When you’re seriously into your sport, having the right equipment is as important as being fit and healthy enough to participate. Looking and feeling good makes a big difference to your performance and well being in a sport, and when your hobby becomes your passion, a little investment can give you years of pleasure. I was given my first Dakine Backpack when I first starting skating, ten years ago. It was from a good friend who knew about the sport and the requirements and was advising me on the best backpacks and what they needed to be able to do. My Dakine pack became a central part of my life, the size and design was perfect for carrying all of my skating bits, and most importantly it was comfortable and easy to carry, and looked good.
I then expanded my repertoire to include snowboarding, a sport that now takes up a huge portion of my life. In snowboarding your personality is important as it influences your style, attitude and ability. The Dakine range of packs is designed by experts who know how to make their equipment reflect the dynamism and fun of the sport but can combine this with a practicality that makes the packs user friendly and valuable. My most recent purchase features Eric Pollard design and graphics, vertical and cross snowboard carry, a retractable cable ski carry, space for ice picks and snow shovels, an easy to reach water bottle pocket and an insulated hydro sleeve. My boarding wouldn’t be complete without it. It is lightweight, spacious, well designed and attractive. My girlfriend is also really into boarding and I was chuffed to be the one who introduced her to, and bought her first Dakine backpack. Like mine it has all of the features that you need for the sport and lots of added details like pockets and carry straps that make it great. And the bags are not just for skating or boarding. There is a great range of bags for surf, ski and windsurfing as well, with each range designed by people who know their stuff and know the sport they’re designing for.
As well as sports bags the range includes bags for work and ‘normal’ life, My girlfriend loves the design and look so much that she has also bought her college bag from Dakine, and looks really cute carrying her stuff around in it. The girls’ bags look really cool and have an edge to them that makes them nothing like a traditional ‘handbag’, the kind of thing that your mum would carry. Girls can choose from a range of styles and designs depending on their own personal tastes and what they want to use the bag for. There is now even a range of laptop bags available, making carrying your laptop around comfortable and easy. So where can you buy them? Most good sports shops will stock some of the range, but often the best deals are to be had online, sometimes direct from Dakine themselves. Browse around, do your research, decide on the pack that you want and then go for it- you’ll enjoy your purchase for many years to come.
Review submitted by Lindsy Rice