New Mid-Layers from Triple Aught Design

Filed under: Gadling Gear Review

Can you have too much polar fleece? I'm struggling with the answer to that question as I eye the gear that's coming out for fall. I've got a lot of it, some of it quite old, as it seems to last longer than I expected it too. Even while I'm switching out a lot of my wardrobe for natural fibers, I'm looking at new polar fleece mid-layers with much better design than my old stuff.

I've been trying out hoodies from Triple Aught Design; one fleece, one wool. Packing a hoody is essential for this traveler; it's perfect airplane wear and you need some kind of warm, versatile mid-layer when you travel.

The fleece version is the Valkyrie. It retails for over $200.00, a steep price tag when you're used to getting your fleece as corporate swag like I am. It's made from Polartec Wind Pro -- that's their breathable wind stop fabric. You'll need a rain shell if it's really wet, but for a little damp weather, it's just fine.

The Valkyrie is covered in pockets -- hand warmer pockets at the waist, biceps pockets on each side for your mp3 player or phone (with pass-throughs for your headset cables), and a key or lift ticket pocket on the left lower arm. There's a pass through pocket in the back, too, There's no interior wallet pocket, though -- that's what I'd add.

There's a fitted hood -- the shape is great and there's some heavier weight stuff around the outside to help it keep that shape. When the zipper is all the way up, the tab tucks into a finished slot so it doesn't scratch your face; a nice details. The underarms are vented with button holes rather than zips; kind of a nice change to the usual pit zips, plus, because the pockets are mesh lined on the inside, you can open them for venting. There's a drawstring at the waist to keep the wind out.

Continue reading New Mid-Layers from Triple Aught Design

New Mid-Layers from Triple Aught Design originally appeared on Gadling on Tue, 23 Aug 2011 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/weblogsinc/gadling/~3/3f5FfWxGhg0/

Also make sure to head over to the Buy A Timeshare site for further info and resources

Club Med
Club Med resorts: introduction to features of Club Med unique brand of all inclusive resorts, for families.
http://travelwithkids.about.com/od/allinclusives/qt/club_med.htm

Make sure to check out Buy A Timeshare site for more info

Travel blogger Q&A: Saskatchewanderer Andrew Konoff

Filed under: North America, Canada

Last week, Gadling launched a serious road trip series. Called Traveling the American Road, it has wasted no time in turning up some exciting material.

Meanwhile, north of the 49th parallel, Andrew Konoff is busy wandering around his home province of Saskatchewan, uncovering secrets and sharing his discoveries with the world.

This summer, Andrew is the Saskatchewanderer. We'll let Andrew explain his exciting gig.

Q: Define your profession.

A: Normally, I'm a university student. I'm an honors major in philosophy, with a serious interest in creative writing. This summer, I get to be the Saskatchewanderer: I use social media to promote my home province and all the things to do, see, and eat here.

Q: Tell us about the Saskatchewanderer project.

A: If you've heard about The Best Job In The World, which was responsible for many viral videos in 2009, then you'll get the idea for this one. Aspiring students had to submit videos that explained why they should be the Saskatchewanderer, and then a shortlist of ten candidates was voted on by the public. There were three rounds, right in the middle of finals, and I ended up with the job thanks to my enthusiasm about Saskatchewan, my great supporters, and my serious commitment to procrastination.

These days, I wander. I work with my boss to set a rough agenda for the week. I get out on the road in my sponsored Ford Focus, and then I try to fill in the rest of my outings by relying on local knowledge, whether through Facebook and Twitter or through more traditional resources like tourism offices and diner staff.

Q: What's your background as a traveler?

A: My family has always been keen on travel, but more recently I've started to understand the usefulness of travel in my own life. I did the Mongol Rally last year, and I learned a lot of great life lessons along the way. It turns out that spending 14,000 km in a small hatchback with one other person is a great catalyst for personal discovery. I did a Europe trip a couple years before that too, and that's when I realized how much I love food, and that it can intersect beautifully with travel. I had my first tasting menu experience in Prague, and have been nuts about food travel ever since. This interest has driven me to do things like drink fermented horse milk in Mongolia, which I think I featured in one of my entry videos for the Saskatchewanderer competition.

Q: And as a travel writer, blogger, and social media agent?

A: Wow, I've done all those things? Travel writing and blogging are sort of a package deal for me, though perhaps this job will give me the confidence to try to get articles published. As far as social media go, I've been fairly involved around campus, and communications is a role I fell into pretty naturally. Starting up blogs and Facebook pages helped me in fundraising for the Mongol Rally and in getting the University of Regina's Arts Student Association back up and running. Generally, if I'm passionate about something, there's no better and more direct way to communicate that passion than through social media.

Continue reading Travel blogger Q&A: Saskatchewanderer Andrew Konoff

Travel blogger Q&A: Saskatchewanderer Andrew Konoff originally appeared on Gadling on Wed, 08 Jun 2011 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/weblogsinc/gadling/~3/fyh3pIxbCcQ/

Also make sure to head over to the What Is A Timeshare site for further info and resources