Founded in 1967, JanSport has grown from a small outdoors bag company to one of the largest bag manufacturers in the United States. The founders started the bag company with modest and simple bags that served their function well.
Now, about 42 years after the company first started, JanSport is digging back into their roots and introducing a line of “heritage series” bags and backpacks that go back to the original designs that made JanSport such a trusted name in the industry.
Shown here is the Heads-Up backpack in retro-orange, complete with a different JanSport logo and some very nice details that make this bag stand out among the rest of JanSport’s offerings. The bag is made from weathered Cordura fabric that carries with it a look that’s both brand-new yet gently used. The bag has some nice leather on the handle and near the strap connectors that really bring out the retro/vintage feel in the bag.
The Heads-Up can be carried briefcase style or in backpack mode with a simple unzipping of the back compartment which holds the backpack straps when they aren’t in use. Comfort-wise, the seatbelt straps don’t really hurt at all or dig into the shoulders. They don’t have any padding whatsoever on them so it’s safe to assume that the heavier load you’ve got and the farther you’re going, the more this is going to be a pain. I very much like the look of the plain and simple seatbelt straps and my only gripe about them is that they cannot be made tighter to fit smaller bodies.
Overall, this is a quality bag from top to bottom. It’s got enough compartments to hold more than a day’s worth of trip junk and it’s incredibly fashionable even though it was made ages ago in its original form. You can check out the rest of the JanSport heritage series
