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Klymit Revolutionizes Lightweight Backpacking with Gas-Filled Universal Load Lifters

Klymit's Universal Load Lifters are compatible with all backpacks
Klymit’s Universal Load Lifters are compatible with all backpacks

Klymit, makers of the award winning Inertia X Frame sleeping pad and a leading outdoor product manufacturer, has announced new Universal Load Lifter technology that can lighten the loads carried in daypacks and backpacks by up to 40 per cent. Compatible with all brands of backpacks, Klymit’s Universal Load Lifters attach to the shoulder straps of any backpack and offset heavy loads by reducing the amount of weight that hikers need to carry.

Code-named “Jetson”, Klymit’s Universal Load Lifters are filled with a patented formulation of NobleTek Gas including Helium and Neon, combined with a patented synthetic catalyst that increases their lifting power by a factor of 20, making a 50 pound backpack feel like it weighs 30 pounds and a 30 pound load feel like it weighs 18 pounds.

“Klymit’s Universal Load Lifters finally make it possible for everyone to carry a lightweight backpack without the need to learn new skills or replace their existing camping and hiking equipment,”  says Will Reitvelt, senior gear editor for Backpackinglight.com. I like the fact that “users can deflate the Load Lifters when traveling and reinflate them as needed using the same portable gas canisters used in Klymit’s other products.”

“We spent several years perfecting the shape of Klymit’s Universal Load Lifters,” says Klymit’s lead designer Max Maxfield, a worldwide authority on inflatable products, using wind tunnels to optimize the amount of lift and wind resistence that could be provided. We tried the star shape after studying how starfish float and propel themselves in the ocean despite strong currents and turbulance and were surprised at how well it performed at different termperatures and barometric pressure levels. ”

“Klymit is one of the the most innovative outdoor product manufacturers in the world,” says founder Nate Adler, harnessing cutting edge science and technology to create unique outdoor products that perform at new levels. The recipient of numerous industry awards, the company is known for its expertise in manufacturing inflatable products, gas science, seam welding, and body mapping technology.

Klymit’s new Universal Load Lifters will be available this Spring 2013 through major outdoor retailers.

April Fools.

For more silliness:

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  9. Jetboil Announces Breakthrough BioBoil Camping Stove and Power Recharging Products
  10. Klymit Revolutionizes Lightweight Backpacking with Gas-Filled Universal Load Lifters
  11. Gossamer Gear Announces iGorilla Backpack with iPad Pocket and Kinetic Energy Recharger

25 comments

  1. Thank you, I got a good laugh! What a perfect start for the day!

  2. What colors do the lifters come in?

  3. Happy Fools Day, Phillip!

  4. There are days I could certainly use these! Thanks for the smile.

  5. Practical and stylish!

  6. And they have the added advantage of making lost hikers more visible to rescuers!!

  7. I have used these, but, I cannot say they are too good. They have a tendency to float away at rest stops and in the evening if you happen to forget to deflate them after getting into camp. Racing through the woods in persuit of your sleeping bag, is not a real good thing. Especially when your map & compass are attached to the pack. I quickly learned that a tether was as usefull as a bear line. But, I only lost one pack that way. If anybody finds the rest of my gear, drop me a line.
    As far as bear bags, go, they seem to eliminate the need. I watched a largish black bear repeatedly grab the tether, pull, let go, then repeat the process. After several hours of this he just collapsed from exhaustion. But, he kept me awake most of the night with his perisistance. Luckily, he was a tired, little bear by morning, and easily scared off, acording to my wife. (‘Corse, I usually wake before dawn not to have to see her, either…poor bear.)

  8. Can it be used with hammocks? If so, does it come equipped with an anchor?!

  9. If only……

  10. My son and I had fun with this concept a few years ago after finding a half-inflated balloon that had settled on to a section of the AT. Hope they offer different colors so I can color coordinate with my pack!

  11. I have found the remains of these “Gas-Filled Universal Load Lifters” on bushwacks a couple of times.

  12. Just Your Average Hiker

    Well done!

  13. How did you POSSIBLY keep a straight face for that picture?

  14. How well does that work with the Gossamer Gear iGorilla backpack you reviewed last year? Will the kinetic charger still function?

    Klymit could expand the concept into an instant deploy model combining technology such as is used with airbags and laptop hard drives. A wireless accelerometer could be swallowed and if it detects free fall, blow the bags to add lift and cushion the fall. If I had that Saturday when I fell hiking Elk Mountain with the grandkids, I wouldn’t have all these lumps and bruises and be wearing a wrist brace.

    Of course, in some cases, the accelerometer could be voided at the onset of the fall, and backcountry use regulations might specify retracing steps to the top of the precipice to recover and pack it out in a Ziploc bag.

  15. So glad they come in purple. I will buy any gear item, so long as it is purple.

  16. helium is a non-renewable resource. go with hydrogen, taking extra care while smoking or hiking thunderstorms

  17. Hydrogen is also less dense so gram counters can get more lift per unit volume. As peabody3000 pointed out, care is needed so as not to go Hindenburg in the backcountry–Smokey Bear would not be pleased!

  18. If I had enough of those, I could top out half dome before lunch.

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