RainStoppers 68-Inch Oversize Windproof Golf Umbrella

will flip inside out, but it doesn't break the umbrella. will just flip right back, even after flipping inside out multiple times. the poles holding the fabric of the umbrella are flexible

Okay, so I purchased this umbrella in April 2014 and it's been through the spring, summer, and now fall rain storms. I've never had a problem with it being too windy this year so I didn't really care about the description with it being wind proof. I did read the reviews of people complaining that it's not wind proof because it turns inside out. I've had this happen to previous umbrellas and they are useless after.Halloween night 2014, I was keeping 3 little ones and myself dry (the umbrella is THAT big) going to house to house. Just as I began to move to the next house, a strong gust of wind got under the umbrella and turned it inside out. I cringed and thought "great...now we're walking back in the rain. BUT guess what!? The umbrella is designed to do this! I didn't realize this! Once I put it back down, it went back to it's original shape and none of the rods were broken.I will buy another one in a fun color. I have the black and white one and it's pretty, but I think I want another one with some bold color in it. Maybe Red. Who knows. ^_^Edit: Jan 2015The wind got under the umbrella and once again, it went back to it's original form with no broken parts. I think this is the best umbrella I've purchased.Edit: August 2016Still going strong. We've had a lot of rain this summer. still intact!Edit: April 2017 LOTS of rain this year! The wind overturned it twice this year already, but it always comes back down and is good to go! Still looks new! No holes or anything. I'm very happy with this umbrella!Edit 2019-I still have this umbrella! I haven't had too many flipped up incidents. I did one time on a day I had no business opening an upbrella anyway. It was so windy.but I thought if I kind of tilted it down more like a shield, I'd be OK. Nope. Flipped up. So did others in my office building. The difference is mine came back down while my coworkers dealt with their broken umbrellas. This is turning out to be my best purchase ever!!!!

Shipping was fast with Prime. The umbrellas seem to be about the same quality as the ones carried in the local big box sporting goods stores. While the umbrellas were a tad bit larger than the previous one I had purchased in the golf department at the local sporting goods store (50" diameter) they were not as large as anticipated. I was expecting the umbrellas to be 68" in diameter but they only measured 58". I made these measurements by opening the umbrellas and measuring across the diameter of the bottom of the canopy. The only way I could find to get anything close to a 68" measurement was by opening the umbrellas and measuring along the bowed top of the canopy and all the way to the tips of the framework. Maybe this is the normal way of measuring an umbrella. I don't know. I thought it should be a measurement across the opening (the bottom) to let a person know how large of an area would be covered. This other way of measurement would not give a person any idea of the coverage area because it would vary depending upon how much of a bow the umbrella has. For example, look at a 'bubble' style umbrella. It may be 68" along the top of the canopy to the tips but the covered area or opening may only be 36" across. I just wanted to make any other prospective buyers aware of this. Other than this the umbrellas seem to be of pretty good value for the money and I'll probably keep them seeing as how inexpensive they were. Considering how many umbrellas my wife and I have had stolen from us each year and how often it rains in West Virgina (average of 3 out of 5 days here) I think these will be plenty good enough to pack around. HINT: If you want your umbrella to shed rain better and dry out quicker, spray it down with automobile wax or silicone and then let it dry before use. Periodic retreatments may be necessary depending upon frequency of use.

I love the size of this umbrella. I am 5'6 and have a 7 year old and a 4 year old. The three of us can be under this and I am not hitting it on my head to keep them covered or tipping it completely off of me to keep the rain off them. The size is perfect. In normal rain this is great protection. It is easy to manage while holding my kids hands and folds up nicely when it stops raining. The problem comes in when it is a hard rain with wind. The seams are not tight enough to keep the water from dripping through. It keeps the majority of the rain off but it still drips quite a bit and you can't keep completely dry. I like it so much though, that I am going to get some tent waterproof spray and spray the seams to see if it will seal it for that type of rain. This would be perfect for shade on a sunny day, too!

Recently I pretty much "gave up" on a 68" traditional curved handle steel and nylon umbrella which I had been using for over 20 or more years. It is the same size as this one, but used steel stays and tips hand stitched to the nylon fabric with at least twice as many stays as this new umbrella boasts. The old umbrella had finally been wind damaged to the point where way too many of the threads that tied the cover fabric to the frame had broken and a couple of 40mph gusts had repeatedly turned it inside out, doing more damage to the connection between the fabric and the stays. I figured it was going to take me at least a couple of hours work to re-stitch the old umbrella and at my age my time is more valuable than the $20 expense of the replacement. I spent almost an hour looking for something closer to the umbrella I had given up on before settling on this one. It is surprisingly light weight due to the fiberglass components, but appears substantially made. I have yet to test it in the kind of wind my routine dog walk of a bit over a mile 365 days a year can subject an umbrella to. The old one stood up to gusts for years and years before finally dying. I'm sure I'm going to have to be a little more sensitive to the situation, and probably close the new one on occasion to prevent damage.

we only use this umbrella when we take the dogs out to do their business when it rains. have used maybe 10-15 times at MOST and the locking mechanism that keeps the umbrella open no longer works.

I bought 3 golf umbrellas of different manufactures and size (2x 62" inch and this 68" inch) and this is by far the most superior of the 3 in all respects. This is the perfect size for me and I stand at 6'1, 275lbs with very wide shoulders. I don't feel the need to squish up into a smaller frame to use this umbrella and I have enough room under the canopy where I do not need to favour my left or right side in a downpour.Even coverage all around for a big guy with good build quality. I'll be buying more of these.