Timbuk2 Designs Dee Dog
TIMBUK2 DESIGNS DEE DOG
CW EVALUATION
Bag of tricks
PURPOSE-BUILT MOTORCYCLE LUGGAGE is a tremendous asset when touring, but there are more convenient ways to carry day-to-day desirables. Courier bags, for instance, capitalize on convenience, which explains their popularity among bicycle and motorcycle messengers.
It’s no surprise, then, that Timbuk2 Designs’ Dee Dog was conceived by a veteran courier. Approximately the same size as an average backpack or briefcase, the bag safely swallows a laptop computer and a sack lunch, or a weekend’s worth of clothing and toiletries.
The copious central cavity is liberally lined with waterproof “truck tarp” vinyl, and covered with a large, velcro-tabbed panel. Like the rest of the bag’s exterior, the panel is produced from heavy, 1000-denier cordura nylon. Adjustable compression straps with quickrelease buckles support seamstretching loads.
Similar in appearance to automotive seatbelts of the 1960s, the shoulder strap’s eccentric cam adjuster is especially handy. Need more slack from the webbed strap? Simply flip open the plastic
buckle and feed material through the opening.
Another novel feature is the integrated “cross strap.” Designed for leftor right-hand use, the adjustable nylon belt encircles the wearer’s waist and clips into a buckle on the shoulder strap, preventing the bag from shifting during hard acceleration, braking and cornering.
What else? Well, several useful pockets of varying size dot the bag’s exterior and interior; polyester thread is used throughout; and a pair of reflective tails aid nighttime conspicuity.
Including the optional shoulder-strap pad ($7.95), our tri-color bag retails for $68. Timbuk2 Designs (5327 Jacuzzi St., Unit 3E-2, Richmond, CA 94804; 888/846-2852) offers a huge selection of color combinations and backs its made-to-order, machine-washable products with a lifetime guarantee.
With a Dee Dog, you could be on hiatus from hard luggage. □
