One of the things that we liked about the Comfort Pro Rocker when we were in the store testing chairs, was that unlike some folding chairs, when the Comfort Pro Rocker is set up, the seat area is pulled taught, so when you sit in the chair it does not sink, and you do not feel the front cross bars on the outside your legs. That is something that I could not stand about many of the early fold up chairs and is still something that I check for before buying a chair. The high back of this chair is also great as it provides nice support all the way up past my shoulders and doesn’t fold in either. However, I will say that through use, and over time, I feel that the seat has stretched a little, which I guess is to be expected of any woven type of material. As of now the chair is still very comfortable, even for baseball double headers.
The rocking feature of the chair is nice as it provides some give when you sit in the chair. It also helps when the ground isn’t level, or when you need to sit on a slight hill as it allows you to level yourself out a bit and not feel like you are falling forwards. While we generally don’t “rock” back and forth in the chairs, it does allow the chair to recline a bit which adds to the overall comfort of the chair. I personally wouldn’t say it’s a must have feature in a chair for me, but it’s very high on the nice to have list for sure.
The cup holder in the arm rest is nice, and fairly large for the fixed ring type. We have had chairs with cup holders in a variety of places, from the arm rest to a swing out holder on the seat of the chair. Overall, I wouldn’t say that any of them are perfect, but the holders in the arm rest are definitely the most durable type in my opinion. The cup holder in the Comfort Pro Rocker holds a variety of sized containers from typical soda cans and bottles of water to Loud Cups, 30oz Yeti Ramblers, and many other similar sized items. The pocket is fairly deep, allowing even the taller cups to sit firmly in the cup holder and not look like they can tip on you with the slightest movement. On the other side of the chair, the little pocket is great for keys, cell phones, and other small things. It is a little small, but it is effective for what it is, and since it’s the same fabric of the chair instead of just a mesh bag like some of the chairs I’ve had in the past, I’m hoping that it lasts longer than past chairs we have had.
The one issue we have with the chairs is when folding them up. To close them you stand behind the chair and pull the arms towards you. Once they reach the back, you then have to push the sides in to finish closing the chair. Our two chairs seem to stick when trying to do the final step, forcing us to have to almost hug them to try and squeeze them together, or put them on their side and push down. It definitely makes me feel like people are staring at me trying to close the chairs, and I feel that when the chair eventually breaks it is going to be because of this. I have tried to figure out where it is sticking, or what joint needs pressure on it to rotate into the closed position, but as of now I have not had any luck isolating the issue. I do feel like this is something that has gotten worse over time, but at the same time, the fact that it is happening to both of our chairs does make be believe that it is something more in the design than user error.
Overall, I would say that we are pretty happy with our Comfort Pro Rocker Chairs from GCI Outdoor. It is nice to know that while made overseas, the company is headquartered and the products designed in the United States (Connecticut). I’m not sure if I would purchase these same chairs again when we are looking, I think it would really depend on how long they last and what ends up happening long term with the difficulties closing them. I do believe I would purchase another chair from GCI Outdoors if I had a need for another chair today.
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