Hyperlite Mountain Gear Porter / Expedition Pack Review

[Ron D]

Ryan did address the his financial interest previously in the previous thread on Cottage Industry Stagnation that dealt with this issue. While I understand Dan's frustration and passion on this I also trust Ryan's statement below as being honest:

"I have zero financial interests in any of the companies that make the gear that I promote, and never, ever, ever, enter into a contract whereby my ability to get paid depends upon the sales of a product. The only ones in the past that I've done so for have carried the Backpacking Light label. My financial interests lie a little bit in BPL (to the extent that I wish to sell memberships and offer adventurous education opportunities), but mostly in my consulting work – the vast majority of which lies well outside the outdoor industry and is focused on my "real" field of expertise (which FYI is NOT gear design), but lean business process design and implementation, and engineered systems for delivering potable water in remote, underprivileged, disaster relief, and combat environments (and no, I don't work for any manufacturer of water treatment products for outdoor users). Oh – and I am shorting the euro.

FWIW, I told Mike St. Pierre (HMG) that I needed a large pack. The Porter is what he came up with. I replied with a request to change the fit a little, to support a heavier load, strip off some features, and he sent me a new pack. As Dan said, don't confuse designing with specifying. This is an HMG pack of HMG design and they deserve full credit for creating a pack that really works – don't pass any of that credit on to me, please.

And, I paid full price for my HMG pack. I've paid full price for all of my McHale packs – two products that I've "promoted" extensively because they just plain work."

[Dan @ Durston Gear]

As far I as I can tell (which is hard because a lot of photos have disappeared) the water bottle holder wasn't an HMG product, Ryan just sewed it up quickly for personal use. I'm basing that on this post of Chris's:

"The pocket in the picture was sewn up by Ryan just before a course we ran so he would have a place to keep his water bottle on the outside. It doesn't come with any exterior pockets"

If I'm understanding the situation correctly, then the water bottle holder is a non-issue as it was a one-off MYOG project and not affiliated with the HMG Porter. The daisy chains on the pack seem to be designed by HMG alone, and only they know if it's coincidence or not. I haven't found any reason to think Ryan J had anything to do with designing the porter aside from asking for it to be stiffer to handle bigger loads.

[dan mchale]

Ryan took this out of context when he quoted me, "As Dan said, don't confuse designing with specifying."

I was making the point that Ryan did not design the packs he recieved from me, that the features he recieved where already part of my options. He uses that statement to make it sound like he did not have design input into the Porter. We are supposed to believe, for instance, that they came up with the same Daisy Chain pattern I use – they came up with a daisy chain system like mine just out of the blue – the exact same spread from daisy chain to daisy chain…….when they had not done that before…but as soon as Ryan shows up they are suddenly inspired? Do you think Brian Frankle suddenly decided to make Ryan a double buckle hipbelt for the Arctic 1000 pack?

Ryan said,

"I've been working with a cottage manufacturer on a backpack that is exceptionally comfortable and adaptable across all load sizes and ranges. Here, I'm carrying it on an overnight trek in the White Cloud Peaks of Central Idaho this summer – a small load of less than 15 pounds. The same pack is used on my longer expeditions, like a glacier trek in the Canadian Rockies, where I carried nearly 40 pounds and a much bulkier volume of gear. The pack weighs about 2 lb, is designed to carry 45 lbs in comfort, has an internal frame, a rolltop closure, is made with a heavier version of Cuben Fiber, and has no external pockets built in. For more information about this pack, visit Hyperlite Mountain Gear and check out their "Porter" model."

Dan,

if you read my post about the pocket I did not say it was an HMG product. The photo simply showed a predilection to copying my designs. If it really is gone now it's because it was so telling to just see the photo. Since when does BPL go back and take photos off the site that have been there for months? I dare them to put the photo back! What, are they now at least trying to avoid the appearance of Conflict of Interest?

[Michael L]

Or we can accuse him based on ….Suspicions?

I love it. People want the article edited. It gets edited, and people complain.

Just can't please everybody.

[Richard Scruggs]

How about something bold and innovative like this: delete the article, delete all the comments, and just start over again?

And next time, give peace a chance.

[Anonymous]

"How about something bold and innovative like this: delete the article, delete all the comments, and just start over again?"

+1 This is getting destructive of the bonds that bind this community together and serves no worthwhile purpose. I am appalled at some of the posting here. C'mon guys, you're stinking up the joint; be civil or maybe take it over to Whiteblaze where it belongs. Or at least Chaff.

"And next time, give peace a chance."

Please.

[dan mchale]

That's why they call it Conflict of Interest.

[Travis Leanna]

>How about something bold and innovative like this: delete the article, delete all the comments, and just start over again?

+2

I'm usually not one to advocate deleting an entire thread, but this has gone way too far on both sides. It's doing Neither McHale Packs, nor BackpackingLight, any good. Quite the contrary.

I'm not going to include my opinion on the "conflict" one way or another except to state that I understand both sides standing up for their own position on the matter. But this is now just ugly.

[dan mchale]

What you have just witnessed is the enmity Ryan has created by interfering in the normal progression of things. He has inserted himself between 2 companies that probably hardly cared about each other. This was what I meant when I made the comment that with his ridiculous attitudes in these recent articles he has set companies against each other when they were not before.

[Richard Scruggs]

Things seem to have gotten harsh way out of proportion, much less as constructive comment.

Everyone has their "bad hair" days.

So that's the sermon of the day. At the bell, proceed from respective corners and resume mutually assured self-destruction.

Or, better yet, go, sin no more, and just pray for those other folks who are having their "bad hair" days.

Many happy trails and all that stuff . . . Amen :)

[dan mchale]

Been edited. ;>) Yes, let's pray.

[Richard Scruggs]

Ok.

Please Lord, forgive Ryan for dissin' those cottage outfits.

And please Lord, forgive Chris and Ryan for dissin' those SUL folks.

And finally, please, please Lord, forgive all those other folks for dissin' Ryan, Chris, Dan, and each other.

Amen, and gone.

[dan mchale]

You are supposed to erase 'ignorant' in the previous email not in a new one, since we decided it was inappropriate – otherwise I have to put my explanation back up…..that being he did not 'realize' the monster he was creating.

[Richard Scruggs]

Ok, substituted "bad hair" days . . . more fitting, perhaps.

This fluid approach to articles and comments makes things real interesting.

Confusing, but dynamic.

Really gone.

[John Frederick Anderson]

Silence from any BPL staff, just deleting controversial information without explanation. Better than nothing, but leaves things open. Nature abhors a vacuum.
Any chance of some BPL input in this thread?
I doubt it.
Better off deleting the whole thing, review and thread.
Mickey Mouse!

[Stephan Doyle]

Ryan's recent activities and contributions to BPL have brought plenty of chatter and debate.

In an attempt to bring the discussion back to the review: Why are weight and volume of these packs left off the initial impressions of the review? You two (Ryan and Chris) have been using these packs for months, but can't throw the thing on a scale and fill it up with cubes for the first part of this review? Will you be measuring load capacity and torso collapse later in the article?

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