Apr 30 2011
You Don’t Know What You’ve Got Till It’s Gone:
The Irreplaceable Halt! Holder
Not long ago I received a letter from a sharp-eyed reader. He’d noticed a canister of HALT! clipped to my handlebars in a photo that I used to illustrate an earlier article.
He’d been carrying his HALT! in his handlebar bag, where it was all but impossible to grab hold of quickly when he needed it most. Now he figured he’d found a better way. He was right. And here it is:
The “HALT! Holder” was sold by online retailer Nashbar. It was a simple but effective design, keeping a canister of HALT! at the ready, within easy reach, yet clasping it firmly enough to hold it in place on the roughest of rough roads. It was also dirt cheap. But… You’ll have noticed that I used the past tense. That’s because it’s no longer available. Not at Nashbar. Not anywhere. An online search yielded plenty of glowing reviews, but not one seller. And that’s what I had to tell my reader.
The moral of the story? Modern marketing places little value on product longevity. So if you find something that works, and if the price isn’t prohibitive, buy a couple more than you need—just in case. And if you own a HALT! Holder, guard it with your life. You won’t be able to replace it if you lose it.
