A fresh article on the USA Today website, “Smaller jets squeeze big and tall fliers“, caught my attention this morning as I was digging through my daily news feeds.  I especially like this part, which I find to be quite interesting…

Macsata says airlines’ “fat tax” overlooks the fact that seat size hasn’t kept up with increasing girth. From 1960 to 2002, Americans have become on average of about 25 pounds heavier. The typical seat width — at 17 inches to 18.5 inches — hasn’t changed since 1958, he says.

They haven’t changed the seat geometry since 1958?  Wow.  Not only does that make it tough for Big and Tall flyers, it also just goes to show that they really aren’t working much on the ergonomics of the seats…  which is something that has probably advanced quite a bit since 1958.  No wonder I’m stiff when I walk off the plane.  Ow.

There are a few good tips in here, which have been mentioned on this site before in our travel series:

Tealer has simple strategies for air travel: book as early as possible; fly during less-busy hours, such as early in the morning or overnight; and avoid exit and emergency rows where armrests don’t go up.

But there’s something in here that I’d like to specifically address, especially as a tall person, that I believe is not true:

SeatGuru’s Daimler says legroom in regional jets isn’t less on average than on mainline aircraft. But the ceiling is lower, and the aisle is narrower. “There is a feeling of being tighter overall. For those sitting in window seats, the wall curves earlier.”

If I fly Northwest out of Port Columbus International to the west, I usually end up on a Canadair regional jet to Minneapolis where I lay over and hop on a bigger plane to head to points west (Omaha, Salt Lake City, etc).  I’ve spent my fair share of time on them, and I disagree with the above statement.  I think you feel tighter overall because you ARE tighter overall, especially in the legroom department.  Go take measurements from the seat to the back of the upright and locked seatback in front of you on a Canadair CRJ-900 and then do that same measurement on an Airbus A320 variant.  I haven’t done this, but I’m guessing there’s a difference…  Sure, narrow armrests add to an overall feeling of discomfort…  but when my knee will literally not fit in the regional jet, but has enough room to wiggle around on an A320?  Yeah, there’s a difference.

I have to admit that I often consider driving anywhere (and often do end up driving there) if it’s less than 500 miles.  By the time I drive to the airport (1.5 hours), trudge through security (30 minutes to 2 hours), fly there (1-2 hours+), de-board and grab my luggage, rent a car (another 1-2 hours) and drive to my destination, I’m already at a point where I could have done 400-500 miles in that day in a car with a lot less stress (depending on traffic) and a lot more freedom to do as I please.

Regardless, air travel is a necessary evil that I often fight, but I’m always taking notes on a way to make the experience better for me and for those who would have to sit near me on the plane.

Comments, questions or otherwise?  Leave us a note in the comments section below!

Categories: Big & Tall Lifestyle, News, Travel
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A while back, I was listening in to a tech podcast of some kind with the ever famous podcaster Leo Laporte, as well as one of my favorite characters, Chicago Sun-Times technology columnist Andy Ihnatko.

Andy, for some reason, had made a point to mention about his favorite new pants.  Sounds weird, I know, but I was intrigued.  Upon a little more investigation, it revealed some pretty interesting information as well as an observation I should have already made.  That observation is that manufacturers of tactical clothing for police and military are forced to carry a wide and varying amount of sizes to appease the needs of those government agencies.  And they also sell them to the general public.

Andy Ihnatko was specifically mentioning a company by the name of 5.11 Tactical and what he referred to as his Internet Tactical Pants.  You can take a look at their selection by clicking the following link:

5.11 Tactical Big and Tall Section

Andy Ihnatko, explaining the origin of the “Internet Tactical Pants”:

Look at all the crap he packs into those in this video!  Unreal.

Further exploration of 5.11 Tactical’s website reveals a pretty decent big and tall section, although some amount of ordering and trying things on may be necessary to figure out what your actual size is with these folks.  I haven’t ordered from them yet, but I intend to, and I plan to let you know how it goes.

A few things of note:

Pants aren’t the only thing they sell…  5.11 Tactical appears to have a selection of Polo Shirts ranging up to 5XL-Tall as well as other shirts, undergear and other big and tall items.

Some of the pants, specifically the ripstop nylon variant of the Tactical Pant, come in sizes like “XXXL” rather than standard waist inch measurements.  Your mileage will definitely vary with these, so do your research.

The 5.11 Tactical pant in most big sizes is only available with an unhemmed inseam/length.  This can be challenging for those with a “normal” inseam of 32″ or less, however this could be seen as an opportunity to get that custom fit by having them hemmed at your local tailor.

Personally, I see this as an advantage…  I ride motorcycles and pant legs tend to be too short once I’m sitting on the bike and feeling the wind hit my ankles because my pants are not long enough to reach down there once seated on the bike.

All needs aside, this looks like an excellent new source for Big & Tall clothing that fits an active lifestyle (or particular career) and I hope to be trying their products out soon.  Once I have an idea of how their sizing fits me, I hope to report back and give a review once they’ve seen some action.

Categories: Apparel / Clothing, Big & Tall Lifestyle
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With the economy shriveling up day by day, we’re faced with many bad things and a a few good (lower cost of gasoline, but that can’t last forever).  You can tell things are kinda rough right now, even Knicks player Eddy Curry is being sued by Casual Male Retail Group for neglecting to pay his bill… Ouch!

Being Big & Tall presents some challenges when things get economically tough, as specialty stores with thin margins tend to get hit hardest of all retail outlets.  In times like these, it’s pretty common for some outlets and small shops that carry a limited but necessary supply of apparel and shoes to see a drop in business as people tighten up the purse strings for the tough days ahead.

I employ several gnomes to scour the internets for information on all things Big & Tall, and some of the articles we come across are downright depressing.  News article after news article from hometown newspapers around the country mentioning shops with big and tall sections are closing thanks to the current economic climate.  Some places seem to be thriving, though…  (Even Casual Male posted a Q1 profit)  and I’m very happy to see that.

The drawbacks of being Big and Tall are such that finding good clothes that last can be fairly difficult.  I’ve tried spending less money on clothes shopping at places like Wal*Mart, Kmart and the like…  nothing I get there seems to work after the first or second washing, and that’s only IF I find anything at all.

With less local shops and retailers around to support us, only larger retailers like Casual Male, Rochester Big & Tall, etc. will have an actual brick and mortar presence for us to try on clothes and find the perfect fit.  The closest big and tall store to me is a Casual Male XL, and it’s about an hour and a half away.

Some unfortunate business tactics are also taking a lot of choice out of the market…  I recently spoke to a friend, Scott, who happens to be new to the world of Big & Tall shops.  Scott commented about his first ever visit to Dahle’s, a local Big and Tall shop in Osh Kosh, Wisconsin near where he resides…  Dahle’s is closing.  They didn’t really appear to be in financial distress, but apparently Casual Male (who have a store about 15 miles away) has made an offer that the owner of Dahle’s couldn’t refuse.  Casual Male Retail Group purchased the business and is closing out the store with no plans to reopen, forcing locals to travel to their store that is a good distance away.

What truly suffers when shops like this close is that we lose choice.  Choice that is already limited to begin with.  Supporting local shops and stores with Big & Tall sections may make all the difference in having future availability and choice.  A lot of companies are going the mail-order route, but most big guys I speak to agree that they have to try on EVERYTHING before they buy…  paying for shipping back and forth only to try things on can be wasteful and time consuming.

Perhaps small shops offer less selection than online retailers, however that allows for a narrow focus and makes it easy to find things that fit properly and look good.

Categories: Big & Tall Lifestyle
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