Mountaineering
Trilogy helmet packs head protection for skiing, mountain climbing and biking
Many sports require head protection, but not that many allow you to use interchangeable helmets. Every sport seems to have its own helmet designs and safety standards, so multi-sport enthusiasts end up spending hundreds of dollars on a closet full of helmets. Why can't a single helmet bridge the gap between sports? French manufacturer Cébé shows that it can, revealing a three-sport helmet that protects your head during mountaineering, skiing and biking. Read More
X-Bionic: High-tech pants tailored to mountaineering
When you're trekking, roping, scrambling and climbing up the world's tallest mountains, you can't be worrying about your clothing failing. X-Bionic Mountaineering Pants are designed to work in mountain environments and include key features that keep you lithe and comfortable for the trip ahead ... but such technologically advanced trousers don't come cheap. Read More
Water-resistant down appears to be one of the next great materials of the outdoors. Last year and earlier this year, a handful of outdoor apparel manufacturers announced garments built around the material. More recently, the number of manufacturers has multiplied and plans to release a variety of water-resistant-down sleeping bags have surfaced. Read More
Part of the new line of ExoFusion fast-and-light tents, the Mojo UFO is truly not of this world. The two-person backpacking tent weighs less than 2 lbs. (0.9 kg), pitches in minutes and costs as much as a vacation for two. Read More
Outdoor clothing manufacturers are determined to solve the one problem that the world's ultimate insulator has: ineffectiveness when wet. Sierra Designs and Brooks Range are both introducing specially treated down jackets, that they claim work effectively in both wet and dry conditions. Read More
A new dawn is breaking in the evolution of outdoor apparel technology. Many materials that dominate today's outdoor clothes - wool and down, for instance - have been plucked straight from nature for hundreds of years. While textile manufacturers and clothing companies have tried to improve upon natural designs, they've generally failed to come up with anything that unequivocally surpasses Mother Nature. Just beyond the action videos and gear shops though, an improved generation of materials with the potential to displace stale staples is slowly moving from test labs to retail shelves. If these materials can brave the real world and live up to the hype, outdoor apparel - and outdoor sports - will look very different in the future. Read More
This stunning alpine modular lodge is the creation of Italian design firm LEAPfactory. Dubbed LEAP (living ecological alpine pod) the modules are built entirely off-site, ready to be transported by helicopter to the summit of choice. Breaking away from traditional alpine structures, the pod is fitted with high-tech features and "at the end of its life cycle [it] can be lifted away by helicopter without leaving any permanent trace of its presence in the natural environment" says LEAPfactory. Read More
Picture the scene: you’ve been trekking hard all day in the great outdoors, enjoying everything nature has to offer. You’ve set up camp and your canned cheeseburgers are bubbling gently on the fire. As you watch the sun sink slowly behind the mountains the only thing missing is a cold beer. Well… (beer aficionados, you may want to stop reading now) Katadyn, the Swiss-based company behind the Trek’n’Eat canned cheeseburger and other high-tech, freeze-dried foods, has developed a world first – powdered beer – to wash it all down with. Read More
Sidelined 1950s mountain-climbing technology resurrected to help patients
in order to treat chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Smiths Medical and University College London have resurrected the sidelined closed-circuit breathing system designed for a failed Everest expedition over 50 years ago. Closed-circuit devices, (also known as rebreathers), create a seal over the user’s mouth, retaining the exhaled air, scrubbing it of carbon dioxide, and allowing the user to inhale it again. Read More
October 24, 2007 Outdoor sports instrument specialist Suunto has added the Suunto Core to its range of wristop computers. Billed as the “the ultimate instrument for any adrenaline-packed outdoor activity” the new ABC (altimeter, barometer, and compass) wristop includes a digital thermometer, altimeter, barometer, digital compass and a weather trend indicator incorporating a storm alarm that kicks-in when a rapid drop in air pressure is detected. Features new to the ABC line include a depth meter, sunrise and sunset timer, four language menu and the ability to automatically switch between altimeter and barometer depending on your level of activity. Read More
