I have to give KT Tap props for all the info they put on their web site. There is a ton of stuff; instructional videos for taping almost any injury. I dug through the site and found the instructions for taping an IT band injury, which is what I think I probably most likely am suffering the most from. I followed the instructions, wasting only one strip of tape, and headed out for a trail run.

At first I noticed a significant difference in comfort level as I ran. I really did feel some pain relief and despite some general fatigue, I felt pretty good and planned a six mile route. Lately my knee has been seizing up at about that distance so that’s what I tried to do. I found that the KT tape reduced my IT band pain enough that, freed of the IT band issue, I found several new sources of pain in my knee. Awesome! Maybe I should just shellac my entire leg in the stuff.

I was pretty convinced that this tape was helpful, as I went the entire run without that creepy “I’m about to lock on you!” feeling from my knee. Yes, my knee talks to me, just go with it. As the run went on, though, the support seemed to fade, maybe because the tape didn’t stick that well. Most of it stayed down but the corners started peeling back, and once they come up, that’s all she wrote. The technique I used involved three pieces of tape, and one of them came so loose that I just pulled it off because it was annoying me, flapping around. That’s the problem that I have pretty consistently had, and I’ve chalked it up to touching the sticky tape with my greasy fingers and thereby contaminating it. This time, though, I was really careful and followed the instructions as well as I could, but the tape still peeled off eventually. True, it lasted a lot longer this time, and one piece didn’t really come up at all, so maybe it’s a technique thing and I just need practice. I really would like it to work, though, because the effects were noticeably beneficial while the stickiness lasted.

The web site claims 3-4 days per application, to which I say “buh?” I’ve yet to get as much as an hour out of one application. There is no way this stuff would survive a shower or hot tub per the online claims. I can tape pretty well with my standard PT tape, which doesn’t come off unless you pretty much go at it with a knife, so I can’t imagine I’m THAT inept at taping. I’d like to hear from some professional tape-appliers, though, or from some other folks that have tried KT Tape – what was your experience? I would really, really like to know where I am going wrong here.

For the rest of you, I recommend checking out Google Image results for KT Tape, because you’ll see some pictures of tape configurations that will seriously blow your mind. In the meantime I’m going to use up the rest of the tape samples to see if I can’t make any progress here. It helps – I believe that – I just have to get it to stick.

First up is the Suture/Syringe Medic Kit. This kit is allegedly intended for the user to hand to a doctor or medical professional if the user is hurt while traveling. This ensures that the stitching material used will be sterile and safe. Come on now. Is there any intrepid soul who has the forethought and need to carry such a thing who wouldn’t, upon sustaining a stitchable wound, immediately produce this suture kit in glee and try it themselves, thrilled with the chance to utilize the item that they a) had the smarts to bring along and b) had, at all, in the first place. Such people do not like to lug around unnecessary stuff so I would imagine there are people who would make damn sure that if they brought this thing they would use it. In the words of one of my intrepid world traveler friends, “if you come home with it in your pack you don’t need to carry it.”

Second is the very clever Ultralight Airtight Medical Kit. This is designed to carry in your backpack when you go mountain biking, running, or fastpacking. It is sealed in a – wait for it – waterproof pouch so that nothing gets wet, a great idea. It’s got just enough stuff to clean and bandage one wound, so it’s not meant for mega trips. It’s still a great little item to grab-and-go; it’s small, light, and well-equipped.

The QuickClot series is another great item. I’ve seen many variations of this in my adventures as an emergency medical responder type person, but this is the first I’ve seen that is commercially available. The QuickClot is a serious thing, meant to stop traumatic, life-threatening bleeding. We are talking things like gunshot wounds here. I have a student who could have used this last year when he sustained a ski cut that he described thusly: “I could have fit a football in it.” I saw the bloody aftermath in the aid room and I don’t think he’s exaggerating. My point is that even if you’re not readily exposed to gunshot wounds, there are outdoors activities that could seriously wound a person in a way in which one might least expect. QuickClot is designed to accelerate the blood clotting process and could very well save a life in the backcountry.

Adventure Medical Kits is big on kits (who’da thunk?) so naturally we have the Trauma Pak. It contains a QuickClot package and various bandages and dressings to hold it in place including – this made my Alaskan ears perk up – duct tape. Trust AMK to know that you really can’t substitute anything for duct tape. The kit also contains a plastic bag that can be used to address sucking chest wounds. I find the inclusion of the antiseptic wipe kind of funny; if you need a QuickClot to stop bleeding or have to deal with a sucking chest wound, an antiseptic wipe seems kind of inadequate. But it’s probably a good thing to include…I guess? What I’m saying is, be sure to wipe off the sucking chest wound before you slap some plastic on it.

I don’t know about you, but I was sure to spend almost my entire summer in the dentist’s chair. This had me thinking about teeth quite a bit. So it was just apropos when I saw the Dental Medic kit at the AMK booth at Outdoor Retailer in Salt Lake City. I’m sure Simon has not seen that many women squeal over a dental kit. What could he do but drop one in my swag bag? What can I say, I like a good Dental Medic kit more than I like, I don’t know, whatever girly swag they hand out at Sundance. Louis Vuitton keychains, maybe? Hey, did you know that those little keychains seriously cost $800 or more? Crazy. That’s the entire amount I spent on three crowns, two fillings, a cleaning and a set of X-rays this summer. Can you tell I haven’t had dental insurance in a while? My teeth are good though, and I mostly go to the dentist to hear her harp on me about how my teeth are so good. She shakes her head, clucks her tongue, and says “wear your seatbelt.” Which I always do, because I’m vain about my good teeth. So. I was happy to see the Dental Medic kit. It contains temporary cavity filler, pain killing gel, gauze, floss, dental wax, and a tea bag. The tea bag is for pain in case you don’t know. This kit could really come in handy. I was on a three day kayak trip with a friend who broke his temporary crown less than 45 minutes after the water taxi dropped us in the middle of nowhere. Ain’t that always the way.

Simon also restocked me with old favorites like Fresh Bath Travel Wipes (what are you saying, Simon?), Naturapel bug dope, After Bite bug bite soother, hand sanitizer, and Women’s Outdoor Medical Kits. I love going to see Simon. Especially because now that I know him well enough that we can talk about product while we go to get coffee or, this year, mimosas from the booth giving them out. Don’t worry, Simon’s boss, he didn’t drink on the job – he got coffee. For the record I had a mimosa and I regretted it. I just don’t have the alcohol tolerance to make it in the outdoor industry. But I do have the medical smarts to be useful in the backcountry, and thanks to AMK, I have all the gear too. So you better be nice to me when I overdo the boxed wine over the campfire; I have been known to withhold the bug dope when feeling passive-aggressive.

Find it at REI.com!

You may remember my review of AMK’s Women’s Outdoor Medical Kit, and if you don’t, go read it so I don’t have to recycle my tampon, nail polish, and high heel repair kit jokes. I like AMK stuff enough to write a separate feature for their Women’s Travel Medical Kit, which is only slightly different from the Outdoor Edition. My willingness to feature both products has nothing to do with being loaded up with swag at the AMK Outdoor Retailer booth, or Simon’s willingness to provide hand sanitizer after particularly sweaty handshakes, not at all. But really, the welcome from the AMK crew was great and I enjoyed meeting them in person; and yes, the hand sanitizer was a lifesaver. How did I overlook that when packing for OR?

And I really do like this travel kit, especially the packaging. The Women’s Outdoor Kit had one flaw, and that was how items have a tendency to fall out of the pocket when you open the kit; a design rectified in the Travel kit with two fold-out pockets that keep the inner sleeves safe and secure. The kit itself reflects the usual AMK thoughtfulness, with everything you’ll need for a few days abroad. Blisters, small cuts and scraps, feminine “issues,” and stomach ailments can all be addressed with the items that come in the kit, and there is plenty of room for your own additions such as do-it-yourself Cipro and injectable morphine. It’s worth mentioning that AMK can set you up with everything you might need (barring the Rx items), including some great bug repellents and After Bite treatments in several different formulas, if the included wipes aren’t enough – regular (which evidently stings a bit); children’s for, well, children (and Simon, who said he is wary of the sting in the other formulas); and some other kind that I can’t remember and most importantly don’t want to go in from the 80 degree Alaskan sunshine to check on. And to take advantage of this brilliant segue, AMK provides sun protection for lips and skin in little one-use packets in the Travel Kit. Also available are some innovative first aid products like the (obviously) one-use blood clot packages which can be used to stop heavy bleeding, say, from going hunting with Dick Cheney (and that is a DIRECT quote from AMK, too, so feel secure that your medical kits are evil-free) and a really well-thought-out blister kit with the little doughnuts of moleskin already cut out.

One thing AMK did not do is make the kit pink. Evidently this decision was a result of market research during which many women emphatically stated that the kit should not be pink. Well, thanks a lot ladies; I like pink and therefore am disappointed. But for those of you offended by the “shrink it and pink it” method of developing women’s specific gear, you’ll appreciate the light blue packaging. Personally I appreciate that although the tampons are included as a necessary addition for most women, the rest of the kit’s contents aren’t dumbed-down and sissified. It’s a real travel kit with real applicability, and those of us who don’t need the tampons can just use the space for some other women’s thing, like Pureology shampoo, MAC lip gloss, and an iron-on Seven jeans logo for those times when you don’t want to be caught dead wearing Levis.

The Geargals were all abuzz when we heard we were getting a sample of the new Women’s Outdoor Medical Kit by the folks at Adventure Medical Kits. My musings about what could be in the kit that would render it women’s specific were met with a flood of suggestions, all much more creative than my boring guess of “tampons”. “I think it includes chocolate and red wine,” declared one Geargal. Another was more practical: “A kit for emergency repairs to your acrylic nails, a special gadget for reattaching a wobbly spike heel, or maybe some evening primrose for the sudden onset of PMS.” Struck by inspiration, I jumped back into the discussion with the idea that the kit should have one of those Japanese pillows shaped like a man’s torso and arm, for those nights when you feel like snuggling and a fellah ain’t handy; a suggestion met with a loooooong silence. *crickets*

One thing we all agreed on, though, is that the Women’s Adventure Medical Kit should come with a masseuse (“for the women AND their dogs!” insisted one of our search dog handler Geargals). Well surprise, surprise – NONE of these brilliant ideas were included in the kit. Hmph! And we thought our opinions were valued for product development! But lo! What is this? Oh, look, I was right – tampons! Yes, the kit comes with tampons. Hah.

I didn’t think to ask for a regular kit so I could compare the women’s version and the regular version, but I did go through and check out the contents at face value, and what you get is a really comprehensive, lightweight, well-packaged medical kit that seems to have thought of everything (OK, except for the chocolate, red wine, stiletto fixer, acrylic nail repair kit, and masseuse, but hey). The women’s specific stuff seems to be limited to the tampons, some cramp medication (“Cramp Tabs”, hee!), and extra ibuprofen, but since I don’t have a regular kit to compare to I could be wrong about that. This kit seems to really have thought of everything, down to a little packet of lip balm (perfect for me, since I love re-enacting the desert scene from “The Three Amigos” when trips start turning into epics: “Lip balm?” Oh, I crack myself up).

One of my favorite items in the kit is a little packet of insta-towels. They are about 3/4″ diameter disks that apparently turn into towels when you activate them by putting them in water. I SO want to activate them now, because I bet I’d never get tired of that little trick, but I’ll resist until I really need them. I suspect they won’t be as compact and easy to carry once expanded, and it will be difficult to get them back into little disk form, to say the least.

One of the first things I always do with a new pre-packaged med kit is to assimilate all the little packets of medications into little baggies or jars, because I don’t like dealing with the little individual packets, but that’s up to you. The meds run the gamut from painkillers to antidiarrheal agents, and it seems that with this kit you could deal with a weekend’s worth of minor issues to one significant injury or illness. In addition to the meds, there’s bandaging material, gauze, moleskin, antibiotic ointment, gloves, biohazard bags, bandaids, burn dressings, you name it. With a few choice additions you could easily up the ante and turn this kit into a mini-trauma kit and outfit it for more serious issues. The kit comes with a first aid book, which I first thought was kind of silly considering I’m a lightweight gear junkie and don’t want to lug a book around, but the book is so comprehensive and helpful that it should definitely stay in the kit for anyone who isn’t 100% savvy about responding to medical emergencies. If you’re good to go on the knowledge front, you can take the book out and have even more room for stuff in the little kit bag. The bag really holds a lot of stuff; my one complaint being that only one side of the bag has a zip-shut pocket. The other side (the “medications” side) has folder-style pockets, which I don’t get because things tend to fall out of folder pockets so you have to be careful when you open the outer zipper. I will give the designers props for resisting the urge to apply the dreaded velcro solution, but nevertheless it would be nice to have a way to close that side of the kit.

A great little medical kit, plus tampons and “Cramp Tabs.” You can’t go wrong! And here’s a little tip: you can always slide your own chocolate bar into the amply-sized pouch. You’ll have to figure out another way to bring your masseuse on your trips.

As I live and breathe, they have this kit at REI.com! Chocolate bar not included. Still a steal at $30.00. Click here!