ALPS Mountaineering King Kong Camping Chairs for Adults with Mesh Cup Holders and Pockets Built Durable and Reliable

I'm a big guy (6' 4" / 260 lbs) who attends a lot of my boy's sporting events and prefer a chair to bleachers for hours of sitting. While the standard portable chairs are 'adequate', they tend to feel like they're straining when I move around plus the fabric and mesh just doesn't hold up and begins to tear within a few months. I just purchased the King Kong a week ago so I can't speak to the test of time...but after 1 weekend of baseball, I'm absolutely thrilled with the chair: it's very sturdy yet very comfortable, the materials are tough and high quality, and it simply feels comfortable for sitting around in for several hours. I was in the chair for 3 games on Saturday and at the end of the day I had no back or knee pain which I sometimes suffer when sitting in bleachers or a lesser chair for that long. Getting out of the chair is easy and it's amazing that you can use the armrests to push yourself up and the chair locks into place providing support you just don't get from the lightweight chairs. I even had a number of other baseball dads (mostly big guys) take a seat in the chair. Every one of them sat down and immediately had a smile on their face...I'm not making this up; it's just a solid, comfortable chair that will make you the envy of the guys. To be fair, my wife and kids sat in the King King and didn't really notice much difference from our older chairs...that makes sense because those lesser chairs are fine for smaller people who don't need (nor appreciate) the benefits of the King Kong. While I'm thrilled with the chair, there are a couple of minor negative items worth mentioning: (1) the chair is a 'bit' heavy, but not too bad for a large person to carry around. I lugged mine about 200 yards with no problem. I didn't try the backpack bag but would if I had to carry the chair much farther than I did. (2) the chair is wide making the armrests wide so I found that I couldn't keep my hands in my sweatshirt pockets to keep them arm while resting my elbows on the rests. Not a big deal and as soon as the weather warms up a bit that problem goes away. That's it for critique...not a big deal. I saw in some other reviews where people had critiqued the chair's height...I don't get that because the chair's no taller than a standard dining room chair. It fits me and every other adult male that sat in it just fine. Overall: if you're a big guy looking for rock solid comfort on the go...get this chair! Read more

Ok, it's really an 11 month update, but hey. This has gotten used in many situations - muddy fair grounds, fishing riverside, uneven ground, even IN a stream once. Absolutely no problems with this at all. Bonus points for easy cleaning - one of the dogs (60 lbs), covered in mud, hopped in it. It hosed right off! No pulls, tears, splits, nothing to complain of. Still very pleased with this! ---------------- Original review: Ok just got this last week and only used it once, so obviously I can't speak to durability, however, given the feel of it, plus the rest of the positive aspects, I feel it will hold up well. It arrived in its carry sack, which I would not normally mention (since they're generally cheap) but this one seemed much better than usual. It comes with adjustable straps for backpack type carry. Stitching is heavy duty and seams are well stitched. I'm actually impressed just with the bag, which is unheard of for me. The chair itself is nothing short of amazing, to me. I'm 5'6" but a large person, and I also have a short waist, so typically if I sit all the way back in a chair, its arm supports at the front will dig into my legs just above my knees. The arms supports on this chair are wider than the seat itself. They do a flair out type thing, so there's even more room if you're a 'wide sitter'. This chair's arms never touch my legs - there are no pressure points at all. There IS, however, a cross bar under the legs from arm to arm. It's not unusual for me to have to put an extra pillow behind me so that my feet can touch the ground. Most chairs I sit in are like that. I used the chair this weekend and purposely sat all the way back and let my feet stick out. The bar would, I feel, begin to be uncomfy after a long period, but was not an issue for the 40 or so minutes I used it. The chair is not cheap on any aspect - it's generously wide, generously deep (front to back) and the back is proportionately tall. No stinting on design at all that I can tell. The fabric is an incredibly durable feeling canvas style, but with enough nylon-type to make it even more weather-resistant than straight canvas would be. While the descr mentions it has "padded" seat and back, it's really just quilted a bit. So not really padded enough to impact comfort, but I personally don't care. It's easy to get up from - with my bad knees sitting too low or in a chair w/o sturdy arms to push up from makes it unusable for me - in this I had no issue. Because of the style of feet, my use this weekend was in a grass field, with rain 2 days before. So not hard, but not squishy. The chair did not sink at all. I'm sure it would in sand or mud type thing, but on regular ground I think it'll be very sturdy. It's made for large people, or someone who just likes extra space I guess, but the point is, it's big. When you fold it and put it back in the bag, it's still going to be big. I did not find it overly heavy and had no problem toting it out in the field, but just don't expect it to be light weight. The cup holders are actually the only disappointment I had. They will not fit my 30 oz Yeti tumbler, nor the Yeti coldster (koozie). It will hold a straight can or a medium size fast food drink cup. However, it's netted so you could use either for a phone or other small gear, too. (The side pockets and back of seat pocket are fine) All in all, I love this chair and I feel like it will stand up to the test of me. Read more

Super sturdy comfortable great looking. But also pretty damn heavy. But doesn't feel cheapy it's nice. Hasn't broken so far.. But also only took it camping once or twice Read more