Is Green Gear Better?
March 27, 2008
I like outdoor gear… a lot. I like to research it, compare it, test it, talk about it… you get the idea. Right now there are countless new and innovative outdoor products, and it’s exciting to see that many of these new options weigh less, work better, and are more eco-friendly than previous versions.
I’m really excited to see outdoor gear companies researching and producing green alternatives that actually work. I embrace eco-friendly products and the companies that make them, but here’s the caveat, I’m not going to spend my hard earned money on a piece of gear if it isn’t completely functional and durable.
Last week I returned a brand new Big Agnes Copper Spur 3 tent that arrived at my house with three small holes in it. This particular tent is made with new DAC poles (eco-friendly anodizing process) and has an awesome list of features, not to mention it’s a 2008 Backpacker Magazine Editors’ Choice winner. I was drawn to the tent based on great specs, and the fact that Big Agnes is focusing on environmentally responsible products. I’m sure the faulty tent I received was a fluke, and despite being a bit apprehensive I’ll probably give Big Agnes another chance.
My point is this, with all the “green” marketing hype I hope that companies aren’t sacrificing quality for the sake of “going green”. The green concept is still very controversial, and many people see it as just another trend. For green products to be viewed as truly viable options, they need to be as good or better than their traditional counterparts.
Outside Magazine recently published a list of outdoor gear companies that are eco-friendly. You can read about them here.
March 28, 2008 at 11:00 am
Green Adventurer,
Thank you for purchasing one of our tents. As one of the co-owners of Big Agnes I was of course not happy to read your post today but I did want to respond. I’m sure your tent is either in or about to enter or warranty/ repair department so I’m curious to hear what they say after inspection. We take great pride in both our product quality and our customer service and we generally hear raves from customers regarding both. In fact, our product quality rates among the highest in our category at one of our larger specialty outdoor retail customers with many locations. Anyway, I also wanted to respond to the assumption that green gear may not always be of the same quality. The Copper Spur tent series does uses poles with a more environmentally friendly anodizing process but there are no other components that are specifically more environmentally friendly such as recycled fabrics, etc… With regard to our products using a higher content of recycled materials such as our Skinny Fish, Ripple Creek or other bags (both are made with 96% recycled components) or our Diversion Insulated Air Core Pads, we have had no quality issues to date. Finally, I would add that we not also source the highest quality materials and work with the best manufacturing facilities for our product categories but we have a third party quality assurance agent that inspects production runs. Let me know if you have any other questions! Have a great year in the outdoors.
Len
March 28, 2008 at 8:10 pm
Len,
Thank you for your reply and for providing additional information about Big Agnes products. Although I was disappointed when my Copper Spur 3 arrived with holes in it, I understand that this was probably a rare occurrence, and most likely a result of shipping/packing damage. REI (where I bought the tent) returned it without issue, but unfortunately did not have a replacement in stock. I opted not to purchase a tent made by another manufacturer because of the excellent features of the Copper Spur. In my original article I indicated that I would most likely give this tent another chance, and I do plan on ordering one again once it is back in stock.
Again, I appreciate you taking the time to comment here regarding Big Agnes products, which in my opinion says a great deal about your company and the accessibility of your customer service. I look forward to trying out the Copper Spur as well as other Big Agnes products in the near future.
Chris
April 3, 2008 at 2:39 pm
Well, my second Copper Spur 3 arrived via UPS today and everything appears to be good. No holes in this one! REI is backordered on this tent until kingdom come, but fortunately their Seattle store had one in its inventory, which I promptly purchased. I’m really looking forward to getting this tent out for some trail time. Stay tuned for a review in the near future.
Chris