CollegiateLuggage.com - Where facts and opinions come to party

If you weren't watching it on television (or one of the lucky few Razorback fans to attend the game in person) you missed one of the best examples of why collegiate football wins the "excitement" title over pro football, hands down.

Last night I watched the Arkansas vs. LSU game in Baton Rouge go into TRIPLE overtime, at which time by rule both teams must go for the 2-point conversion after scoring a touchdown. Arkansas converted for 2... LSU didn't. And with that, Arkansas had defeated the #1 ranked collegiate football team in the Nation.

I'm not a sports writer. I sell Swiss Army luggage decorated with college logos. But I do know when I have seen an epic game and this was one for the books. My congratulations to the UARK team and their fans. And to the Tigers of LSU, my appreciation for a hard-fought, well-played game. Ya can't win 'em all.

Woot!

CollegiateLuggage.com - Where facts and opinions come to share eggnog.

If the ads on television, newspapers, magazines and the radio, plus the ever-present Holiday decor in every retail store haven't already clued you in, then allow us to help:

The Holiday Season is fast approaching.

Santa Claus and his reindeer; wrapped gifts piled up beneath the Christmas tree: Hanukkah dreidles spinning (Papa wants a gimmel); and the seven days of Kwanzaa carry us to the end of the year.

At the risk of sounding self-serving, have you considered giving Swiss Army Luggage to your friends and loved ones this year? If you are still sort of mulling over exactly what to give to the special people on your list, let us tell you why our collegiate logo luggage is such a great gift idea:

• We offer gift items from under $50 all the way up to "Wow!"
  


• Each item we sell comes with the Victorinox® "Carry with Confidence" Lifetime Guarantee. If it malfunctions we fix it for free.
  


• Most of the folks you know (and pretty much everyone else as well) are currently using worn, outdated, unattractive luggage because it's what they have. Wouldn't you like your Holiday gift to make a nice difference?
  


• Our Swiss Army luggage in their school colors, or embroidered with their favorite school logo (or both) will make them proud to use the luggage and make the luggage easier to spot at baggage claim.
  


• Our Swiss Army luggage is specially treated to repel jet fuel (think about it).
  


• Regardless of wear and tear, a soft rag and some Simple Green are all you need to clean up scuffs and dirt. This luggage is going to look better, longer.

Now let's talk about timing. Each of the travel and business gear items in our Collegiate Luggage program are already made, but the decorating with your college's logo is done "to-order" and requires a lead time of 10 business days.

That's a fancy-schmancy way of saying "two weeks". From our warehouse in St. Louis figure another 3 days for UPS Ground delivery and you can see why we are giving you fair warning NOW:

The cutoff date for ORDERING of our luggage items is December 7th.
After that we cannot guarantee that your order will arrive in time for Christmas.

What If We Order After the Cutoff Date?
We have a fallback plan: We will send those folks who order Swiss Army luggage gifts after the 7th a nice color image of the item(s) they've ordered, shown with their collegiate logo design on the item so they can at least give their friends and family a nice "filler" until the actual gift luggage arrives. It's not a perfect solution but it's the thought that counts.

So, let's recap:

1. Swiss Army Travel & Business Gear makes great Holiday gifts.
   
   
2. Most of the folks you know would not only want collegiate logo luggage, but absolutely need it.
   
   
3. Orders placed between now and December 7th will assure that the items you order arrive in time for Christmas.
   
   
4. Orders that miss the December 7th cutoff will still get a nice product picture to give in lieu of the actual luggage item (which will arrive shortly after the Holidays).

The only thing left to mention is "Gift Giving Continuity."
One of our art directors came up with this idea, for which we rewarded her with a 3-piece set of Swiss Army Luggage. Which is ironic, since this is exactly what she was suggesting in the first place - instead of giving one piece of luggage as a Holiday gift, why not pool your resources and give that special person a matched set of luggage items?

Plus, Victorinox® Swiss Army's designers never sleep. They are always creating new items and updating the existing versions of each item to make them better. At this rate, you could consider giving Swiss Army business and travel gear every year and never run short of items and ideas.

We know what we are talking about - we do this for a living. Have a cool Yule!

CollegiateLuggage.com - where facts and opinions come to party.

The Elephant's association with Alabama dates back to the 1930 football season when the Crimson Tide was led by Coach Wallace Wade. There are two stories about how Alabama became associated with the elephant.

Officially, following the 1930 game versus Ole Miss, Atlanta Journal sports writer Everett Strupper wrote:

"At the end of the quarter, the earth started to tremble, there was a distant rumble that continued to grow. Some excited fan in the stands bellowed, 'Hold your horses, the elephants are coming,' and out stamped this Alabama varsity. It was the first time that I had seen it and the size of the entire eleven nearly knocked me cold, men that I had seen play last year looking like they had nearly doubled in size."

Sports writers continued to refer to Alabama as the "Red Elephants" afterwards, referring to their crimson jerseys. The 1930 team shut out eight of ten opponents, allowing a total of only 13 points all season. The "Red Elephants" rolled up 217 points that season, including a 24-0 victory over Washington State in the Rose Bowl.

Another account attributes the Rosenberger's Birmingham Trunk Company for the elephant association. Alabama used the Birmingham Trunk Company's luggage to travel to the 1930 Rose Bowl. The luggage company's trademark was a red elephant standing on a trunk. When the football team arrived in Pasadena , the reporters greeting them associated their large size with the elephants on their luggage.

Despite these early associations of the elephant to the University of Alabama, the university did not officially accept the elephant as university mascot until 1979.

Since our company is all about the Swiss Army Luggage and business gear we heartily endorse the latter version of this small-but-important piece of collegiate sports history. Roll Tide!