SkyMall Monday: Trailer Hitch & Cradle Chairs

Football season is upon us and that can only mean two things: It’s time for tailgating and unrelenting gastrointestinal distress.

Nothing beats gathering with a dozen or so of your most sports-obsessed friends to eat sausages, steaks, burgers and other such indulgences at nine in the morning. How else will people know that you love your team? The problem comes after the meal and before kickoff. You’re bloated, gassy and in need of some relief. You can’t get back into your car because the noxious fumes emanating from your bowels could suffocate you. You can’t go into the stadium because they haven’t opened the gates yet. You don’t want to go to the bathroom in the parking lot because social mores prohibit your from popping a squat on the ground. All you need is a place to take the pressure off of your body.

Thankfully, SkyMall has just the thing to help you sneak in a pregame nap while all of those vitamins, minerals and nitrates course through your veins. When regular chairs aren’t enough, you need to up the ante. You need to keep your feet elevated and your buttocks properly supported after a breakfast of ribs and pulled pork. That’s why you look to SkyMall Monday. That’s why we’re looking at the Trailer Hitch & Cradle Chairs.The problem with regular chairs is that they sit on the ground. The ground is hard and once you’re full of meat and cheese, gravity begins to affect you more. It pulls you towards that hardness in a way that puts stress on your ankles, knees and GI tract. Soon, you’ll need to find a port-o-potty for more than just a tinkle. The last thing anyone wants is to have to sit down and do some real business in one of those bad boys. That’s why you need to reduce gravity’s (and pork’s) unrelenting pull on your organs as quickly as possible. The more relaxed you are as you attack that second six pack of Natty Light, the less seismic activity you’ll experience in your colon.

Think that normal chairs are perfectly adequate for tailgating? Don’t believe that a full slab of ribs is appropriate for one person to eat, let alone for breakfast before attending a football game at which they will most certainly indulge in french fries coated in cheese and/or cheese-like products? Well, why not read the product description while you munch on that apple and wonder why no one at the office ever invites you to happy hour:

Imagine the faces of your pre-game buddies when they see you kicking back in this! Innovative and patented design takes leisure to a whole new level, instantly bringing the laid back comfort of a hammock to your favorite campgrounds, tailgate parties and sporting events.

Yes, imagine the faces. Horror, disgust Awe, envy, concern over the tensile strength of the chair’s support beam.

Sure, you could bring a couple of beach chairs, but they take mere seconds to unload out of your car. Then you’ll have nothing else to do and get sucked into helping cook or, even worse, clean up afterward! By making your chair a complex system that must be securely fastened to your truck hitch, you ensure that you’ll be occupied for most of the tailgate preperation. By the time you’re done getting the chairs safely in place, the first round of bratwursts should be grilled to perfection and you’ll already be pretty buzzed. And isn’t that what football mornings are all about?

Take a load off (and keep a load out of your pants) with the Trailer Hitch & Cradle Chairs. Your hemorrhoids will be glad that you did.

Check out all of the previous SkyMall Monday posts HERE.

Kensington Tours announces dream trips for sports fans

Kensington Tours, a travel company that specializes in private-guided adventure travel, has announced a series of tours that are guaranteed to be a hit with sports fans. These trips include VIP treatment for travelers, offering up luxury accommodations, access to glamorous events, once-in-a-lifetime opportunities, and of course, excellent seats at some of the most well known and legendary events in all of sports.

This Championship Series of tours includes options to attend events on three different continents, including jaunts to Europe for Wimbledon, the Ryder Cup, and the F1 Grand Prix in Monaco. In North America the events include a chance to attend the Masters golf or the U.S. Open tennis tournaments, as well as the Kentucky Derby, or the Super Bowl, while travelers to South America can opt to experience the Brazilian F1 Grand Prix in Rio.

Attending these amazing sporting events is just the beginning however, as Kensington has taken great strides to offer travel packages that ensure an unforgettable experience. For instance, some of the luxuries include helicopter transfers, police escorts, and guided tours of the host cities, as well as a chance to play a round of golf on some of the top courses in the world and get the opportunity to take a drive in a Ferrari. Upgrade options include private luxury boxes, limos, a private jet, and VIP access to behind the scenes activities as well.

While most of these sporting events are still months off, the Championship Series tours are already filling up fast. There is a reason why these events are so exclusive, and if you’re looking for the ultimate way to experience any of them, Kensington is here to provide that experience. For sports fans, these tours really are a dream come true.

Photo of the Day (09.13.10)

Perhaps the first travel book that kids read is Where’s Waldo? The striped explorer travels around the globe in search of…well…nonsense, really. He encounters scenes that go beyond the imaginations of children the world over and, hopefully, inspires them to seek out their own adventures when they get older (whether he inspires them to get Lasik is up for debate).

It’s hard to go on the exact trips taken by Waldo, seeing as how he visits some far-fetched locales. However, this photo by Flickr user kwsdurango shows that you can come pretty darn close. You just need to go to a Croatian soccer futbol match. Don’t try too hard to find Waldo in the stands, though. I don’t want you to hurt yourselves.

Have you found Waldo? Or just taken some excellent photos on your epic journeys? Upload your photos to the Gadling Flickr group and we might just use one for our next Photo of the Day.

GadlingTV’s Travel Talk – Austin Mann @ the World Cup (part 2)

GadlingTV’s Travel Talk, episode 26 – Click above to watch video after the jump

Are you ready for some (ahem) football? In part two of travel photographer Austin Mann’s trip to the 2010 World Cup, we bring you a look at the intensity and passion of the world’s biggest sporting event.

Watch as Austin navigates his way through the games and experiences how far people will go to show their passion for soccer; including sleeping in tents, dressing in outlandish costumes, & of course mastering the vuvuzela.

If you missed part one of Austin’s World Cup series, check it out here, otherwise click on below for part two!

If you have any questions or comments about Travel Talk, you can email us at talk AT gadling DOT com.

Subscribe via iTunes:
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Links
What are some of Austin’s essentials as a travel photographer?
Surefire G2 LED flashlight
Garmin 60CSX GPS
Pac-Safe lock
Canon 5D MKII & Canon 16-35 f/2.8 II
Gitzo 15141T Mountaineering Series Tripod


Host: Austin Mann
Edited by: Jordan Bellamy

World Cup hangover: North Korea team grilled


The North Korean World Cup soccer team never had a chance in South Africa, but that didn’t make the trip home any easier. At the beginning of July, they faced a “grand debate” because they let down the regime in the “ideological struggle” to put the ball into the net a lot during the tournament. More than 400 government officials, students and journalists watched the spectacle, though I have this sneaking suspicion that none really enjoyed it.

Responsibility for the loss fell to the coach, and the team members were allegedly compelled to point their blame in his direction. He was punished for having betrayed Kim Jong-sun, Kim Jong-il‘s son and rumoured next top dog of North Korea. The coach was fired and reportedly made to become a builder – he was also tossed from the Workers’ Party of Korea.

Apparently, just getting to the World Cup for the first time since 1966 wasn’t good enough, and I’m guessing that the next coach will take note of this.

It could have been a lot worse, though. Past coaches who didn’t measure up were sent to prison camps, according to South Korean intelligence sources.

Meanwhile, travel plans made the difference for two of the team’s players. Jong Tae-se and An Yong-hak, both born in Japan, were able to avoid the humiliating public display by dashing off directly to Japan following the World Cup tournament. If they had middle seats the whole way, I’m sure they weren’t complaining.