Outdoor Retailer Winter Market 05 Info

[fullofadventure]

Here is some info and pics from the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market 05. Lots of cool new stuff coming out this year, so go take a sneek peak.

 

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/...84&forum=41

[Jedi]

Ahhh... the XGK will finally have a flexible fuel line so it will be more packable. I just wish it had not gained 2oz.

Jedi

[Harkin_Banks]

and finally there is a cozy for my titanium tea cup from snopeak

 

"Snow Peak had out a prototype neoprene cozy for their titanium mugs... By the way, I put a bug in their ear about manufacturing a handle-less 600 ml ti cup - just think of the gram savings"

 

Yes, get rid of the handle for some weight savings, but I'll be DAMNED if I can't have a cozy for my mugs

 

A prototype mug cozy? Does it need some more R&D? For a titanium mug? I think I'd puke if I went to this retailer shows. What a joke. BUY AMERICA BUY NOW!

[Jedi]

Yeah, a prototype hugger

Geeze, if that takes a much of R&D, I bet the mug itself took them years to "design" and make.

[marylou]

Not a lot of huge innovation this time around. Saw some nice stuff for kids, and a few odds and ends:

 

Granite Gear has a nice BC ski pack (small, just for the day) with a separate compartment for the safety gear. You can put the skis on it w/o taking off the pack. I fumbled a bit on the first try, but it's a kewl simple design. Mammut has some verry nice larger packs for winter, and the Osprey Thermojobbie hip belt is on the winter packs now.

 

Also there are a couple of new beacons coming out that will have display screens (like a GPS) which will be a big help with multiple burials. Orthovox for sure, and I think the one that Life-Link imports will do that too. I couldn't get much info on them, but keep yer eyes peeled in the future.

 

All in all, not a huge show in terms of groundbreaking stuff, more like a continuation of trends. For example, a lot more welded seams and hybrid/laminate softshelly kinna stuff. The coolest fabric innovation I saw was Malden/Polartec. They are doing ther same thing with fleece-like fabrics that we have seen in socks and base layers for a couple of years now, changing the density of the fabric to make warm areas (like shoulder blades) and cool areas (like under the arms). When the technology comes along farther, one can imagine having warmth (and bulk) in all the right places and less so where the body is naturally warm. Patagonia for sure is using the new fabrics, not sure who else.

 

The new IMAX movie about rafting the Nile was kind of cool, though the editing could have been better.