View Full Version : Crazy Creek Chairs
Sierra Echo
02-05-2012, 13:10
http://www.crazycreek.com/
Does anyone own one? And if so, how do you like it. Having a seat would be nice after a long day!
bigcranky
02-05-2012, 13:19
I own several. They are reasonably comfortable, great for car camping. Too heavy and bulky for backpacking IMHO. If you like the concept, you can get a chair kit for a Thermarest pad that works the same way and weighs a lot less.
Sierra Echo
02-05-2012, 13:24
But then I would have to carry a thermarest pad too!
Wise Old Owl
02-05-2012, 13:48
Watched a lot of folks use them in Canada - the added weight was questionable - vs a log. Once I got hammocking, I sold it because a hammock is the ultimate lazy boy....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=EtjvNokD-fA
ChinMusic
02-05-2012, 13:56
#4 wins
Camp chairs are great for social trips. For a thru? No way. For one thing, with shelters there are plenty of places to sit, whether that be designed seating or simple logs previously dragged to the area.
Wise Old Owl
02-05-2012, 14:17
Thanks ChinMusic
I'm waiting for someone to design a crazy creek style chair that is both the frame of a pack and used as part of a sleeping pad (or the whole pad if you're into just torso pads). I have a crazy creek and it seems like just closed cell foam + stays + straps. All items that could be put to multi-use purposes.
bigcranky
02-05-2012, 15:20
But then I would have to carry a thermarest pad too!
Wait, do you mean you would use the CC chair as your sleeping pad? You might try that for a couple of nights. They are pretty thin and hard.
Leanthree
02-05-2012, 15:21
I bring mine when going on trips with larger groups where it is more about the camping and less about the hiking or on quick day trips where I am hiking a couple miles to a nice view to read a book.
Sierra Echo
02-05-2012, 16:32
Wait, do you mean you would use the CC chair as your sleeping pad? You might try that for a couple of nights. They are pretty thin and hard.
Thermarests aren't the only pads on the market.
bigcranky
02-05-2012, 19:40
Thermarests aren't the only pads on the market.
True, but the Thermarest chair kit will work with almost any 20 inch self inflating pad. Probably not with a neo-air type pad, though. Not sure what you have.
ChinMusic
02-05-2012, 19:47
An air pad has a tough enough life on a thru. Doubling up with chair-duty is just asking too much.
Sierra Echo
02-05-2012, 20:25
I'm not a thru hiker and I don't want a thermarest chair. I just wanted to know if anyone had a crazy creek chair and if so how they liked it. I posted the same question on FB and all i got were people telling me to get a hammock. Well I don't want a hammock either. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
You definitly need a hammock!
I'm not a thru hiker and I don't want a thermarest chair. I just wanted to know if anyone had a crazy creek chair and if so how they liked it. I posted the same question on FB and all i got were people telling me to get a hammock. Well I don't want a hammock either. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.
bigcranky
02-05-2012, 20:39
OK, sorry, yes I have one and like it, but not for backpacking.
ChinMusic
02-05-2012, 20:40
I assumed the Crazy Creek used a pad. Guess it doesn't. 26oz???? A lawn chair would be comfortable too.
If I were to consider a dedicated chair I would go all the way and get the Sling Light: http://www.slinglight.com/ 18oz
I'm sitting on one in my avatar.
15106
SouthMark
02-05-2012, 23:08
Shannon, if you are asking about the chair kit, Crazy Creek's and Thermarest's are too heavy for backpacking IMHO. Take a look at Big Agnes's ultralite version. A little more pricey but only 6 oz.
http://www.campbound.com/Big-Agnes-Cyclone-SL-Chair-Kit.aspx?gclid=CLCz96ytiK4CFQWFQAod8X9T6A
PS: Hammock users and ultralighters are wimps. I should know. I am both but I have owned one of these Big Agnes versions.
Wise Old Owl
02-05-2012, 23:24
Shannon _ never said get a Hammock - I had one and sold it in less than one year..... Because of the change to hamocks - I have tried a lot of gear and had a lot of mistakes too - most of my posts have nothing to do with thru hiking.
So now that you told us off and we got it wrong - what do you want to use it for and why are you attracted to it? Whats it for - how about some more info?
Big Cranky watch this....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=XcNZbC-LveQ
Sierra Echo
02-05-2012, 23:48
Shannon, if you are asking about the chair kit, Crazy Creek's and Thermarest's are too heavy for backpacking IMHO. Take a look at Big Agnes's ultralite version. A little more pricey but only 6 oz.
http://www.campbound.com/Big-Agnes-Cyclone-SL-Chair-Kit.aspx?gclid=CLCz96ytiK4CFQWFQAod8X9T6A
PS: Hammock users and ultralighters are wimps. I should know. I am both but I have owned one of these Big Agnes versions.
That might be perfect. I have a Big Agnes air pad.
Sierra Echo
02-05-2012, 23:50
Shannon _ never said get a Hammock - I had one and sold it in less than one year..... Because of the change to hamocks - I have tried a lot of gear and had a lot of mistakes too - most of my posts have nothing to do with thru hiking.
So now that you told us off and we got it wrong - what do you want to use it for and why are you attracted to it? Whats it for - how about some more info?
Big Cranky watch this....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=XcNZbC-LveQ
I didn't mean to get cranky, I was just getting frustrated. I said the people on FB kept telling me to get a hammock.
I just want a chair, with a back in it for camp on backpacking trips. Crazy creek looks promising, but I cant really find reviews on them. Therefore I was simply asking people for their experiences with them. REI has a similar chair, but with bad reviews.
ChinMusic
02-06-2012, 00:00
Since you have a Big Agnes pad already, you may have found your answer. IMO the Crazy Creek is just too crazy heavy and looks more like something one might use in the bleachers at a sporting event.
Sierra Echo
02-06-2012, 00:03
Since you have a Big Agnes pad already, you may have found your answer. IMO the Crazy Creek is just too crazy heavy and looks more like something one might use in the bleachers at a sporting event.
They do look like stadium seats. I just found a crazy creek chair at campmor that weighs in a 1 lb 5 oz that gets a decent review from backpackers. But 6 lbs is even better. And with this kind of chair I can sit up in my tent. Maybe. Thats the one thing I always end up wishing I had is a good seat.
I own a crazy creek and I love it. Definitely wouldn't bring it backpacking though, it's huge and bulky. But if you don't care about that, it is super comfortable and you can even recline with it!
Sierra Echo
02-06-2012, 07:57
They do look like stadium seats. I just found a crazy creek chair at campmor that weighs in a 1 lb 5 oz that gets a decent review from backpackers. But 6 lbs is even better. And with this kind of chair I can sit up in my tent. Maybe. Thats the one thing I always end up wishing I had is a good seat.
Bwahahahhahaha I just realized I said 6 lbs and not 6 oz. I'm so silly!
Sierra Echo
02-06-2012, 07:59
I own a crazy creek and I love it. Definitely wouldn't bring it backpacking though, it's huge and bulky. But if you don't care about that, it is super comfortable and you can even recline with it!
The one I was looking at rolls up and I could clip it to the outside of my pack. I'm interested in the big agnes one as well, but I have concerns about that one. How hard would it be to fold a inflated air mattress and how easy would it be to poke a whole in it with it sitting on the ground.
a thermo-rest chair kit is lighter than a crazy creek if you really want to carry such stuff. I've got one that occasionally gets on board for a weekend trip where I'll be doing a lot of sitting around. I'm not a huge neo-air fan but you can put one in a bag and make a bean-bag type chair or get the little kit and have a really cushy seat. I pretty much skip all this stuff on long treks and just sit on my pack.
15119
yes, i have a crazy creek chair and use it w/ my mid-length therma rest pad. i love being able to sit in at the end of the day, my food & kitchen stuff around me. i cook dinner, eat & clean up all while sitting. very comfy, IMO.
when i deflate my thermarest pad, i lay the crazy creek form (now empty) on the pad and roll up. easy to carry.
i also can use the empty chair form as additional padding, esp. under my stuff sack pillow, if i need more insulation or something.
dottie
Jim Adams
02-06-2012, 19:05
I have had several crazy creek chairs in the past and indeed hiked my thru in 2002 with one...worth their weight in gold! Sure they add a little weight to your pack but at the end of the day, sitting in the chair with back support for 1 hour made you feel like you had not hiked at all...made recovery each day so much easier. I highly recommend it.
BTW, I also have the ThermRest chair kit...doesn't work near as well.
geek
quilteresq
02-06-2012, 19:17
We have one and have never used it - it was a gift. I might consider using it on a kayaking trip or something, but not for a hike. Don't use it car camping either - but we don't do that much anyway. Only a couple of summers ago when my daughter worked in a campground for a visit - and we forgot it that time.
Rain Man
02-06-2012, 23:00
Sierra Echo, if you would like a Therm-A-Rest one, I'll give you one. I have two (purple). Works fine, but I have a hammock so would not take them on hikes, personally. But it's yours if you just say the word.
Rain:sunMan
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Something about the geometry of my body versus these type chairs that just doesn't work. I have tried a few and they just aren't comfortable or don't work for me.
A ground chair without stays will be a bit floppy and they require a little longer learning curve than a less flexible chair.
Back in the day of the external frame, you carried a small piece of foam, dug one end of your hiking pole (likely a sturdy branch) into the ground, placed the other end against the middle of your pack bag as high as you could, hopefully in the center, put the foam on the ground, sat down, and leaned back against the harness. The packs were heavier, granted, but they provided better air flow to the back than most internals, and you always had a chair with you (and to think we took it for granted :D).
I bought a C C chair when they first came out. I love it I still use it on most every trip I take. It must take a lot to wear one out because mine is over 20 years old. I tried the thermarest one and I hated it.I dont mind the extra weight. If you don't mind the weight get one.