About the only ones not faster than tourists are the new independant aid workers. They'll kling to 500lbs of well drilling equipment that they cant move off a mountain until long after the ants have removed the meat off their bones, and wonder in the afterlife why everyone just shakes their heads at them.

I have to agree with you guys, I took a look at my kit and realized I got a little foamy over my Kifaru pack (aka: heroin w a frame and shoulder straps). I also realized that the entirety of my kit is from different makers. RBR, BH, TAG, Eagle, AMK, BW, and even some locally made stuff from some junk merchant in Kyrgyzstan that just seems to keep working. So, not everything is US made, and it's not all even the best, but it works for me over and over.
I guess that's what counts in the end......but If it was legal, I'd marry that ruck! LOL!
Mike