Sorry for the rant, but does anyone else feel this way?

[RaggedHunter]

About a month ago, a buddy of mine bought himself a new pack. This is his first ever "high end" pack. He has always worn a badlands day pack, which is a great pack for his style of hunting and its intended purpose. (I want to be clear I am not bashing on lower end packs at all. I think that they have their place and use, as do high end packs, just like a Tacoma has a different place and use than a diesel truck.)

I won't name the brand of pack that he bought but I will say they are a company that is brand new to the game.

Within a week of buying this pack my buddy is on this companies "pro staff".

Now I don't want to take anything away from my buddy, he is a good friend and all around a pretty good guy.

But for me where the confusion and the frustration lies, is this particular friend is fortunate enough to have a very good piece of private that he and his family hunt. He has good success killing elk most years. I do not have a problem with any of that, hell I wish I could get into the amount of elk that he is able to get into every single year.

That being said, his style of hunting is much different than that of mine and many others that I know. He has never hunted public land, he has never had to pack an animal out, he has never packed a camp and food in on his back, and he has never used a back for backpacking etc. He has simply carried a small day pack with rain gear, water, and a granola bar and been able to get every elk he has shot out whole to the processor.

I am frustrated mostly at the fact that this guy is now promoting, giving pack reviews, and telling people they should buy this pack with absolutely no "resume" so to speak. I don't see how he has any place telling people what they should be buying for backpacks having never packed an animal in a pack, having never hiked a single mile wearing more than a badlands day pack (again, not that there is anything wrong with a badlands day pack), and having never had more than about 20 lbs in this new pack, and having never used any other packs to compare it to.

Quite frankly he has absolutely no right giving pack advice. I have other friends who spend countless days in the field with their packs, put on countless miles, and pack out multiple animals each and every year on their backs. Those are the kinds of guys I want pack advice from. I want advice from guys whose hunting style is similar to that of mine.

It makes me very skeptical of this new pack company. I believe it is very obvious that they are not looking for people to put their packs through the ringer and give good honest feed back that would help them to improve their system. It's pretty clear that they are just looking for guys with a decent social media following to sling their packs.

Also, I don't think it would bother me as bad if they were a reasonably priced pack. But the fact that they are easily as expensive as the any of the "big 3" (EXO, Kifaru, SG) also burns me a little. How can a company jump into the game and immediately think their pack is as good and should cost as much as companies who have been doing it for longer than the owners of this new company have even been alive?

I'm sure this is more common in the industry than I realize, but it really gets my blood boiling. Anyone else have any similar stories or experiences? Not just limited to packs but even with other products?

 

[Jimbob]

A review is only as good as the reviewer.

Tells you something about the company as well.

 

[5MilesBack]

If he never needs a pack for the way he hunts, why did he buy the pack in the first place?

 

[Luvbowhuntn]

Situations like this are why I’m always so hesitant to hear fanboy responses when someone asks for a recommendation on a pack, scope, gear, etc..... there’s a whole lot of “prostaff “ out there in the industry that has no clue about how the product they push actually performs in the real world


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[Ratbeetle]

Why not name the company so people can know to be cautious about any reviews they may read.

 

[elkguide]

A man with a keyboard = EXPERT!

 

[RCB]

IMO you’re overreacting. The owners of that business can employ or associate with whomever they please. So can your friend. That is how the world works. Time will tell if this new company is successful or not.

 

[Read1t48]

The pack company needed some good photos with a pack next to a pile of meat and horns to build quick rapport and credibility in a competitive market. What not a better way than to find people like your buddy? From the pack company's perspective, it's a good fit. It teaches us, in my opinion, to have good discernment when it comes to reviews, etc. I share your frustration, but we live in a world filled with social media influencers and people who make a living doing exactly as you describe.

 

[backcountry_hunter]

I feel like prostaffs are a dying thing (goodness I hope) as hunters now more than ever have such an easy way to gather info and make a decision right for them. I'm generally wary of any company in 2019 that has or feels they need a "prostaff"

That said, I am a capitalist and if they feel it's in their best interest I'm not going to cast stones

 

[*zap*]

Not too many folks hunt the hard way but many folks think that they do. Delusions are quite common today.

 

[Ratbeetle]

IMO you’re overreacting. The owners of that business can employ or associate with whomever they please. So can your friend. That is how the world works. Time will tell if this new company is successful or not.

Which is exactly why OP should name them. A company can associate with whomever they want, but the flip side to that is consumers can choose not to buy products from companies that employ insta-famous posers if they want to.

 

[Poser]

Really not surprising. Personally, I won’t subscribe to or follow people on social media who are product whores as I’m not interested in seeing or reading whored-out content. The desire that the hunting industry and the willingness of the subsequent social community at large has to to whore themselves in this capacity out is entirely pathetic.

 

[deerkiller]

Which is exactly why OP should name them. A company can associate with whomever they want, but the flip side to that is consumers can choose not to buy products from companies that employ insta-famous posers if they want to.

TOTALLY AGREE

 

[Reburn]

So I'm gonna play devils advocate here. (please no lynching required)

The site admin on this forum gets gear to test and review. Sometimes prototypes even. I recently read his review on the SG chillkoot. The writing is done well and clear and concise. However when you get pimped gear to review at a reduced cost or no cost it can blur the lines. Surely anyone can see this with a little critical thinking. A prostaffer generally gets gear at a steep discount as payment for their review. Thus not needing to try another companies gear in a head to head comparison so to speak. Yes I understand some reviews here are probably done at 100% of the authors expense. And some prototypes are for testing only and have to be returned. There are so many people that have blogs and forums and so on and so on that get gear and whatever to review. Or they have website /forum sponsors the send money a different way. Normally I dont see many bad reviews from these websites. You can draw you own conclusions as to why.

With all that being said you have to look at the intergity of the individual as a whole and see if your style of whatever matches their style of whatever.

I remain a member here and read the reviews as I believe most or all of the contributiors to the articles here are legit and arent afraid to sling a bad review. Ryan Avery has clearly stated this in the longrange forum not a week ago about a leupold scope that was sent to him to review. There is a couple reviews here that weren't stellar on products. You have to be the judge of the person and their review as much as the product.

 

[OakStuddedAcres]

NO FREE BACKPACK FOR YOU!

 

[Ryan Avery]

Unfortunately, it's the easiest way for a young company to grow. Find a couple of people on SM to pimp your product.

@robby denning and I talk about this all the time. In our Media Kit, it states "Said company is buying an Ad, not a review." We never tell our writers what to say good or bad. We do make sure the article is factual. We ask writers to have pros and cons, and I much prefer a VS article with a winner. Companies don't like that.

You guys/gals will have to trust me when I say we have walked away from a lot of money, to tell the truth. But the truth is the only thing worth having IMO.

 

[jmez]

"Pro Staff" in a signature line serves a vital function. Let's you know you don't need to bother with that person's "opinion" of a product.

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[Bryanboss429]

When I was researching my new pack, I looked at and researched many companies and packs. Based on what I researched I feel that I made a great choice based on my research. Reputable company and a product that fit my needs and wants. Everyone should do their homework when purchasing ANY high-end product. Platforms like this and other similar ones were invaluable in helping me make my decision. But, all of the answers that I received to my questions, on here and else ware, that helped me make my decision, were someone else's opinion.

Since we are all on here looking for something, answers to questions, classified adds, other individuals that share similar ideas, etc. the OP should

 

[robby denning]

Go read Matt Cashell’s review on the Zeiss Harpia spotter. Far from favorable and they are a sponsor



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[thinhorn_AK]

I bet it was initial ascent lol.