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TOM BIHN customers tend to take their bags
with them everywhere: to the store,
work, class, Iraq, Australia, Antarctica, and Italy. Our amazing
customers often send us pictures of
themselves using their TOM BIHN bags in these ordinary and extraordinary
locations. Below are a selection of
those photos.
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Toby Harnden, U.S. Editor of the Daily Telegraph of London, sent us a picture of himself with his TOM BIHN Brain Bag backpack in Najaf, Iraq, and wrote us this letter:
“Here is a picture of me in Najaf last week using one of your Brain Bags with Brain Cell inside. I am a reporter with the Daily Telegraph of London and was in the holy city covering the battle between American forces and the Mahdi Army.
The bag contained my Toshiba laptop, camera, satellite phone, tape recorder, water, BGAN satellite receiver and a multitude of other things. Along with an Indian reporter, an American photographer and two Iraqi translators, I had just spent 12 hours sheltering in an abandoned house next to Najaf's Old City as the battle raged around us.
An Abrams tank had been posted right outside the door, blasting away. With the rattle of .50 calibre machine gun fire, 25mm rounds from Bradley fighting vehicles and the whistle of mortars from the Mahdi, sleep was not easy that night. We had intended to get to the Imam Ali Shrine and stay there for the night but the sniper fire was too intense.
At one point I was sheltering behind a wall, rucksack on back, as a sniper's bullets slammed into the other side. I have had the rucksack for a few months now and it's been under fire more than once. I find it superb - I can fit all the kit in it that I would possibly need and a couple of Snake Charmers help me keep all the wires well organised.”
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Peter Smolowitz and his Brain Bag in Afghanistan
Charlotte Observer reporter Peter Smolowitz traveled with the Army's 82nd Airborne to Afghanistan to report on soldiers from the two Carolinas. He carried his equipment (laptop, camera, satellite phone, etc.) in a TOM BIHN Brain Bag backpack; his laptop was inside the bag in a TOM BIHN Eclipse bag. While on patrol with the 82nd, he used the Brain Bag to carry equipment, clothing and necessities for two days at a time.
Upon his safe return to the U.S., his bag was quite dusty, but
all the equipment contained inside was without a scratch.
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Gary Gallant and his Brain Bag, Brain Cell, and Snake Charmer in Antarctica
In January 2002, New Brunswick educator Gary Gallant traveled to the Antarctic leading a virtual Antarctic expedition involving schools in Canada, Scotland, Holland, Norway, Slovakia, and Jordan. While there, Gary communicated with the participating students in their home countries via satellite technology, giving them a firsthand glimpse into the most remote environment on the planet.
He carried his cameras and accessories in his TOM BIHN Brain Bag and Snake Charmer, while his PowerBook G4 was kept safe from the elements and penguin guano while tucked away in his Brain Cell insert. The Brain Bag was the envy of the other team members who admired it for its durability and great functionality. Heck, even the penguins thought it was cool!
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Gary and Barb Gallant, and their Smart Alec and Brain Bag backpacks in Newfoundland
In 2003, Gary and his wife Barb took a trip to Newfoundland with his Brain Bag backpack and her Smart Alec backpack, and sent us these pictures.
Gary writes: "The picture of Barb was taken at L'Anse Aux Meadows, the northern most point in Newfoundland,
most noted as the site where the Vikings established a settlement in the 11th
century. The pic of me and my Brain Bag was taken at the Tablelands at
Gros Morne on the east coast of Newfoundland. While on our trip we were able to view many species of birds, among them, the northern gannet, Atlantic puffin, and northern fulmar; many humpback and minke whales, as well as numerous white sided dolphins. Oh yeah, who could forget the numerous moose?"
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Below: Kyle Snay with his Brain Bag in Australia
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"I hop around the world on the international teaching circuit.
I'm currently working at an international school in Perth, Australia.
Needless to say, my TOM BIHN bag and accessories (along with my dog)
follow me everywhere. As a technology coordinator, I'm attached at the
hip to my computer stuff. My TOM BIHN Brain Bag bag is the only bag
around that can safely carry all my gear, keep it organized, and not make
me look like a computer nerd in the process." - Kyle
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J.H. and his Brain Bag in Iraq (from 2003)
"My name is J.H. I am a Blackhawk pilot in Iraq.
I bought a Brain Bag with a Snake Charmer, Size 2 Monolith, and
a Freudian Slip for my new Dell Inspiron 8500. I absolutely love this backpack!
Thought you would like this picture with Saddam's head in the background.
The other picture is at the Al Rashid hotel down the street. I store my water and
all my work plus my Dell in the bag. The back support is perfect for the long
walks to places. Hope you enjoy the pics!!"
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Marcelle and Rob and their Smart Alec and Brain Bag backpacks in Tanzania
To the left is a picture of TOM BIHN customers Marcelle and Rob, who used their
Smart Alec and Brain Bag backpacks on their climb of Mt. Kilimanjaro. And as you
can see, Rob also took his Brain Bag on a trip to the The Great Pyramid of Giza.
When we feature a customer picture or story, we're glad to link to the customer's Web site or a particular site or non-profit they like.
Marcelle's picks are:
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M. and her Medium Cafe Bag at Burning Man
M. sent us these great pictures of her and her Cafe Bag at Burning Man, along with this note:
"Two years ago I wanted a bag to carry my water and camera at Burning Man. I got your Medium Café Bag and it went with me everywhere, day and night “out on the playa”. Fabulous. Then I never put it down. It’s been my “purse” ever since, to business meetings and pubs, football games and airports. Great Bag."
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Customer H.C. with his Super Ego on his Vespa
TOM BIHN Customer H.C. was the first to receive the Super Ego messenger bag when it debuted in '05.
In thanks, he sent us these amazing pictures of himself with his Super Ego on his Vespa.
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Thad in Chile with his vintage TOM BIHN Super Muesette Messenger Bag
Tom's good friends Amelia and Thad sent us
these pictures of Thad in Chile with his vintage TOM BIHN Super Muesette messenger bag.
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Greg Madill in Italy with his Aeronaut Maximum Carry-On Bag
Tom's good friend Greg Madill of the Ecclestons (a Canadian original acoustic group)
agreed to be the first person to test the Aeronaut on an international trip. Greg used
the Aeronaut on his trip to Italy, and sent us these pictures of the bag in use.
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Customer W.C. and his vintage TOM BIHN shoulder bag in Pompeii
W.C. sent us the amazing picture to the right of him and his companion sporting
vintage TOM BIHN Cafe Shoulder Bags, along
with this note: "Pompeii tourists (May 2005) sporting the best, most practical shoulder bags ever... designed and constructed by TDB."
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Below: Cosmo the Cat with Customer R.C.'s Brain Bag
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Customer R.C. writes:
"My two cats can't resist your bag! Pictured is Cosmo on top of a Brain
Bag...enclosing a Brain Cell...enclosing a well protected TiBook. Maybe
Andersen's Princess could feel a pea beneath 20 mattresses and 20
feather beds, but I doubt she could feel a TiBook inside of one Brain
Bag and one Brain Cell!
We hail from Albuquerque, New Mexico where Cosmo served as the Official Mouser of the Starfire Optical Range Observatory until I brought him home 'for keeps' about seven years ago. He took possession of the Bihn Bag the day it was delivered, and prefers that I store the TiBook somewhere else so that I don't have to wake him up to retrieve it.
The second picture is the 'bag in a Vortex field near Sedona Arizona."
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Alex Bihn with his one-of-a-kind TOM BIHN Kid's Pack
Being Tom Bihn's nephew has its perks: unlike all of the other kids at school, you get to have a one-of-a-kind TOM BIHN backpack
sewn by Tom himself. Pictured to the left is Tom's nephew Alex. Pictures by Alex's other Uncle, Dan Bihn.
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Customer K.H. with his Brain Bag in Kjerringřy
Customer K.H. sent us this picture of himself with his Brain Bag backpack in
beautiful Kjerringřy in Northern Norway.
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Customer A.S. with his Empire Builder Briefcase
Customer A.S. sent us this picture of himself with his Empire Builder briefcase. Around him
are the various gadgets and accessories that he's able to fit into his Empire Builder. Here's the note he sent along
with this picture:
"Here's a photo of me with the EB and all of the stuff that I carried in it.
I think that the fact that all of this stuff went in the bag (and the bag
still fit under an airplane seat) is a pretty good testimony to its carrying
capacity. The only thing that's not in the picture is the camera, because I
had to use that to take the picture!"
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Customer A.Q., his Powerbook, and his TOM BIHN Monolith Laptop Case
Customer A.Q. sent us this self-portrait that includes his Powerbook and TOM BIHN Monolith (which has since been
replaced in our product line with the Vertical Brain Cell) and this note: "
Here is the photo of my Wasabi Monolith, Powerbook, and me! (And I?) I'm happy to report that a week after receiving it, my love and enthusiasm about the bag has faltered not one bit! Hope you enjoy the photo half as much as I am enjoying the Monolith!"
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Below: TOM BIHN Laptop Fit Expert Nicole Palmiter (and boyfriend Patric)
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TOM BIHN Laptop Fit Expert Nicole Palmiter took her Ego messenger bag on a recent trip to
Ireland. In the first picture, Nicole is standing in front of the dungeon entrance
of Blarney Castle. In the last two pictures, Nicole's boyfriend Patric is wearing the
Ego while walking to the castle.
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Customer C.M. and his Brain Bag at the Gullfoss waterfalls and Ţingvellir National Park
"I just wanted to send you some photos of me and my Brain Bag in Iceland.
I bought the bag less than a year ago and already it has been to Argentina,
Uruguay, Florida, British Columbia, Cuba and most recently Iceland. The first
picture is of me at the edge of the North American tectonic plate in the
Ţingvellir National Park, while the second is of myself at Gullfoss waterfalls.
Thanks for making such a great product."
-- C.M.
Windsor, Ontario.
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Below: Robert, Haydée, and Natalya in Tepotzotlán la Ciudad de Mexico
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"The first image is of us in Tepotzotlán, Estado de México. A meager view of us with our Café bag
and Ruck's Sac. Unseen are several Organizer and Passport Pouches.
The second image is of the two ladies at the Palacio Nacional en la Ciudad de México.
They're checking out one of the murals by Diego Rivera.
Thanks for the great bags! It's amazing just how simple life can be when you're not
worried about your bags' functionality and fortitude.
" - Robert
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