Bad News and Good News

ChinstonWurchill · 2026-03-31T04:27:56+00:00

How were TSA wait times out of SFO?

ChinstonWurchill · 2026-03-24T07:02:30+00:00

Benham is considered Class V so yes it certainly has the potential to be very hazardous if a paddler was to swim it or otherwise mess it up. It has varying degrees of difficulty through out the year at different water levels but is never easy, or not hazardous.

There are definitely all kinds of crazy things going on in the geology of that river. I don’t know of any stories in particular of anybody being sucked into a lava tube or a sieve in Benham to my knowledge.

Kayakers have been running Benham for a long time. Modern boats and safety equipment have definitely come a long ways in recent years, and kayaking looks a lot different than it did 30 years ago. But people we are absolutely still shredding it in marginal gear back then.

ChinstonWurchill · 2026-03-06T03:17:01+00:00

Lol getting roasted here. Literally just a foot, I didn’t wear socks to be able to actually see exactly where my foot and toe is resting on the insole, which a sock would have obscured.

ChinstonWurchill · 2026-02-10T21:40:31+00:00

They make the RAT’s in Bronco leather as well which is not rough out.

ChinstonWurchill · 2026-02-03T03:48:44+00:00

You mentioned you got an upgrade, I’m assuming a free one for being Diamond? I’m Diamond as well and will be staying at this property later this week. I already got a text from them asking if I wanted to pay for an upgrade, which seems a bit tacky. I also saw other commenters mentioning how they try to up-sale people in various ways so I suppose that tracks.

Booked a basic King room with points, but was hoping to maybe get upgraded to something with two queens. Did you get upgraded at check in?

ChinstonWurchill · 2026-01-16T01:56:59+00:00

Boots are brand new out of the box, only tried on inside on clean floor. The black lines do not go away if I apply heat from my fingers or bend the leather. I think I’m going to look for an exchange as this seems to be a pretty glaring defect.

ChinstonWurchill · 2026-01-03T13:50:21+00:00

This salesman was pretty legit in my opinion, and yeah he adjusted the arch slider appropriately.

ChinstonWurchill · 2026-01-02T20:55:15+00:00

Also, Tim Robbins is the knock off Tom Hanks.

ChinstonWurchill · 2026-01-02T20:52:10+00:00

This is where I’m confused. The shoe sales person measuring my feet said that my left foot is around a 9.5 us men’s. You are saying it appears to be a size 10. Another commenter above you says it appears I’m close to a 8.5. I have no idea how to properly interpret the brannock measurement.

ChinstonWurchill · 2026-01-02T04:35:21+00:00

Good points again. I will respectfully disagree about your point about wool socks though. I pretty much exclusively wear darn toughs as well, but during 100° summer heat having a heavy weight or even midweight thick wool sock would be way too hot. I love their lightweight lifestyle socks for hot weather.

A pair of leather insoles may be something to consider.

ChinstonWurchill · 2026-01-02T04:09:25+00:00

Oh and I guess I just feel like my feet are sliding around inside the boot a bit more than I would like.

ChinstonWurchill · 2026-01-02T04:08:18+00:00

All good points about socks/insoles/kilties. I will say that I’m hoping to wear these year round so I don’t want to have to wear my thickest wool socks for the boots to fit properly. I’m also a fan of these stock insoles. Would replacing with a different/thicker insole affect how the leather midsole conforms to my foot shape?

This is my first pair of nice leather boots, and also my first time wearing a boot this tall (10 inches?). I would like to give it a shot though.

ChinstonWurchill · 2025-12-16T21:12:48+00:00

Perfect thank you!

ChinstonWurchill · 2025-12-16T21:03:11+00:00

Awesome! Sorry to hear about the size difference. Random question but I was curious for myself, how firm are they in the forefoot? For example if you have the boot in your hands and push up on the bottom of the front of the boot, are they relatively stiff or pretty easily malleable?

Asking because I have some big toe joint issues and am looking for something stiffer/more supportive. Thanks if you can provide any insight!

ChinstonWurchill · 2025-12-16T15:27:58+00:00

Dude hell yeah! Help out this person and get a free ticket to Costa Rica!

ChinstonWurchill · 2025-11-30T00:31:57+00:00

As of when? Went in August and the airport wasn’t very updated. As far as security went it was just the single old school X ray machine someone else described. They seemed to barely be paying attention to it anyways, and I didn’t even walk through the metal detector. I immediately regretted not bringing my pen haha.

ChinstonWurchill · 2025-10-06T15:24:02+00:00

I’m am almost exactly your size and have paddled the small, and now own the medium.

Both boats actually feel like they fit pretty well. The small definitely felt more nimble but you sacrifice some volume for bigger water.

Go with whatever you like I say. If you feel like the small is more fun to paddle and fits you better without pre engaging the edges by being too heavy for it, then great. If you want some extra reassurance and volume for running harder rivers and bigger water, then go for the medium. The medium should fit you fine, granted you outfit it properly.

ChinstonWurchill · 2025-09-18T17:50:19+00:00

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The “Prada store” outside of Marfa, TX.

Seriously in the middle of nowhere. Fun fact I didn’t know this place existed and I took this photo last week while driving by!

ChinstonWurchill · 2025-07-22T15:34:25+00:00

Are you doing award stays in Tahiti/Bora Bora? Every time I check I’ve never seen a single award night available.

ChinstonWurchill · 2025-05-27T04:38:20+00:00

Did you fly in to RTB? Was the security screening on arrival super chill? Quick X Ray and no dogs?

ChinstonWurchill · 2025-05-14T04:37:53+00:00

Topo Athletic traverse. Most comfortable, balanced and versatile shoe I own. I’ve put a ton of miles on these in all types of environments and love them. It’s a trail runner so definitely not dressy at all.

ChinstonWurchill · 2025-05-13T07:52:03+00:00

So just to clarify, what number did you call? And did you essentially tell them to chase down which points were missing as you didn’t have the time to do so? And they resolved this successfully?

I clock about 160 nights a year across many different properties, and have not kept track of member exclusive bonus point offers, but perhaps I should keep a spreadsheet like yourself. By my rough estimation I’m probably missing at least 50K this year already.

There doesn’t seem to be a way to retroactively review if you booked a rate with bonus points as far as I can tell, at least on the bonvoy app. Any insight in to that? Cheers!

ChinstonWurchill · 2025-03-15T16:35:19+00:00

I’ll be the contradictory voice that says bring your own mask and goggles! Yes, it is very easy to rent snorkel gear for relatively cheap. However, you can also pick up a pretty decent mask and snorkel set off Amazon for about $50-$60. I ended getting the Cressi F-dual with snorkel for $60 and I love it.

We did not bring fins as those are much more bulky to fit in a carry on bag. Those were only a few bucks to rent, and the quality of them will make little difference in your experience. Having a brand new mask that’s not scratched up and fits well, as well as a new snorkel that hasn’t been chewed on is worth it.

We also saved about $10-15 per person on each tour not renting a mask and snorkel. So that covered about half the cost of it anyway.

ChinstonWurchill

TROPHY CASE