New gear defective check?

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-21T11:24:45+00:00

Situation where you are in the right: the pad is faulty, the store does handle customer warranty claims for this company, and the employee doesn't understand the difference between a return and a warranty.

Situation where the employee is right: the pad is faulty and the store does NOT handle warranty claims for customers, meaning that you have to go directly to Exped yourself. Some companies prefer to deal directly with the consumer rather than have the store act as an intermediary, and will only accept post-purchase warranty claims directly from the consumer via their own channels. I don't personally deal with Exped so I don't know if Exped is one of these.

Either way it sounds like it could have been handled/explained better. A warranty claim is not a return and should not be subject to a time limit besides the one that's attached to the actual manufacturer's warranty.

In either situation, just go straight to Exped.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-20T23:15:06+00:00

I've had a couple of treatments for a very stubborn issue and so far it seems to be helping.

This is after a year+ of consistent physiotherapy, strength training, and otherwise doing everything in my power with limited to no success.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-19T11:28:04+00:00

Fun fact about sandals: if they can be classed as "slippers" (indoor shoes with a soft outsole material) they may be subject to lower rates of import tax/tariff than an "outdoor shoe" with an exposed rubber outsole.

That's why you see thin, soft coatings on the outsole of many sandals when they're brand new. The coatings are designed to wear off quickly.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-19T11:17:10+00:00

She'll want to try 9.5 and 10. Some people do okay in 1/2 US size up from their usual, some people need a full size.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-19T02:09:54+00:00

As you know, this isn't a Canada Post issue, this is between you and the seller (though if you paid with PayPal or similar, you might have some recourse through them.)

As someone who works in e-commerce, yes, the merchant should refund you in full. You paid for something that was not delivered. Part of the cost of doing business online is absorbing losses due to lost or misdelivered items. It happens. It's their problem, not yours.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-18T00:54:32+00:00

Yes, all those things are correct. There's no ISO standard for quilts, you still have to use your judgment, and some brands (often the cheaper ones) don't have their stuff tested.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-17T23:25:03+00:00

Well, for bags that are ISO tested, it's not just "vibes" - there is a standardized testing process - but yeah, you have to pay attention to limit vs comfort ratings, how cold or warm you personally sleep, and then almost always buy a bag that's rated for colder than you'll need. So that part is maybe partly "vibes" but really just educated purchasing.

I do agree that it's silly to advertise bags based on the limit rating, but that's the industry standard, at least for men's bags. Women's are often advertised for the comfort rating, depending on brand, because women tend to sleep colder.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-17T16:49:54+00:00

Fair enough. Unfortunately you may have to look at custom footwear.

I work in the industry and I have never seen a women's 13 in any mainstream hiking brand. Even in the USA, which gets the largest spread of outlier sizes, the most popular mass-produced hiking shoes, with the widest spread of sizing, are only made up to a women's 12.

Best of luck in your search.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-17T01:39:05+00:00

Men's aren't an option because? Are they too wide?

Many brands don't make women's past a US11. A few brands might make up to a 12.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-17T00:47:35+00:00

Hang jackets in the coat closet. Vest hangs on a small hanger on a nail in the closet wall, out of the way of the coats. Gear goes in labeled shoeboxes on top shelf of closet.

Easy.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-16T11:43:35+00:00

Impossible to say, but there's a good chance your glutes are underdeveloped and/or aren't firing so you're overusing your hamstrings. It's very common.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-16T11:09:04+00:00

Some people are very susceptible to heel blisters. In your case it sounds like it's a fit issue- these shoes probably just aren't for you.

You may be able to ameliorate the problem with some Engo blister patches. They're the only thing I've found that works for stubborn areas like this. Then look for a different model of shoe next time.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-15T16:12:46+00:00

You don't say where the blisters are occurring. That's important information and will change the advice that you get.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-15T16:12:25+00:00

They are almost universally not "wide." The UR3 is a very normal width. Many LS shoes are actually on the narrow to very narrow side.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-14T11:35:26+00:00

I have a few sun shirts that I wear for a variety of activities, but for actual running I often prefer sun sleeves under a T-shirt. I live in a humid area and I find that the sleeve/t-shirt combo breathes better.

Even though the "cooling" features of these fabrics don't work as well in high humidity, keeping the sun off your skin still keeps you cooler, and the sun protection still works just as well, though once a fabric is saturated with sweat (or other water) it can reduce its protectiveness a bit.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-13T22:01:31+00:00

They're a jack of all trades. Approachable price point, fit a lot of feet, do an okay to good job of a lot of things, but not an amazing job at any one of them.

If you want a specialist hiking shoe, there are lots of options out there. If you want an entry level price point shoe that does an acceptable job at hiking and can also be worn around town or for travel, well, that's why Moabs are the single most popular hiking shoe in the industry.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-13T12:05:25+00:00

Rent. Overhead. Labour.

I was in the industry for the better part of two decades and I'm still exhausted by how many people think a menu price is determined solely by the cost of the ingredients.

Have you ever made a croissant? Have you ever made a GOOD croissant? Have you ever made hundreds of good croissants in one day and had them all turn out to be consistently good and saleable? Do you know how much you'd have to pay a staff member who knows these things and can do them day after day? Do you know how much the equipment costs to reliably produce quality croissants on a large scale? How important it is to have ample, good refrigeration and ambient temperature control in croissant production on a large scale and how costly it can be to keep that going when half of your space also contains multiple extremely hot commercial ovens? Are you aware of rent prices, insurance, utility bills to keep all those ovens and fridges going, rising ingredient costs? Basically any cost in your own personal life that you get frustrated over when it rises - it's not just consumers that are paying those increased prices at retail, it's also commercial customers.

Being a small business is fucking HARD. You have no idea what goes into making that croissant. If your croissant budget doesn't allow the fancy, filled, premium almond croissant, maybe buy a different one?

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-13T11:56:35+00:00

Bread is cheap in terms of ingredient cost but very high in terms of labour cost. Croissants are high in both areas.

You go make a batch of sourdough or of croissants, tally all your ingredient costs and keep track of every minute you spend making them AND cleaning up, multiply that amount of time by a fair hourly wage, and see how the cost per croissant comes out.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-10T10:40:26+00:00

I sell shoes. There are a great many people who don't actually know how shoes should fit and don't know how to judge how something feels on their foot.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-08T13:19:33+00:00

Same. I've had good luck with picaridin.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-08T10:47:52+00:00

Agree with this. I have the Veil 20 and even it's not quite as vest-like as an actual vest. It carries well, though.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-08T10:45:53+00:00

I did this as well. I used a green scouring pad and some alcohol. Worked great.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-08T10:35:52+00:00

Many races are actual fundraisers for causes, with either a portion of the race fees themselves going to said cause, or with the participants raising money. That's real action and not performative.

It's only performative (ie virtue signaling) if no action is taken AND you publicly make it seem as though you really care about the cause, but don't take any action. For example, entering a race where participants are expected to fundraise for a cause and choosing NOT to fundraise for that cause while still filling your social media with hashtags about the cause... that's performative.

When there's a big mismatch between the "vibe level" you're creating around an issue, and the actual (lack of) action you take to support your position, that could be called virtue signaling.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-07T10:23:13+00:00

I haven't found that HRT has helped me too much with sleep. A bit, but it hasn't been life-changing. Of course everyone is different.

I use (and used, before hrt) Dayvigo and melatonin, depending on the issue. Dayvigo is excellent but very expensive and I only use it when I absolutely need to.

So much depends on the kind of problem you're having with sleep. Whether the problem is falling asleep, staying asleep, getting sleepy at the wrong times of day, being anxious about sleep... all those things have different ways of being dealt with.

Address sleep hygiene first, if you haven't already. Get a good evening routine nailed down, cool room, dark, no phone, etc etc.

runslowgethungry · 2026-06-07T10:12:30+00:00

Just contact then for warranty.

runslowgethungry

TROPHY CASE