Hi everyone, Paul from Arrowhead Equipment here, been getting a number of hits on my site from the links the Bill posted above so thought I would check out the forum. And like Bill said I do use the Dixon Roller Pack, have had a test one here for me to play with since November and really like it. So if anyone has any questions about how it works feel free to ask me. I plan to get out in the next week or two here in Idaho in some very rugged terrain and show just how much the DRP can handle. Initially most folks think it would limit the options that they have for backpacking, but most of us that have used one find that if anything more options are available. Any way let me know if I can help with some first hand actual experience.

That's just great...

Myself, I am a gear junkie and love shiny, new inventions. At the same time extremely conservative about changing even the tiniest detail of tried and true concepts. So, my first gut reactions may have been a bit to harsh.... I love the way you think out of the box with this rollerpack.


Two questions:

1) I am guestimating the rollerpack has about the same offroad capabilities and limitations as a bike. True or false?


2) Any real life experience with the ski kit used with snow shoes or skis?

Actually of road/of trail is not hard at all with the Dixon Roller Pack.

Here are a few videos of the DRP in action. This first one is of Bob Dixon the inventor showing it in cation over some rocky sections.

Bob Dixon over rocks


And here is another guy from Hammock Forums and his first trip with his last fall.
Mule's Browning Hill Trip

And here is one done by one of my customers on the first trip he did with his--2 days after it got to him.
Chad rolling the DRP

I do plan to get out and take some pictures and video of the DRP on some very rugged off trail hiking in the next week or two as the weather up here is finally getting better.


On question #2 --I have not had the chance to try the Ski my self, but have talked with Dixon a fair bit about it. He has done a lot of testing with the Ski and said it works great with snow shoes or just on foot over all sorts of terrain.

Hope that helps, but let me know if you have more questions.

Me three. I think a single fatbike style bike wheel would be optimal here. The upside is bike wheels are light and strong. The fatbike styles would work even better on varied terrain.

Pictures of various fatbikes:
http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=497766

Single wheel bike trailers:
http://www.extrawheel.com/

Fat bikes in action (it looks like they are having fun!):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dg6imj-k39g

-john

Not to ruffle any feathers but the larger wheel would change the performance in a different way with the DRP. Raising the Center of gravity and changing the way the wheel takes the load. In the current design the majority of the weight is taken by the wheel. raising the wheel connection would balance the load more evenly between between the user and the wheel. The opposite of what a user wants. Several factors play into it but at current most users feel less than 50% of the load with the DRP. Mule (the guy in the second video that I linked above) posted his pack weights over at Hammock Forums a couple days ago for a group hike, he weighed the full DRP with frame and all came to 40 pounds, then he connected the waist belt and weighed himself, he only gained 15 pounds. The lever action that is employed by keeping the load on the small wheel would change as you increase the wheel size. As you may see in the videos the lower part of the frame of the DRP is made to act as a drag skid should you cross any obstacle larger than the wheel can handle. This comes into play when stepping over and around large rocks, logs steps, or anything else that may get in the way when hiking. When Skidding the load is still counterbalanced off of the user and you do not feel the weight on your self.

I have a couple of questions for you,

1. Can you put a normal pack on there instead of the duffel bag arrangement. For Ex. Osprey argon 110 ( http://www.ospreypacks.com/Packs/ArgonSeriesMens ) and how does it perform with both big and small packs?

2. How is the stabilizability if your load is not dead center of the unit. (some packs it is hard to get everything centered on the axis of the pack)

3. Have you tried it in any parks on trails where a ranger had saw you and let you use it.

4. The warranty is for 90 days on a product pushing $300, my question is why the short warranty,and the durability of the product. The warranty is telling me that the guy who makes this is not sure of the durability of the product. To build one in parts is nothing compared to the price so the warranty should reflect the confidence of the product.

5. What is the max weight of the design. I carry a lot of water on board and this is where this would come in to a advantage for me. Water is my biggest weight killer.

Color me skeptical, however my initial thoughts are that this rollerpack is best suited for well established and cleared trails only.

Sorry but that one video link of the man going over "rocky terrain" with the rollerpack is a bit misleading....I can foresee issues going across larger boulders and boulder fields etc. All it would take for that wheel to slide off a bigger rock sideways too much and causing a person to loose their balance enough to have him/her suddenly do a head or face plant...

I can also see problems where any trail that has mud sections that dragging this loaded through the mud will only cause that little skinny wheel to sink in like an anchor. What about climbing over/under downed trees on a trail?

Also it would be a hindrance, especially this time of year when many trails that start at lower elevation only to encounter snow at the higher elevations then drop down a bit where there is no snow again. Continuous switching from rollerpack mode to full backpack mode would get old fast under this condition or any of the above conditions I mentioned above.

Another poster mentioned the 90 day warranty. Why such a short time for a product that appears to be fairly well constructed? Most people would only get out for a few days of actual hiking within that 90 days and certainly not every time with the rollerpack.

90 days is very short. Many quality outdoor products have a lifetime weather, sometimes excluding outright abuse.

My heart rate is not increasing when contemplating this product