Come on!

[Alex Blain-Laider]

So I agree Victorinox makes some real nice and versatile knives, but when I saw this video from Andrew Skurka (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PzvF6X5WgtA) I was turned off by the blaten marketing approach to the testimonial.

[bamboo bob]

Nifty knife but now I carry a min-leatherman knockoff. $5 works fine.

[Maineiac64]

The video was from a knife company and features an endorser and the end is a big victorinox logo so it is obviously intended as an advertisement and not a stealth marketing ploy.

[cmoulder]

It's an ad and he's endorsing a product which he apparently actually uses.

To me the dead giveaways were the full-screen Victorinox logos at the beginning and the end, and also the shots featuring the endorser using the product and talking about its usefulness to him.

Can't blame a guy who has made a name for himself by backpacking trying to monetize it. Man gotta make a livin', y'know??

[Feral Bill]

It's a good ad for a good product. Not a problem from my point of view.

[ScareBear]

Its a product testimonial, not a documentary....

About the worst you could say is that Andrew "sold out"...but, as long as he really actually carries one...I don't see the sell out.

I'd never carry one on the trail, I've got something far superior, but each to their own.

Celebrity endorser gives a testimonial...that's never happened before....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wAoVyiZVGq0

[4eyedbuzzard]

Yeah, it's not disguised in any way as to what it is - a commercial with an endorsement from someone considered an expert in his field of endeavor. Nobody pays you by the mile for hiking. The only way guys like Skurka can make money is through books, guides, product trials, endorsements, etc. If he actually uses their products as he says, I don't see any problem. I personally carry individual items that I use - knife, tweezers, P-38 can opener, etc. If I hiked longer distances, I'd throw in nail clippers and a small nail file. I prefer individual tools designed for the job at hand, and I honestly don't have use for a lot of the other stuff that's on most SAK's. But that's a personal choice.

[Alex Blain-Laider]

I guess I think it would have been a bit more "aligned" if you only saw one knife per shot rather than two or three.

[Time Zone]

I hope he got a little bit from Cascade Designs for that one too.
The dude has earned it, IMO. As long as he's sincere about how he feels about the stuff I have no problem at all with him passing along gear advice in the form of an advertisement. Now, he he starts touting the benefits of Gore-Tex, I'll know something fishy is up.