STAFF REVIEWS NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC FIT FINS - VIDEO


VIDEO - STAFF REVIEWS NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC FIT FINS
This video is a no holds barred review of the National Geographic FIT travel fins. Our staff members Cathy and Roy discuss the good, the bad and the ugly points of this fin. Roy was impressed with the kick of the National Geographic Fit Fins. Maneuverability was not as good with these fins as with other that Roy tested. With carrying a most prestigious name Cathy did express disappointment in the quality of their snorkeling gear. We have since discontinued the line because of poor quality and returns.

Continue to view our Snorkeling Videos and Snorkeling Guides.


STAFF REVIEWS NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC FIT FINS - VIDEO TRANSCRIPT:
Roy: This time I had all the animals following me under water because they were looking at the National Geographic emblem on here.
Cathy: I was going to say, animals? And then you threw in the National Geographic, no pun intended.
Roy: These are the Fit Traveler fins by National Geographic. They are probably one of the shortest fins out there. Do you agree on this one? Or are there some that are a little bit shorter? 15 to 17 inches.
Cathy: Yeah, okay. They're equal to other travel fins.
Roy: Now when I was using these, they are the definite panel-style fins. I was getting pretty good kick off of them, I really was. Like I said, I went out, about ten kick cycles, checked it out on how far I was from the dock here and then kicked back to it. Maneuverability really isn't as good on this one, on turns and stuff like that. You do have the deep side rails on here that help channel the water towards the center of the fin, but it basically kicks off of these two areas here. Drawback to this one --
Cathy: You know, I�m going to interrupt, Roy. What's nice about the National Geographic Fit Traveler fin is it's probably one of the few snorkeling fins out there that have a wider foot pocket.
Roy: That's true.
Cathy: And we see so many snorkelers that have wide feet. Not necessarily big, but wide and --
Roy: Oh right.
Cathy: And a lot of the travel fins, and even the traditional snorkeling fins, any fin that you have barefoot you cannot find a fin that's wide enough, so that is what's special about it.
Roy: This also will allow you to wear the sock or the Neoprene bootie in it. The one thing that I'm not super impressed about is the fin strap.
Cathy: Yeah.
Roy: If you notice on this one, it is pretty thin. It's very comfortable on the bare foot but I know that a lot of people, when you tighten the fin strap, it does stay nice and snug but people have a tendency to pull too far on it. This is a thinner fin strap. Now do they have a replacement strap out for this?
Cathy: No. And I was just going to say that, you know, let's talk about price point. This is the most expensive snorkeling fin on the market. Now are we, for the quality, I was quite disappointed in that thin strap because the finger loop on the heel, Roy? Point that out. It breaks very easily and because we love our customers, of course we'll take back anything, even if they use it, we want you to be happy. And our mantra is we don't want you to buy twice.
Roy: But you think that they should know about that.
Cathy: Yeah. Shame on you, National Geographic, for not having available extra heel straps, thin straps.
Roy: It does have a quick release mechanism and what I noticed is on trying different manufacturer's fin straps on it, the posts here are a little bit too narrow for that.
Cathy: Right.
Roy: And so not any fin strap, for some reason, is going to fit on it.
Cathy: Right.
Roy: I'm not too keen on this.
Cathy: Yeah. That's pretty cheap too. Roy: It's pretty thin. I don't know how it's going to stand up. If I want fins, I want them to last me a couple of seasons.
Cathy: Oh! A couple?
Roy: Yeah.
Cathy: They better last you ten years if you take care of them.
Roy: Definitely. Definitely. And if a fin strap breaks, I don't want to have to throw the whole thing out.
Cathy: Yeah.
Roy: So the important thing on the fin is get a replaceable fin strap, you know?
Cathy: Yeah.
Roy: The foot pocket is nice and soft though.
Cathy: It's quite disappointing that National Geographic; I know we're paying for the name and they should be proud of their name, but I'm very disappointed in the low quality of snorkeling equipment that they do have. And we'll be testing out more of their equipment in a bit.
Roy: Hopefully there will be some redeeming factors.
Cathy: Hopefully.
Roy: Yes.
Cathy: Thanks Roy.
Roy: Okay.