Here’s what Ground Industries themselves has to say:
Finally an ATB travel Bag truly designed for travel. Whether you are going across town or around the world, your board and gear will get to where you want to go safe & sound. The conveniently placed shoulder straps and hip harness make long terminal hikes seem like a walk on the beach. And when you’re ready for a little backcountry riding, the bag quickly converts into a daypack with horizontal board carrying and a Large Stow and Go pocket for all the necessities. The inside of the Bag is lined with a durable insulating layer that keeps your gear cool in the heat & can be washed out with a hose in a pinch. So, throw in your dirty board & gear and all of your messes are safely confined until your next clean up opportunity arrives.
• Travel worthy 600 Dinear Nylon outer.
• Dual function Travel Mode and Day pack Mode.
• Insulated to protect your goods especially composites from heat.
• Heat resistant “Easy Clean” inner.
• Fits 1 complete with wheels on or two completes with wheels off, plus gear.
• Ergonomic shoulder and waist straps for convenient hands free carrying.
But who cares what the dealer says, here’s my own personal review!
What better time to test out the Ground Industries Sherpa Board Bag than on a trip to Alaska. I have to admit, saying goodbye to my boards as I checked them in made me worry a little, but soon I was on the plane and eating strange pretzels. All I could do was wait until landing to find out if my boards survived the trip.
My main concern was the axles. The Sherpa Board Bag is built to hold one board with wheels and gear or two boards with wheels off and some gear. I was packing two boards and the exposed axles made me nervous as I imagined some huge piece of luggage being thrown onto my bag and tweaking something.
The outer material is tough. It looks like you could drag the thing behind your car for miles before it would wear through (no, I haven’t tried that yet). The zipper appears to be pretty bomb proof as well although I avoided testing it out too much as a busted zipper makes for a miserable day.
Overall I was impressed. Ground Industries though of everything when they designed this thing. The interior is lined with some kind of space-age looking reflective stuff that protects the boards from the sun (especially composite decks and kites). The whole bag is made to get as dirty as we do and can be cleaned with hose or strapped to the top of your car in the car wash if you wanted (haven’t tried that one yet either).
The bag is also designed to fold up into thirds and attach to itself, forming a backpack. A roomy outside pocket gives you room for gear and the backpack can easily be wrapped around your board for horizontal hauling if you’re hiking for you ride.
I tested out this backpack because I had my doubts, but it proved to work pretty well. The board sets in the haul position very comfortably and doesn’t cut up you pack like it does on a regular pack. The pocket had enough room to hold all my pads, with the exception of my helmet which I clipped to the outside. Riding with the pack was a little weird as the pack is wider than what I‘m used to, but I got used to it pretty quick.
Finally, as I got off the plan and after waiting anxiously at the baggage claim I found my board in one piece. The Ground Industries Sherpa Board Bag is a good piece of gear. Built to last and not a bad price. If you’re a traveling rider I definitely recommend this product.
