's possible to get actual blue jeans.

They'd be great for bartenders. The look pretty cool and resist stains very well. I actually think they'd work really well for rock climbing, too. They have a little more stretch than nylon and aren't tight. Then again... I can't do a split to test for you.

If you didn't like the organization, why don't you use packing cubes?

I sort of hate packing cubes. It's one more layer between me and my stuff. I use one for my cold weather gear, so that I can add and remove it from my pack quickly, but other than that I avoid them. They also take up a small amount of space, which I'd prefer to be filled with more useful items.

What's your current laptop?

Still the Sony Vaio Z12. The new Z series looks far worse to me (no optical drive for me to remove and replace with a big HD, no integrated graphics card), so I'll probably be sticking with this computer for a while.

If you need space for video or game/3D render, get the Z12, otherwise wait for the new thinner one.

I don't believe that there's extra room!

There is. I'll prove it soon.

Wearing sunglasses is bad!

I know. I also think that it's good for melatonin production and such for your eyes to be exposed to sun. I mainly wear them when riding my motorcycle or when the sun is so bright that I have to squint. Or when I'm singing gangster rap on cruise ships.

Still using the APC INPA power adapter?

Yep. And still astonished at how terrible every other adapter is in comparison. By the way, everyone thinks that you need bulky voltage adapters as well - you almost NEVER do. Check all the things you plug in, and you'll find that they universally support 100-240V.

Tell me more about the backpack colors

Mine IS available. It's the Steel / Solar Dyneema. You can only get it at TomBihn.com-- I can't link directly to that color, so you'll have to sniff it out for yourself.

I also agree that bright interior color is genius. I actually am surprised they don't use a flourescent color, since that converts non-visible light spectrum to visible.

Motorcycle Safety

I have no idea how the thread turned into everyone telling me to be safe on a motorcycle. I understand the importance of motorcycle safety (the first thing I did when I got my license is read a 200 page book on motorcycle safety). I wear a helmet and gloves now, and am looking for the right jacket.

I don't want to get into a big discussion about this now, but I believe that motorcycle riding, the way I do it, is far safer than most people think. I'm going to do some more research on actual numbers and write a post eventually.

You hardly have any shirts. How do you prevent them from getting stinky? Do you take an extra when you travel?

It doesn't take much to prevent them from getting stinky. Airing them out is surprisingly effective. When they do start to smell bad, just wash them in the shower-- easy.

I'm always (well... almost always) wearing one, and the other is always in my backpack. That goes for day trips as well as three month long journeys. One of my goals was to make my stuff so compact and light that it's trivial to bring it everywhere.

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Photo is my new bizcard. Printed on real birdseye maple. BOOM.

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