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Bryce Thatcher Bio
President / Director of Design

StatPacks Bryce Thatcher joined StatPacks as one of the leading backpack designers in the outdoor industry. In more than 20 years of experience, Thatcher pioneered some of the field's most significant innovations, from articulating harness systems to hydration packs. All of these concepts came from his own extreme sports experience. Through StatPacks, Thatcher brings that innovative eye to the EMS industry.

Thatcher, who studied Biomechanics and Kinesiology at Brigham Young University, preaches that a pack should work with you, not against you. A pack that is efficiently structured and organized, with a low center of gravity that is close to the body, frees the wearer's mind, hands and upper body. Well-formed shoulder straps and hip belts, and an ergonomic shape make a pack more comfortable to wear. Placing accessories where they are easily accessible makes the wearer more efficient.

“The best packs almost go unnoticed, because they function so flawlessly,” Thatcher said. “Your pack needs to be an extension of your body.”

Thatcher knows what it's like to depend on your gear in extreme situations. When people find out what he does for fun, they just shake their head in disbelief. An accomplished extreme endurance athlete, Thatcher has worn his own packs as a two-time All-American cross-country skier; at the MSOQ adventure race in Lijiang, China; while pioneering “fastpacking” on a record-setting run of Highline Trail in Wyoming's Wind River Range; and while making a record sub-9 hour self-supported solo ride of Utah's White Rim Trail. He still holds the Grand Teton ascent-descent speed record, traversing 18 miles and ascending (then descending) 7000 vertical feet in 3 hours, 6 minutes. But all that experience feeds into what he needs from his equipment.

“Using the gear in the field makes me look at everything with a critical eye,” Thatcher said. “I'm always looking for an edge, a n advantage over the competition -- even when you're just racing the clock. What may seem like a minor detail could be the difference when you're coming down to the wire.”

In 1986, Thatcher founded Ultimate Direction to take his gear to the world. Ultimate Direction became the market leader in gear for outdoor endurance athletes, and was eventually sold to Sierra Designs (owned by American Recreation Products). Thatcher joined StatPacks after his contract with American Recreation Products ended in 2003.

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