featheredfriends

We just received two sets of Hybrid aliens - including the two new sizes! They won't stick around for long so give us a call 206-292-2210.

Our selection here: http://www.featheredfriends.com/retail_store/footwear.html

Just in from BD: http://www.bdel.com/about/speed_harness_bulletin.php

A lot of people have been asking if we had them and we've been sold out for a while. We just got our backordered shipment in so we have them again - just in time for what looks to be another beautiful weekend. Word.

Thanks. That was the work of the multi-talented Eddie. It was time for some new ads. Maybe we should make some T-shirts...

"Smith Rock Select" by Jonathan Thesenga just came in. Nice little book, well-organized with color photos... Come on in and check it out.

The weather is going to be outstanding this weekend, and I have a bunch of great raffle prizes and swag for the festival! See ya'll there.

Climbing clothing and shoes on sale next week. Also, all remaining ski equipment is 40% off (boots, skis, bindings).

Joe Puryear's Supertopo Alaska book just came in. A beautiful book!

That's right, the new C3's are finally here. Come and get 'em while they're hot.

Gene and Matt, thanks for the kind words about our bags. Matt makes a good point about the tradeoffs of "super light." Lighter weight fabrics tend to be less durable than heavier ones for a number of reasons. For example, on our own bags and WM's, the lightest weight fabrics require a top-stitch construction to reduce down leakage at the seams, but this in turn reduces durability since the threads are then exposed to abrasion. In our experience, the failure of seams due to abrasion is a long term problem. With the heavier fabrics we use (Epic and eVent) we can tuck-stitch the seams and conceal the thread within the bag to increase longevity. Lighter fabrics are also more prone to tearing and tend to have lower moisture resistance properties than heavier fabrics. If you look at WM's bags, the DryLoft models are heavier than their microfiber counterparts, and the same is true with our eVent fabric being heavier than Epic. All the same, if you think that weight savings trumps all other considerations, then by all means you should buy a super light bag. Just be aware that you will need to take greater care of it and your expectations about durability and performance should match the limitations of the fabric and construction methods. To address Matt's point about down quality/stuffing/durability, I would say that loftier down performs better in the field on extended trips. Having just spent six days in the North Cascades with a couple days/nights of crummy weather and getting some moisture inside the tent, my experience with my Vireo bag was very positive. When finding a small pile of snow on my bag after leaving some tent vents open during a storm, my bag kept me warm in sub-freezing temps and was dry by morning. Higher quality down = more air space inside the bag = better ability to transport moisture through the down = faster drying bag. Body heat alone can dry out a damp bag fairly quickly- faster than a synthetic bag. Throw in a hot water bottle and you'll expel moisture even faster. High quality down will also loft better on an extended trip than lower quality down through repeated stuffing and unstuffing. There is really no motivation to buy a bag with lower quality down fill unless price is a primary consideration. Check out the FF Snowbunting bag in Epic fabric. For a minimal weight increase over a "super light" fabric you gain a considerable increase in durability and moisture protection- great for sleeping in Megamid type shelters or snow caves where you will experience dripping water or showers of frozen condensation. Feathered Friends Snowbunting

Joe Puryear's kick-ass new guide is coming out and we're celebrating!

$240 plus tax (if in state): $60 per cam plus shipping if applicable. Hell, we'll ship them for free to the lower 48 if you buy the set.

Hey, we just sell them, we don't make them. If you want to spray, there is another forum for that, and the phone number for CCH is (307) 721-9385 if you want to tell them what you think about their products. Here is a link to their recall notice to inform you of the reported failure rates: http://www.aliencamsbycch.com/index.html There are a lot of CC.com members who want to buy these things, so don't rain on our parade for informing the community that they are in stock. Thank you, FF

We received two sets of hybrid Aliens today, four sizes from black/blue to yellow/red. We took a look at them and they don't appear to have any of the visible marks indicative of the manufacturing issues that came up with earlier production runs. They probably won't stick around long, so work fast if you want them. 206 292 2210, we can ship anywhere.

The Volant is sized to fit over layers, so there will be more room in it at any given size when compared to the Helios. A large should fit you just fine in the Volant, but think of sizing up for the Helios. If you're going to be using it as part of a sleep system and used in the winter I might recommend the Volant over the Helios. - Eddie

It's available in two different fabrics: Epic and Event. Epic is the same stuff that BD uses for their lightweight tents. It's pretty water resistant and very breathable. Event is waterproof as a fabric, more breathable than G-Tex and is more durable than the Epic. If you're looking for a weatherproof down jacket, this is about as good as it gets. - Eddie

Thanks for the praise, Will. Note to readers: Mr. Strickland is not on our payroll. The Hummingbird would be a great choice for a lightweight mummy. We have weighed regular length Quantum Hummingbirds coming off the factory floor at 25oz (we have one in stock right now, in fact), which is less than our advertised weight of 27oz. If you ordered one with 1.1oz ripstop nylon (fractionally heavier than Quantum's 0.9oz) you would be spending $269 for a US-made 800+ fill bag. Not a bad deal. Marmot's EQ fabric is what's left of Pertex's Endurance Quantum. It is Quantum fabric with their Endurance polyurethane coating. FF has used a similar fabric from Pertex in the past, and while we have liked the weight savings it offers, the breathability is not as good as other WP/B fabrics, and the functional lifespan of the coating is less than a laminate like eVent or DryLoft. We also rent our bags out, so if you want to try one in the field to see if you like it, you can apply the cost of a rental towards the purchase. It's a risk-free test drive.

Cool raffle prizes, refreshments and killer images!

Lots o' shizzle for sale. Stuff ain't gonna last long!

In December of 2005 Mark Westman and Colin Haley traveled to Patagonia and blitzed four world class alpine routes , climbing over 80 pitches of rock and ice, and enjoyed a once in a lifetime window of perfect weather. In just 12 days they climbed an 18 pitch rock route on Aguja Mermoz, the Franco Argentine route on Fitzroy, the 22 pitch Claro de Luna on St. Exupery, and a 14 pitch route on Aguja Rafael. The previous year Mark spent 35 days in Patagonia without climbing a single pitch. Join us as he shares some rare images of climbing in Patagonia during his "Reversal of Fortune".

Sign up for the clinic soon - it'll sell out Can someone move this to events?

Feathered Friends rents AT boots (Scarpa Matrix and Garmont Mega Ride for men, Garmont She Ride for women). We also have brand spanking new Atomic skis (Janak, Kongur, Pumori) mounted up with a variety of bindings (Naxo NX21, Fritschi Freeride, Explore, and some tele mounts, too) as well as skis from Black Diamond and K2, a few of which also have Dyna Fit bindings. We also feature a "try before you buy" program where you can apply rental costs towards purchase. Plus we rent skins, shovels, and poles. We did have a problem with two of our rental Tracker beacons, but those have been removed from the fleet and replaced with brand new 06 Trackers. We also rent Barryvox, SOS, and Ortovox beacons so you can try out a variety of different models. Our skis rental gear is in particularly high demand this season, especially AT gear, so if you want to rent some you should call ahead of time. We can take reservations up to a month in advance. Let the snow fall!

Great weather and great folks made this year outstanding. It was awesome seeing all you folks out here from the Northwest - thanks to all you guys who stopped by the booth to say Hi! - Eddie