Bought these poles at the last minute before backpacking Isle Royale National Park. Was very happy I got them as they proved to be very helpful and handy on some of the rugged trails and wooden walkways. They are light, fold down to a nice length and come with rubber tips AND snowshoe baskets which will be handy this winter. Not an extra expense like others. Downsides....one of the grips had a little play on the pole shaft and both grips for whatever reason turn and lock the shock feature while hiking but even locked there is about 1" of shock absorption available so wasn't really noticeable. Overall for the price and extra features I'd highly recommend these trekking poles.