REI Co-op  Trail Stool

Finally figured out how to use the strap on the bottom of the stool. At first we though it was for keeping tension on the bottom of the legs to keep them from spreading. But the loop was too big and there was no way to shorten it. The strap is for keeping the stool legs close for storage. To use the strap hold the closed stool in your left hand. Hold the loop/tab of the strap in your right hand. The section of the strap with the "loop" part of the hook and loop fastener should be facing you. The hook part should be on the back side of the strap. Now just wrap the strap away from you. You should be able to wrap it twice around the legs. On the second wrap the hook part of the strap should land on the loop part. It's easy, just watch the video.

Had the older REI version of this little stool and loved it, but after almost 10 years of use, the seat posts have started to wear through. For $13, it easily exceeded expectations and was a no-brainer in picking up another one. Boy was I wrong and have a lot of gripes about this newer, more expensive version. For starters, it's not nearly as comfortable as the seat posts are much more pronounced than before. The fabrics seem cheaper and far less substantial. Second issue are the leg support straps. They are absolutely useless. When sitting in the seat, the legs are suppose to expand out until those straps are taught garnering further support and stability. Instead they just hang there loosely offering none of the footing support they used to have. Previously instead of just a strap, there was a triangular piece that offered far superior leg support along with a handy shelf to store small items. I knew this when purchasing, but it's still a bummer nonetheless. The strap on the newer version also doubles as it's tie-down/packing strap having now been relocated from the top, to the bottom of the stool. The relocation makes no sense as now the stool has big "bunny ears" where the seat is making it less packable. REIs branded products use to be quality products engineered for quality and with functionality that its customers wanted. I don't see how any bit of this design follows anything other than to cut corners for cheaper build costs and then sold for twice as much. If this is any reflection on REIs other branded products, then they've gone seriously downhill. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Unfortunately, this is the lightest weight travel stool out there.