OutDoor 2011 Pictures

Thought I'd sneak off the ME stand for five minutes and post a few pictures of what been going on for the ME Team at OutDoor.

ME's Thomas Strobl and Richard Talbot (centre) collecting a Gold OI award for the Titan 450/Down Codex

Dave MacLeod Hoy Q and A Session on the ME Stand

Dave with Claude the editor of Vertical Magazine

Girls DAV Expedition team visited the stand to checkout the latest AW11/SS12 Range

 Dave being interviewed for on 4 Season's TV

 ME Pro partners Dave and Sylvain have a catch up

 Dave at the GORE-TEX Experience tour press conference

Dave with his fellow GORE TEX Athlete team members

Long Hope Poster

Coming Soon!!!!

Keep up to date with all the latest at www.hotaches.com 

OutDoor 2011

After a hectic few days setting up OutDoor 2011 finally got underway this morning. The whole ME Team are out here in Friedrichshaften, Germany to sell our new Summer 2012 to the trade, below are a few shots of the finished ME Stand

GORE-TEX Experience Tour Winners Announced

GORE-TEX® Experience Tour announces the two lucky winners who will seek out New Routes in Arctic Norway with Scotland’s leading climber, Dave MacLeod.

The Selection Day for the GORE-TEX® Experience Tour New Routes in the Arctic project took place in Scotland this weekend. Dave MacLeod, Gore athlete, Mountain Equipment Pro Partner and Scotland’s leading climber, was on hand to watch our four finalists as they demonstrated their climbing skills, in a variety of weather conditions, as film maker Paul Diffley captured all of the action. Competition for the two places was very tight as all of the climbers were of a really high standard! But in the end it had to come down to just two people and we are delighted to announce that they are Helena Robinson and Julia Snihur.

As well as demonstrating their climbing skills in Ratho quarry at the Edinburgh International Climbing Centre, the candidates were also asked to explain their motivation for climbing and what personal attributes they have that makes them the best choice for the trip. Dave was keen to make sure that the two winners were people that understand that being a good climber is as much about attitude as it is ability. Helena and Julia displayed the perfect balance.

The candidates were also asked about their goals for the trip. As a student Helena spent a lot of time trad climbing, but having just returned from a year in Switzerland she also loves Alpine and Ice climbing. Julia on the other hand is a sport climber, learning to climb in America before moving to Barcelona. Her trad climbing is also of a really high standard so there will be a lot of scope for the team when they reach Norway. Winners Julia Snihur (left) andHelena Robinson

Helena and Julia will get to try the new GORE-TEX® Active Shell jackets from Mountain Equipment during their trip. The new laminate is perfect for climbing in this environment as it is extremely breathable, lightweight as well as 100% waterproof.

Now the adventure truly begins!

Why the skiing is so good?

Great look at some of the better and more popular runs in Chamonix on a decent snow year.



Chamonix Steep Skiing Camp 2010 from Smart Guides on Vimeo.

And a worthy link....

http://www.zapiks.com/steep-skiing-in-chamonix-fre-1.html

Mucklehouse Wall E5 6a, Orkney - Video

Heres a short 2 minute clip of ME Pro partners Dave MacLeod and Andy Turner on the classic 4 pitch E5 Mucklehouse Wall, Orkney.

You can keep up to date with all the latest of what Dave and Andy have been up to at their blogs here

http://andyturnerclimbing.blogspot.com/
http://www.davemacleod.blogspot.com/

Long Hope Route 1970

I was having a bit of a rummage through the Mountain Equipment archive today and to my surprise came across these photos of Ed Drummond and Oliver Hill on the Long Hope Route back in July 1970, the very route that ME pro partners Dave MacLeod and Andy Turner completed a few weeks back.

 Ed Drummond after the last bivouac on day 9 

Ed Drummond leading on day 5 

Oliver Hill on pitch 16 (The Crux) end of day 8 

Ed Drummond leading pitch 16 (The Crux) day 8

 Ed Drummond on pitch 16 (The Crux) day 8

Lukasz sung by the office on Monday on his way back from Hoy to give us a quick glimpse of some of the amazing shots he took of Dave and Andy on the Long Hope Route (a few of which are below).  There will be articles and more pictures to come in the climbing press shortly and were also super excited about seeing the footage that Diff and the guys at Hotaches got in the bag... keep your eyes peeled for more info soon!

Ed Drummond back at St Johns Head last week   

All photo: Lukasz Warzecha