A Watch that Walks the Walk

The Outdoor Retailer was full of flashy, over-lit booths showcasing trendy gear that mostly costs a fortune. Rather than get sucked into the glitz, I gravitated to the unassuming entities. One of them was the Bertucci Watch booth.

Mike Bertucci, the president of the Illinois-based company, stood behind the glass counter. I brought him my personal time piece beefs:

• Companies claim their watches are luminous at night. They aren’t. Those “glow in the dark” hands and faces don’t glow enough for one to tell the time. So, what’s the point?
• Nice, durable men’s watches don’t fit women’s wrists.
• The crown (the small, round knob used to set the time and usually placed at three o’clock) often digs into the top of the wrist or gets caught on something, unsetting the time.
• Really good watches cost too much and still can’t handle the inevitable tough treatment any outdoors-y person would give it.

A crude photo of the watch at 3 am, taken while camping

Bertucci, who founded his company a decade ago in , showed me his line of field watches. He likes to say they’re understated and they over-perform. Later, he sent me one of his Original Classic Analog watches to go up against my complaints.

I took it camping, hiking, and riding. And I guess I’ll just have to stop grumbling now.

• Tossing hay to the horses after sunset and later, in a dark tent, I could read the time just fine. Who wants to rely on a cell phone for time, especially in the backcountry when power is iffy and you’re trying to get away from tech anyway? Hooray!
• The crown is placed at four o’clock. It doesn’t dig into my wrist and doesn’t catch on anything, even a bracelet on the same wrist.
• The watch is light (less than two ounces), not the least bit clunky, but seems ready for everything this watch abuser is ready to hand out.
• Holes in the band accommodate the smallest wrists. No problem.

Thanks, Mike. Problems solved.

Bertucci watches retail from about $60 to $200, depending on features and style. The Original Classic I reviewed costs about $169.