Product Review: Athalon Snowboard Bag
If you’re considering getting an Athalon bag, allow me to help you make your decision. You should probably go with a different brand. My experience with this ‘Made in Srilanka’ product suggested that the bag is of very poor quality.
As mentioned in this previous post (where I incorrectly referred to the brand as “Athlon“), I bought an Athalon bag on Craig’s List at the last minute before leaving on a trip. I actually bought two of them, one for myself and one for a friend. Both were the basic bags, the 357 model. I picked up a tan and a green bag.
If all you want is a bag to store your board in, the bag I have would be fine. However, we took ours on a bus trip; thus we packed padding around our boards for protection and filled the bag with gear. We did not over pack our bags such that we put stress on the seams when closing it - we just used the extra space. At first, the bags seemed great. In fact, my bag held tight for the entire trip.
It was my friends bag that failed. The bag tore along seams in three different places. As far as the bag’s contents, I’ll quote my friend, “All that was in it was 1 board, 1 set of bindings, and 2 pairs of boots. A few light items, like goggles, but nothing else of any notable weight.”
We bought the bags second hand, but never used. Perhaps they were stored poorly and suffered dry rot or some other reasonable explanation I’m overlooking… but it seems very much that these bags are simply made of lower grade materials and are not designed for a long life. This, actually, surprises me consider that the Athalon website boasts a 5 year warranty on the bag. I’ll encourage my friend to try to get it replaced; however, neither of us have receipts to prove the date of purchase and have no idea how old the bags actually are.
Ultimately, I’m going to purchase a higher quality bag. If you’re in the market for a bag, I hear good things about Dakine. I’m also gonna check out Burton’s lineup. I’ve talked to a few people who own Burton Lockers, and they say it can’t be beat for trips as you can fit everything you need for the entire trip for two into a single bag. When I say everything, I don’t just mean your gear - but everything you’d bring with you on a trip from clothes to bathroom supplies.
For airports, I think wheels would be awesome. At the very least, I wouldn’t purchase another bag without some good padding. Otherwise, I’ll be wrapping my boards every time I pack my gear.
On a 1 to 10 scale, I give the Athalon 357 Snowboard Bag a 3.
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