Outdoor Retailer Summer Market '07 - Day 3

Other articles in this series (OR Summer 2007): Day 1 Blog Day 2 Blog

J. Wilder

Welcome back, it’s the third day of the show and things have calmed somewhat from the hectic pace of the first two days. It’s the last day of the show for me, while we’ll be visiting some major manufacturers, I tried to set quite a bit of time aside to visit some of the smaller folks who are just entering the market- and there’s some really neat things out there! I also visited some folks that have been around, but haven’t really made headway in the climbing community but still make a great product.

Before we get started, though, I forgot to mention that I went to a special preview of the Reel Rock Tour on Friday night. The Tour will present King Lines, the new Peter Mortimer and Josh Lowell film starring Chris Sharma, as well as an amazing grit movie called Committed. It kicks off on September 1st in Squamish, BC before touring Canada and then down into the US. Check http://www.reelrocktour.com to see if the show is coming to your town! Now, that said, let’s head on down to the Salt Palace to meet with the boys from Evolv!

Evolv

As always, Evolv lets me base camp at their booth during the show- although I haven’t used it as much as I’d like this time around as I’ve been fairly busy with appointment. Buck and I sat down first thing this morning to talk about the new shoes, and boy are there a lot of new shoes! First up, two great shoes with great causes. The Hera (available now!), an all-around intermediate shoe where 1% of the proceeds go to the Hera Foundation for Ovarian Cancer research; and the new Quest-AF, an updated version of their most famous shoe- and Evolv will be donating 1% of the proceeds to the Access Fund. Check them out:

J. Wilder

J. Wilder

Next up in the line for spring release is the Pontas Lace-up, a lace version of the Pontas with a stiffer midsole. In addition to the Pontas, Chris Sharma came into the Evolv shop and helped the crew develop another brand-new shoe, this one with an all new last that Chris cut himself- the Optimus and its Velcro brother, Optimus Prime.

J. Wilder

J. Wilder

J. Wilder

Evolv is also releasing the Maximus, their first big wall shoe! It’s a high top with a padded interior as well as a treaded sole and heel. It does, however, have a non-treaded toe to let you bust out of your aiders occasionally. A full rand along with plenty of toe coverage round out the shoe. Along with the Maximus, Evolv is also releasing the Okapi- a full leather shoe (the only one in their retail line), and an updated Predator which features more camber and heel tension.

J. Wilder

J. Wilder

J. Wilder

Finally, Evolv is releasing a pair of new approach shoes. They are similar shoes with the same last, but have one key difference. The Rex is for lighter approaches and has a full EVA sole along with a solid tread at the toe for climbing. The Stryker is similar, except that the EVA stops at the toes, allowing for more sensitivity and assurance when climbing on harder terrain.Both shoes feature a honeycombed gel insole that will be standard with all of their future approach shoes. Evolv is also releasing a women’s version of the Rex.

GoLite

I’ve always been aware of GoLite as a company, but I really have never had a chance to check out their products. That changed this year when I sat down with Len and Colin to talk about GoLite’s spring stuff. GoLite is releasing a TON of new tarps and tents this year- 14 to be exact. 9 tarp models and 5 tents- all new and all super light. Their old pyramid shelter, the Hex, is the inspiration for their new Shangri-La series of pyramid shelters. There’s six models ranging from a single person to 8 people. All feature SilLite- a silicone impregnated material that’s tested to 1000ml of waterproofness. They’re lightweight too, the Shangri-La 1 clocks in at 1lb 5oz and uses your trekking poles, while the Shangri-La 8 weighs only 6lbs 8oz and includes poles!

Their other new series is the Utopia, a series of 3 tarps that look like tents (without the bottom) and behave like them as well. When testing for condensation, they took them out into an environment with 80% humidity at 60 degrees and got zero beading of water on the tent. Impressive. The Utopia 2+ will sleep three in a pinch and only weighs 2lbs 10oz- add a pound for the optional floor.

GoLite is also revamping their sleeping bag line into three series, the Venture, the Adrenaline, and the Ultra. The Venture and the Adrenaline each have three packs- a 40, 20, and 0 degree bag, and the Ultra has just one 20 degree bag. The Venture series are the plush, family bags. The Adrenaline are the core enthusiast bags- they feature a middle zip (zip at your chest) that’s 30” long. This allows them to have the face opening to be a perfect oval, which in turn cinches down to a miniscule opening just big enough for your nostrils. The Adrenaline 20 comes in at 1lb 14oz with 800-fill goose down. All of their bags now feature Pertex waterproof hood and footboxes to keep the water off your feet and head when they rub up against the tent. The Ultra bag is a ridiculously minimal bag- no bottom or hood, and checks in at 1lb 3oz.

Finally, GoLite is introducing a hooded version of its Wisp Wind Shirt. This Wind and water resistant shirt is not only priced right at $70 ($50 for the non-hooded version) and packs into its own pocket, it is also ridiculously light. The Wisp clocks in at 3oz while its hooded brother the Ether tips the scales at 4oz. Incredible.

The Wisp (left) and packed up for storage (right). The Ether will be slightly bigger.

Patagonia Footwear

Patagonia Footwear debuted at the last winter show to good reviews and an amazing product with a focus on the green. At their second show, Whitney and crew have a few new shoes to show us and a trophy as well. On Friday, Patagonia’s Finn shoe won the Green Gear ’07 award from Outside Magazine! Congrats! Following up on the Finn, they’re releasing the Thatcher in the spring- it features a recycled rubber sole and a synthetic polycork insole to absorb moisture. It also collapses nicely. It will retail for $90 and come out in the spring.

Another addition to the Explorer series (all named after explorers) is the Tenzing, a very lightweight, water-inspired shoe. It has a mesh upper and drain holes along the insole to get the last of the squishyness out if you happen to get your feet wet. A lug sole and a 1lb 4oz weight finish this shoe. It will retail at $90 and come out in the spring.

Also new in the spring will be the Gallo, named after an ice-shelf, a very eco-friendly shoe made of mostly hemp, featuring a habea natural latex sole, stitch construction, and a wool footbed. It will retail at $110 most due to the expensive nature of the rubber molding. Patagonia will also debut the Flop-along, a printed sandal made of recycled rubber that will retail for $50.

Polarpak

My next stop was a fun little company called Polarpak. These folks sell a freezable hydration bladder that weighs 1lb frozen and will keep your water cold for up to 8 hours. It features an insulated hose, antimicrobial bite valve, a non-toxic gel pack on the backside, and coolest of all, a quick release hose so you don’t have to take your hose out of the pack. The 70oz model retails for just about thirty bucks.

New this year is the MoFlow bladder. This is a pressurized (that’s right, pressurized) bladder that holds its pressure for about 80% of the bladders water before becoming more like a regular bladder. It takes about 20-30 seconds to pressurize the bladder using an included pump that attaches to the hose via quick-release. This bladder also features microban on the inside and will dispense 30% more water than a non-pressurized bladder. The MoFlow will retail at $32 for a 70oz and $33 for a 100oz model. Coming soon for this bladder are an inline filter that hooks to the hose that will filter 10 gallons of water and a shower attachment.

C.A.M.P.

I actually didn’t have an appointment with CAMP this year, but I stopped by just in case something neat was coming out. It’s a good thing I did, otherwise I might well be flayed alive by tricam lovers everywhere. This spring, CAMP is introducing two NEW tricams- the .25 and the .125!

Pretty sweet, eh? They’ll retail at around $17 or $18 and are due out in the spring. Also new this spring is the new Nano carabiner. I bet you thought the old Nano was light. Guess again- the new one is REALLY light- light enough to make other 1oz carabiners look heavy. The new Nano clocks in at 23g, sacrificing a bit of strength and bulk to reach that number. It’s the same size and has the same rope bearing diameter, but its thinned down everywhere else to lose weight. It’s also a little weaker- rated to only 20kn, 7kn, and 7kn, but CAMP feels that its worth it for the weight. The new Nano will replace the old one come spring.

As if that weren’t enough, Camp is also introducing a new helmet line to compete with BD’s Half Dome- the Armor helmet. Priced at $60 and available in 5 colors for Men, 4 for women, and 2 for kids, it’s the most colorful line on the market.

Also coming out this spring is the Jade CR harness, which is their Jade harness with adjustable leg loops. The Moki CR will also come out this spring and feature edge-load construction (i.e. frame construction similar to other folks) and a no-twist belay loop. The Quartz harness, which has a quick-adjust swami, but the quick adjust can be undone completely, allowing for more versatility. Also, Camp is releasing a $100 helmet called the Cosmic that features a ratchet chin-strap adjustment instead of those cursed side adjustments that we all hate! Finally, the Magix cramp-on- “Innovative X design with M shaped deflection eliminates the majority of the cross friction that allows snow to build up. Combined with a new lightweight Vibram® anti-balling plate and smooth finish, users can hike and climb with absolute security in any kind of snow in any part of the world.”

Numa Tactical

Numa is a brand-new company that opened up in January this year and is making its first OR appearance at the summer market. They are a sunglass company that prides itself on making nigh indestructible eyewear. The frames are made of Memfiber and can be bent, twisted, stretched, and stomped on and immediately bounce back to their original shape. The frames are even reinforced at the hinges to prevent breakage. The lenses are polycarbonate with a hard coat on them to resist scratching. Best of all, they have a lifetime, no-questions asked warranty- send the glasses and $30 and you get a new pair, no-questions asked. There are a wide variety of frames and lenses, but only three prices you need to worry about. The glasses are $129 if you want polarized lenses, $99 if you don’t, and if you want a two sets of additional lenses, that will run you $30. They’re still new enough that they aren’t in many stores, so check them out on the web at www.Numatactical.com.

Nuun

Nuun is a fun company with fun reps who actually climb. Jackie is a rock climber who swore by Nuun’s stuff long before she got a job there. Nuun is an electrolyte drink in tablet form. It’s sugar free, and also doesn’t have any extras- just electrolytes. Each tab will treat 16oz of water- I tried each flavor out, and while I liked some more than others, they were all drinkable and definitely not very strong. Nuun comes in 4 different flavors- lemon-lime, tri-berry, citrus fruit, and kona cola (caffeinated). They’re available at REI and EMS and each tube will treat 1.5 gallons of water. Coming this spring is Bigger Nuun, where each tablet will treat 32oz of water, perfect for the ever-present nalgene bottle! Visit them at www.nuun.com.

While I was at Nuun, I also found out about another guy who wants to recycle your ropes, only instead of pellitizing them, he wants to make stuff with them. Please visit www.greenguru.com for more information.

Omega Pacific

After my regular appointment at Nuun, I stopped by Omega Pacific to talk to them about the link cam and other new toys. I thanked them for their prompt response in our forums on the one link cam issue as well as their excellent attitude toward their customers. They responded with modesty and encourage anyone with any questions to call them at any time- they even wanted me to tell you that when you call, you will actually talk to a real person! The new stuff for this Fall, though, is not new link cams. It is, however, an evolution of their carabiner line. This fall, the Jake (screwlock and quicklock), the classic, the classic screwgate, and the classic bent gate will all be released in a keylock version. The Jake will be out by Oct 1st, with the others following around Nov/Dec. Also expect the Five-O, Oval, D’s, and Jake Jr. to get keylock models in the near future.

Cloudveil

After talking with the boys at Omega Pac, I headed over to my favorite clothing manufacturer- Cloudveil. I met up with Penn and he took a few minutes to talk about the line for the spring. The line for spring will focus on organics- jeans and shirts, at a decent price point. They’re also introducing a new jacket- the Stash Creek, an unlined version of the Cache Creek with a hood that has stretch panels and stashes into its chest pocket- it retails at a reasonable $90.

Brunton

My next stop was at Brunton, where I discovered some really neat stoves and battery packs. This year, Brunton is debuting some really cool technology with regards to stoves. First up is the canister stove stand- this is basically a stand for your canister stove that lets you set your canister off to the side and the stove on the ground. It works on any canister stove from any manufacturer because its more or less a stand with an extension hose on it.

Also new this year are the Cub and Talon stoves, basic canister stoves that are focused on affordability and durability. The Cub retails at $19 and the Talon at $29. They both evolved from their $45 brother, the Raptor.

Top: the Cub, Bottom Left the Raptor, Bottom right, the Talon.

Finishing off their stove line is the Vapor AF- this stove will burn any fuel you can think of- including canisters. It also doesn’t require any nozzle changes, just a change in air-flow which done with the flick of the wrist. It retails at $140 and is available now. In January, they’re releasing a cousin called the Lander, a cool looking foldable stove that will burn either white gas or butane and goes for $100.

Brunton also has a full line of power packs to help you charge your gear when you’re in the woods. They also have a full line of solar panels to charge your power packs- how nice! New for 2008 are the Solo packs. They come in 3 sizes- the Solo 3.4 (8-10oz, 10 iPod charges (or other small device), $110), the Solo 7.5 (2lbs, 5-6hrs for your laptop, $229), and the Solo 15 (3.7lbs, 8-9hrs for your laptop, $399).

Top is the Solo 15, bottom the Solo 7.5 and the Solo 3.4.

Kelty

In the home stretch, I made my second to last stop at Kelty to see whats new. They had a few things to show me, starting with a new sleeping bag line- the Foraker. Available in three bags- the 15, the 0, and the -15, these are 750 fill down bags that have welded, waterproof hood and toe boxes and are guide-certified by the Alaska Mountain Guides. They also have the new Lightyear series- available in three temps- 40, 20, and 0 as well as in either down or synthetic and mens and womens. The synthetic bags look pretty slick as their weight closely matches their down counterparts- the 20 degree bag is only 8oz heavier in the synthetic model and packs only slightly larger. They also retail at a great price- $130 for the 20 degree bag.

Kelty is also releasing a new line of packs for the spring- the Backcountry series. They range from 27L to 82L and feature the Aero suspension system which attaches the suspension directly to the aluminum spine in the pack which allows for the packs to be one-size fits all. They also have wrap around compression straps, and a removeable top with a smaller subtop underneath. They retail around $150-200, depending on the model.

Kelty is also releasing a bunch of new tents, with the Ouray being the tent on display at the booth. This 2 person tent checks in at 5lbs 3oz and features DAC poles with a hub design, resulting in a tent that would normally have three or four poles only having one pole. It sets up in 5-6 minutes, even if you’ve never done it before. It comes out in the spring and retails at $280.00

Primus

Primus is my last stop for the show, and I’m happy to be here to be sure. They’re releasing two new stoves to compliment their flagship stove- the EtaPower EF, the most efficient stove on the market with a 2.5 min boil time. The new stoves are the EtaPower MF and the EtaExpress.

The EtaPower MF is a multi-fuel stove that features an offset feeder line, allowing you to turn the fuel feed of simply by turning the bottle over. This slick unit will also empty a butane canister if you turn it upside down thanks to the pre-heater. It also comes with a smaller bottle because it uses less fuel. Look for it Jan 15th at a price of $190.00

The EtaExpress is basically a canister version of the EtaPower. It features all of the same efficiency as well as the ability to pack into itself at a weight of 14.7oz

Well, that’s it, folks. I’m done with it! I had a great time, saw a lot of cool things, and look forward to the spring when all of this stuff comes to market. I hope to review a lot of it, so keep your eyes peeled for reviews of this stuff in 2008! If I missed your favorite manufacturer, my apologies- I’ll try to get to them next year- make sure to keep an eye out for the OR Winter Market thread to give me suggestions and questions for my trip to the Winter Market in January next year! Thanks again for reading!

Other articles in this series (OR Summer 2007): Day 1 Blog Day 2 Blog