The Best New Gear for 2008

Split Personality

Dakine Split Convertible Bag

My biggest complaint about traveling by plane isn't the constant delays, the uncomfortable seats, or the sucky airport grub (Prepackaged sandwiches? No thank you!). It's the baggage weight limits! I know, I know. The limits are there so that the plane won't be too heavy and crash (a good as reason if there ever was one), but I just hate them. No matter how lightly I pack, I'm always flirting with the 50-pound limit. In my heart, I know that I'm an overpacker, but I also blame my size 10 feet. (Bigger shoes weigh more!)

I guess I'm not the only one with this problem, because Dakine, one of the coolest bag companies around, has a new bag that will seriously change my life. Or at least change my level of annoyance at the airport. The Split Convertible bag can unzip and split into two separate bags. So each one can be weighed separately and go through security separately. Then when you grab them both out of the baggage claim, zip them together again and away you go!

$160, www.dakine.com