Spectator walking stick seats

[Darrell KSR]

Scenario: You're going to be watching your child play golf tournaments this spring. You're not old enough (and too cheap) to rent golf carts to follow, plus you want the exercise of walking 9-18 holes while following. Plus at soccer matches, you don't like to "sit," but sit/leaning would be ok.

Solution: spectator walking stick seat. Help me pick one. If you use one, or have one that you love, let me know, too.

Choices so far are below. I have tried to find the best price I can find for similar products (for example, the first one is a very common model. They jack up the shipping to $12, but the total price of $32 is around the lowest). The critiques that seem to be common on all of them are that the one legged design is unstable (doh), which doesn't bother me. This is designed for 2-minute "rests," more than sitting. I haven't found any where I thought the reviews were great, even ignoring the "unstable" criticisms. But I don't want to spent $100 for a seat either.

Choice "A" ($32; pretty standard--for outdoor use pretty much only, although that's 99% of what I'd use it for)

https://www.horseloverz.com/product/...eat-stick.html



Choice "B" ($44; kinda like the idea that it folds up, but not sure why. Probably not as comfortable, but more "lean" than "sit," which, for golf spectating, is more than fine.)

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0065O8LVU/...U&linkCode=asn



Choice "C" (about $20-25. This one I can pick up locally anywhere for about that price. I'm not too thrilled with it for a couple of reasons--one, is that it seems very flimsy to me when I sit on it at my weight, and two, I don't like having to straddle the handle, which is the recommended way to sit with it, according to a couple of the directions I read). This is an example of one, but there are plenty of them around.

http://www.golfdiscount.com/charter-...3XihoCxS7w_wcB

[Darrell KSR]

Here's a 4th one. It's similar to Choice "C," but appears a bit more stable.

Choice "D" ($38, unless you buy what appears to be the same item from a medical supply company, then it's $229):

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Cane-Seat-Ad...p2054897.l4275



Here's the link to where they are selling what appears to be the same product for $229:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Drive-Medica...3D151429352677

OK, one more. Unless I find another. Here's one that also appears a bit mroe substantial, although it looks like the height it lower than I like.

Choice "E" ($70--ouch. That probably kills it for me)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Portable-Wal...98661101&rt=nc

[Darrell KSR]

Hunters?

Choice "F" ($60)

http://www.gandermountain.com/modper...-Seat&i=787874



Or this one for $40

http://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/game...703?N=29812144

[dan_bgblue]

Please stay away from the tripod seats. Everyone I have seen in person is very lightly built and wobbly. Seems as if they should be fairly stable but I have never tested one that is.

If you stick with something like this you will not be disappointed, and they are very light weight, and fold down into a very manageable package for transport.

http://www.amazon.com/Quik-Chair-Fol...351467&sr=1-10

[Darrell KSR]

I think I will use that as the final nail in the coffin for those tripod ones, too. At least without seeing it in person, I've never seen one I'm comfortable with either.

I can't go the camp style chair though. Odds are I will be carrying, folding and unfolding many times in a few hours. Need a quick fold thing only.

By the way, my wife says I obsess over purchases. I think she's cuckoo.

[CitizenBBN]

there's a model sold by a company in San Francisco that is well built and will all but guarantee you don't fall off of it.

[Darrell KSR]

there's a model sold by a company in San Francisco that is well built and will all but guarantee you don't fall off of it.

I stopped reading after San Francisco. I feared what would follow.

[dan_bgblue]

I can't go the camp style chair though. Odds are I will be carrying, folding and unfolding many times in a few hours. Need a quick fold thing only.

The ones I have only require that I grasp the arms and pull up and toward the center to collapse the chair and do the same motion with the arms in reverse to fold it all the way out. It is a 5 second take down and maybe 10 secs max to set up. It does require another 15 seconds or so to store it in the carry bag, but unless you are hiking a long way between stops, I would just carry it sans bag. Unless I am trying to get away from a fire, avoid an oncoming vehicle, etc., then the 5 to 10 sec interval is the same interval as stopping to take a picture or brush the dirt and grass off my jeans because I had been sitting on the ground.

[Darrell KSR]

The chair just doesn't work for this, Dan. It will probably be used 3 or 4 times per hole, for 9-18 holes, over a period of 2.5-5 hours. I kinda want it to be as inconspicuous, quiet and quick as possible. Won't be used but a minute or two at a time.

I guess the other thing is the getting up and sitting down each time. Because it will be done as many as 50-100 times a day, I think it would be better to have something that didn't require you to sit all the way down, and get all the way up. It's funny as I get older how those things make a difference. I remember my Dad, who was in the insurance business and used to get in and out of his car many times a day, would always look for a car that wasn't low to the ground, because it was more tiring getting out of the car multiple times a day.

This thing is basically designed to be a better option than leaning against a tree .

[dan_bgblue]

Check this one out. It is pricey, but the reviews are really good and you can choose from 4 different seat heights. I found it by googling "photographer travel seats". IF I were going to buy one, this would be the one I would get

http://www.amazon.com/Walkstool-Comf...ustomerReviews

[Darrell KSR]

You, my friend, are brilliant. I don't know that I want to spend that money, but that is by far the best device to fit the need I've seen.

[Darrell KSR]

Check this one out. It is pricey, but the reviews are really good and you can choose from 4 different seat heights. I found it by googling "photographer travel seats". IF I were going to buy one, this would be the one I would get

http://www.amazon.com/Walkstool-Comf...ustomerReviews

I'm 6'0 tall. I want to sit high (that's another reason I was interested in the monopod type "lean" design). I think the 75cm (30") design will be too tall, though, but the 65cm (26") work fine.

I may have to go stool shopping in a store to check out how the sizes would work. I read one review that said the stool "droops" a little (makes sense that the seat would sag; otherwise it would be darn uncomfortable) about an inch, so it might be 25" vs 29" instead. My guess is that the 65cm design will be stretching it as far as I want to stretch for comfort.

I saw the 65 and 75 cm ones are both rated for 550 pounds; both listed on the company's website as extreme comfort (versus the 45 cm and 55 cm ones, which had some other adjective that wasn't quite as comfortable).

I did see they offered a "basic" model in 50 and 60cm for about $45. I'd just hate to get that, save a few bucks, and not be happy with something I plan to use hundreds of times (over the course of a few tournaments by itself).

[dan_bgblue]

I read that the comfort version offers more surface area to park your butt, but I have not found out how many more sq centimeters it has than the basic model.

[CitizenBBN]

You're a lawyer and a teacher. Get a couple of interns or clerks or students to just litter-bear you around.

[Darrell KSR]

You're a lawyer and a teacher. Get a couple of interns or clerks or students to just litter-bear you around.

Lol. I'll consider it.

In the meantime, I still haven't ordered. I really want to sit high, almost standing, but want it to be comfortable. I sure wish I could see it in person first.

Read where a 5'9 crossing guard said the 26" model was perfect for him to sit up high, but that if you were taller, you might want the 30" model. I'm taller, but only 3" taller, and wouldn't want it to be uncomfortable.

I guess I need to go to a store with bar stools (or better yet, a bar) and a tape measure.

[dan_bgblue]

Darrell, I am 6' tall also. My legs are a bit longer than most 6 footers as I wear 34" inseam pants. A 30 inch seat would be perfect for me if I just wanted to kind of use it as a prop when I bent my knees a couple inches, rather than actually use it as a sit down seat. It might be the perfect height for what you want to do with it.

[Darrell KSR]

Darrell, I am 6' tall also. My legs are a bit longer than most 6 footers as I wear 34" inseam pants. A 30 inch seat would be perfect for me if I just wanted to kind of use it as a prop when I bent my knees a couple inches, rather than actually use it as a sit down seat. It might be the perfect height for what you want to do with it.

I appreciate the thoughts--that's exactly what I want to use it as, but I'm longer bodied, shorter-legged. I'm 32" inseam. Probably 30" as well (especially since it purportedly "droops" an inch), but I would like to be able to crouch just a little while having my feet flat. I *think* I could, but I think I'm going to be a closer call than you would be.

[CitizenBBN]

litter bearing is sounding simpler all the time. Just make sure your t*** don't fall off. (bonus if anyone gets that reference)

[dan_bgblue]

It sounds like 26 inches would likely be a perfect fit for what you want. You would likely "sit" on that height stool, but you would sit high and your feet would definitely be flat on the ground and your thighs would be pointed down, not flat like they would be in most chairs.

Good luck

[Darrell KSR]

Dan, I ordered the 26" one. Thank you for that find--I think it is exactly what I was looking for. I think you're right; I'll sit at that height, but it'll still sit up high, which will make the view still good and getting up from it many times in a day of spectating and walking pretty easy.

I took a quick peek at the 24" "basic" model--could get that one for about 1/2 the price--but ultimately decided it was something I'd be using every week; the "comfort" model is built to hold a minimum of 550 pounds and is 80% larger seat than other similar type stools (as opposed to 20% larger that the "basic" one was done), and had more durable rubber feet. Plus it was 24", and I'm already compromising a little to drop to 26. I think the basic one would have been a great find (it holds 385 pounds, so it's substantive as well), too. Both were considerably better than anything I had located.

Of course, I just ordered it, so my opinion could change when it arrives--but I doubt it. It takes me forever to make up my mind on anything, but it's usually a good decision eventually.

Except for squirrel evictor light installation. That's always a bad decision.

[dan_bgblue]

Please let us know what you think of it after you get o try it out a bit. Christmas is only 331 day away

[Darrell KSR]

Please let us know what you think of it after you get o try it out a bit. Christmas is only 331 day away

I will. To me, it's an extravagant treat, but for any of us who enjoy outdoor spectator sports, or photography, or hiking, etc. I think we will get our moneys worth if it lives up to expectations.

[Darrell KSR]

This isn't seat-specific, but received an email that it has already been shipped and is expected to arrive tomorrow. (I ordered it Tuesday night when I posted). That's just the regular shipping and no two-day shipping or other special shipping method. Purchased through the Amazon link/

[dan_bgblue]

Not unusual for Amazon. If the item is being sold directly by them it may have been in a shipping center within 100 miles of Birmingham.

[Darrell KSR]

Will wait until I walk 9 holes of golf with it before detailed report. Will say the 26" height is perfect for me. I do sit with my knees bent at a 90 degree angle and feet flat. While I first wanted to have the angle be steeper than that, it still sits you up high. The seat is very large, but it is a tripod stool, so if someone is expecting comfort of a regular chair, you will be disappointed. This is for a few minutes here or there.

Will follow up with more after it gets used in "game conditions," but I'll add this. My daughter asked me how much I paid for it. I had her guess, and she guessed way low. You do get the feeling, if you are frugal, that you overpaid. But I'm still confident it is the best option for what I needed, so you pay what it costs, within reason.

[Darrell KSR]

I tossed it in the back of my car for possible use at a show choir competition where it becomes fire Marshall violating, standing room only. But I didn't need it, so can't give much more.

I have just played with it a little to get used to it. What I am going to do is to take it out of the bag (decent carry pouch, but nothing special), then extend the legs, let them click in place, and carry it that way. It's still small, very lightweight, and easy to carry - but this way I won't be constantly extending the legs, then retracting them, possible several times in a hole or two.

I have sat on it at home from time to time just fooling around with it, and the quality just really sneaks up on you. I have figured out how to sit in it (triangle seat, you get the drift) and it is comfortable enough, but you would not want this to replace your chair you use to watch a child's baseball game--unless you are a pacer. At my son's soccer games, despite us owning 1,274 of the camp style chairs everybody owns, I never use one because I stand and pace during the game. Well, this time I will take it for a 5 minute sit here and there.

More next week (I think) when they play their first golf match of the season.

[Darrell KSR]

Have used it 3 times now.

1) fixing dishwasher upper rack. Easier than stooping over. Used about 15 minutes.
2) while watching 90 minutes of soccer match. Rarely got up, because the game was at Samford University, and our assistant coach is the head coach at Samford, and opened the press box for us because it was so cold. The chairs were too low to have a full view of the field, so it was ideal. But press box wasn't conducive to walking the field sidelines as I normally do, so a lot of sitting. Comfortable enough, but not meant for prolonged sitting.

3) I'm sitting on it now in the lobby next to an auditorium where I've been for 12 hours and counting today. Auditorium is overflowing, violating fire marshal rules I am sure. They have a video monitor in the lobby, but you have to stand. I've been on this for 20 minutes, and nice to get off my feet. Was up at 4:30 this morning, and I'm tired even before arriving here almost 4 hours later.

Next test will be in Prattville, Alabama in 9 days, where I will walk 18 holes of golf with my daughter's high school team. That's about 5 or 6 miles, and will probably take about 6 hours to finish. Will update then.

[Darrell KSR]

By the way, I sold one tonight.

Stranger came up to me and asked me where I got it. I gave you credit for the recommendation, let him sit on it, and gave him the name of the stool and told him I got it on Amazon.

[dan_bgblue]

Do we get to split the commission?

[Darrell KSR]

Do we get to split the commission?

Check is in the mail.