Gear Diary’s NoBC to CES for Haiti Plunge- the Packing Episode

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Don’t forget: This challenge is benefiting The Haiti Plunge – They are building a road and a new medical clinic among other things in a rural part of Haiti. Please take a second and support them HERE.

Today is the day when the SCOTTEVEST No Baggage Challenge for Charity becomes a reality and moves into high gear. Yes, tomorrow morning Larry and I both fly out for Las Vegas and the Consumer Electronics Show 2011. That means today, Sunday, January 2, 2011, is the day when we need to pack our clothes into our luggage. Scratch that, not into our luggage but rather we need to pack our clothes and electronics into our jackets. Yes, that’s the deal with a No Baggage Challenge for Charity. You can only bring whatever it is you can actually carry on your person in your SCOTTEVEST clothing.

The process of figuring out how to make this a reality has been an interesting one. It required both Larry and me to put far more thought into the process of packing than we normally would. Larry is one of those people who will bring at least one complete outfit per day when he is traveling and I’m one of those people who does the same but often it ends up only using half of what I brought.

So here’s a quick rundown of some of the decisions we made along the way and how it will all fit together.

This is the first official No Baggage Challenge for Charity Gear Diary CES Edition video post.

Dan

Larry

Technology…

So let’s first talk about technology. Last year when I went to CES I brought my iPhone, iPod touch, a few external batteries, a medium-sized camera, a video camera, and my 13 inch MacBook Pro. The combined weight of all of that gear was probably in the neighborhood of six or 7 pounds since the MacBook Pro weighs 4 1/2 pounds on its own. This year I have the advantage of having an 11 inch MacBook air which weighs just over 2 pounds. So right there I have a savings of 2 1/2 pounds. Ideally, that is, if I were bringing luggage with me, I would bring up my 13 inch MacBook Pro, my iPad, my iPhone, and my Canon G11 in camera. The G11 is amazing and shoots great pictures and high definition video. Unfortunately the No Bag Challenge means that I have to pare down things significantly. So I’m bringing a Samsung Galaxy Tab in place of the iPad. This device is half the physical size and about half the weight. It is a good device for traveling light. In addition I’m going to bring my iPhone and my iPod touch and use them at is my camera and my video cameras. No, the quality won’t be nearly as good but it will certainly do that and since this is a No Baggage Challenge it’s the right choice. In addition, last year we had a big issue with regard to connectivity and the battery life on our devices. The signal was so weak in the Convention Center that the iPhone’s were constantly searching to connect and it sucked down the battery quite rapidly. The only thing that saved us was Judie’s Verizon mifi. This year I’m bringing an unlocked version of the device and will use a T-Mobile Sim card. That means that, at any given time, it’s likely that one or more of us will be able to connect to the network. In addition I’m going to bring my iPhone in Mophie Juice Pack Air battery and bring an additional extra battery. The reason for this is quite obvious — I need the extra juice. I also have streamlined the process of what chargers to bring so that I can bring as few as possible. Remember, one of the main goals here is to reduce the redundancy that we all usually have when we pack.

The smart choice would be to leave the MacBook air behind. It would cut down on a large bulky item and cut down over 2 pounds of weight as I go without luggage. That would be the smart move but I’m not that bright. It’s coming with me one way or the other. That’s about it for technology except for the fact that I have wired each of the outer garment’s a pair of its own headphones so I don’t need to swap headphones back and forth. I’ll certainly miss my iPad for the next period of time but it’s for a good reason — the charity were supporting is worth while and hopefully as we chronicle our journey you’ll choose to support Haiti Plunge.

Let’s turn our attention to clothing and toiletries.

Outer garments- As I mentioned in a video on Friday my plan was to bring the 5.0 Fleece as a vest and use it for my gear and to use the new Revolution jacket as my suitcase. The reason I’m choosing the Revolution is that I love the style, the fact that it is waterproof, the fact that it has plenty of pockets and, since it has zip off sleeves I can use it as a vest as well. I’m also going to wear one of the TEC shirts. This is a big of an extravagance in light of the No Baggage Challenge but I love the TEC shirt and I think having it with me will give me the option to look a little bit less casual if I have certain meetings that would’ve normally have me inclined to dress up a bit. One change is that I won’t bring the 5.0 Fleece but the old Evolution in its place. The reason? The larger iPad pocket of the Evolution fits my MBA.

I’m going to wear one complete outfit. Scott’s Flex Cargo Pants are among the best I’ve ever worn. They are super comfortable and have tons of space if you choose to use it. Even if you don’t choose to use the pockets to store gear the pants are fantastic.

I’m going to wear one Q-zip long sleeve shirt as my upper layer with the tech shirt on over it. I’m bringing a few pair of the new SeV boxers — love them — but I won’t be wearing a pair on the plane. Instead I’ll be wearing a pair of SLIX I purchased the other day. One of the earlier no baggage participants highly recommended them and they are as good as he said. I’m bringing a second pair are cargo pants and another Q-zip.. Those are the “must brings the art”. I have an additional wish list that I have created of things I would like to bring if I ask of her I have a space and can add them in without looking rediculous. On that “wish list” are more shirts and some extra socks.

I wish I had enough room in the eye bring a third pair of pants but it doesn’t look like that will be possible unless I want to overstuffed things and that’s really not the point of this challenge.

As far as toiletries go I’m bringing very little since our hotel should be able to provide me with pretty much everything I need. I’m cutting my hair super short before tomorrow morning so I don’t really need shampoo just soap and we’ll get razors in Vegas. I’m bringing a toothbrush (Scott recommends the pen pocket for holding it) and of course my medication since that is a “must-have” no matter where I I go and what I’m doing. Finally I’m going to bring two extra wrist braces since they don’t dry as quickly as the other travel clothing that I’m bringing.

Final items:  a hat, a pair of sunglasses, my reading and

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That’s it folks

And we’re off….

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About the Author

Dan Cohen
Having a father who was heavily involved in early laser and fiber-optical research, Dan grew up surrounded by technology and gadgets. Dan’s father brought home one of the very first video games when he was young and Dan remembers seeing a “pre-release” touchtone phone. (When he asked his father what the “#” and “*” buttons were his dad said, “Some day, far in the future, we’ll have some use for them.”) Technology seemed to be in Dan’s blood but at some point he took a different path and ended up in the clergy. His passion for technology and gadgets never left him. Dan is married to Raina Goldberg who is also an avid user of Apple products. They live in New Jersey with their golden doodle Nava.

6 Comments on "Gear Diary’s NoBC to CES for Haiti Plunge- the Packing Episode"

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  5. Reading – Gear Diary’s NoBC to CES for Haiti Plunge- the Packing Episode

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