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

Time for a catch up

Its been a hectic few weeks for the team as ever at ME towers, so I thought I'd fill you all in with some highlights of what me and the rest of the team have been up too - Contrary to popular belief and posts we don't spend all the time outdoors, though we try! 


Back in June the international Mountain Equipment sales team descended on Central Manchester for our Summer 2012 sales meeting. Germany, Japan, Norway, USA, France, Benelux, South America to name a few were all in attendance to check out whats coming for Summer 2012. I'd love to be able to show you some of the awesome gear the design team have been working on but then I'd have to kill you... as its all top secret at the minute!

  Richard T and Sam take the team through the Summer 2012 range

After 3 days of presentations, meetings and planning the team were all psyched and raring to go back to their territories to start the sell in process to their retail customers. 


We were then joined by ME pro partner Dave MacLeod who came down to Manchester for 2 days for a catch up with the team, set a few new Bouldering problems down at the Manchester Climbing Centre and then a lecture down at The Mountain Equipment Store - Deansgate, as part of our on going free lecture series (keep up to date with future dates here). As with previous Andy Turner lecture it was a sell out and yet another great evening. Thanks to Dave, Peter and the guys at the Store, ME's Andy Green and to all you guys that came along.

    

Dave taking everyone through his plans for the Long Hope Route

The following day we were then joined by two Japanese Magazines and a South Korean shopping channel film crew, who had all traveled across to the UK to shoot/write features about the ME brand and also interview members of the team as well as a few famous faces. 

      

Doug Scott takes the guys through some of the highlights of his mountaineering career at the BMC head offices 

Brian Hall talks the guys through his work

I then managed to get away from the office.... so while Dave MacLeod and Andy Turner were pushing the limits of climbing on the Long Hope Route I headed to one of the wettest, muddy'est and for 1 day hottest places on earth.... Glastonbury Music festival....

Need I say more...... 

Thankfully I was a little more selective about where I pitched my tent

GORE-TEX Pro shell and Ray bans - the choice of any professional festival goer! 

Next stop Friedrichshaften, Germany for the OutDoor 2011 Tradeshow 

to be continued......... 

GORE-TEX Active Shell on Test at the 3 Peaks Yacht Race

We sent Stu Pitches from www.facewest.co.uk one of our new Firelite GORE-TEX Active Shell Jackets to test a few months ago and he's been giving it a good workout! Below are his thoughts and experiences from the recent 3 Peaks Yacht Race where he finished second:

I have had a Firelite Jacket for a few months now but due to the amazingly dry spring we have had, I have had a lot more time to appreciate it's light weight rather than it's bad weather performance.

Luckily last week was the 3 Peaks Yacht Race where I had plenty of oppportunity to do both. The race started in Barmouth and leg one was a brief 4 hour sail to Caernarfon. From there an 18 mile run to Snowdon and back via Llanberis. In the valley the weather wasn't too bad but as we ascended it got worse and worse, by the top visibility was less than 5 metres and the rain was near horizontal. The Firelite performed well, keeping all the elements out, but one point is that Activ Shell is not very warm. Even though it blocks all the wind, the thinness of the fabric, lack of backing and generally a lack of midlayer means much heat is conducted away. If you are cold when you put on a superlight shell jacket, dont expect to warm up much. As we descended into Llanberis, I was reluctant to remove my shell and I found the membrane performance good. After reaching the road in Llanberis I was back to running in a base layer and the Firelite went back into the sack.

After another 24 hours sailing we reached Whitehaven. First a bike from Whitehaven to Ennerdale Youth Hostel which started off wet so I left the boat wearing the Firelite but it didn't turn into much, so much of the cycle was done with the front zip undone as venting, and I was pretty sweat free on arrival at Gillerthwaite. The tabbed cuffs also allow you to push the sleeves up to your elbows which gets rid of a surprising amount of heat. The run over Black Sail Pass, down to Wasdale and up to Scafell Pike (and of course back again) were done with the jacket in my bag. With 1500m of climbing on this 6 hour leg I was keen not to be carrying any excess baggage. Just knowing you have the lightest selection of kit possible gives you a bit of a mental boost and perhaps more importantly doesn't nag at you when you are feeling rough.

Another 36 hours of sailing and we were docking in Fort William for the final leg. For the first time we would be running in daylight. Unusually for scotland it was a clear, dry and still evening, so again it was the weight of the Firelite that was it's greatest asset. Shell jackets of this nature are destined to be carried more than worn. An ideal trip is where the seriousness of the situation demands proper shell clothing but that clothing never leaves your bag. A glorious run up and down the Ben saw us overhaul the team in front to take 2nd place. After 80 hours of continous racing the top 3 teams were separated by less than 3 hours.

Car to Car on the Grand in 5:17!

At  the trailhead..sage advice  :-)
"Nice tights, you guys are idiots, I'm a guide, I know a lot." 

Congrads to all involved!

Jared had already done it in 7:21 last month climbing and skiing wth 2 companions that continued on the traverse.

Nathan Brown, was dropped it to 7:15:33…car-to-car. Nate went solo, used steel crampons and two ice tools, Dynafit TLT5 Performance boots, custom 160cm Igneous, and down-climbed the Chevy Couloir, as opposed to rappelling.




Then the batman team went at it.

http://jasondorais.blogspot.com/2011/06/6-28-2011-speed-attempt-of-fordstettner.html


http://slcsherpa.blogspot.com/2011/06/grand-teton-ski-descent-speed-record.html

http://www.tetonat.com/2011/06/26/grand-teton-ski-descent-speed-record-set/

And just to add to the fun, Ptarmigan was skied last month as well.

http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/1023902/TR_Mt_Rainier_Ptarmigan_Ridge_#Post1023902

Amazing spring conditions we are having!

GORE-TEX Active Shell: Field Trials

18 months ago i was sitting in another bi-annual meeting at GORE HQ in Livingston perusing the latest collection of new fabrics that were being past around, waiting for that moment when any flicker of imagination would be caught by something really new, i remained firmly in my seat, my imagination firmly sedated. This was nothing unusual, its not easy developing new fabrics and the really good ones take time. It was only as we came towards the end of another lengthy meeting that a new fabric was casually passed across - probably not our thing, more for running but you might like it was the comment. It was GORE-TEX Active Shell. Lighter and significantly more breathable, what was there not to like? And so started the development of the latest range of jackets which have hit selected stores this past week.

A murky day on the Lakeland fells back in early Spring

I'll admit to having something amounting to a large degree of healthy scepticism when it comes to new fabrics (in fact quite alot of things according to my colleagues), whatever the various statistics we get bombarded with from test houses and fabric mills, working in the real world, in the mountains is what I care about and I think our partners at Gore actually quite like our honest assessment of what is passed our way, but on this occasion it was genuine excitement. Here was a fabric, that if the rhetoric were true would provide a garment that was considerably more comfortable to wear, even for hard aerobic activities, whilst being lighter than previous GORE-TEX jackets. The only downside, it wouldnt be as durable, but that was hardly a surprise.

Active Shell in the bag - Sometimes its just too nice! Nothern Cairngorms.

And so the months past by and the final test garments were ready to go. Since then I have ran over the fells near to home in all sorts of conditions and not once, even when running hot, have i noticed anything close to condensing moisture on the inside. In short it works, in the mountains, in the rain, where it matters.

Definitely not nice. Head down for a wet day in the gloom.

Active Shell even with all its different methods of construction, I'll be totally honest is not the lightest waterproof fabric out there - but thats not really the point. It is light, dont get me wrong, but what it really is, is a genuinely breathable and totally waterproof package which if you're wanting something to actually wear whilst on the move rather than simply carry in pack is simply quite remarkable compared with previous waterproof fabrics I've used.

Enjoying a cool evening running around the Kentmere Horseshoe

So since getting my hands the development version of what was to be our Firelite Jacket, which is the simplest and lightest of all the jackets in our mini Active Shell collection, i've attempted to document a few of these outings.

Not always successfully - fell running whilst a) focussing on the ground in front b) holding onto a camera c) holiding onto an over enthusiastic sheepdog d) trying to breathe and e) battling the constant battering of gales rolling in off the Atlantic is not always easy but hopefully you'll get enough from these photos and short video clips to get the idea!

Kentmere Round from Richard Talbot on Vimeo.



Untitled from Richard Talbot on Vimeo.



Untitled from Richard Talbot on Vimeo.





Untitled from Richard Talbot on Vimeo.

GORE-TEX Active Shell on Outdoors Magic

Have a look at Jon at Outdoors Magic's first impressions of our new GORE-TEX Active Shell Firefox Jacket. There is a 'Talkback' thread in the gear forum where I will try to answer any questions you may have on our new Active Shell product.

http://www.outdoorsmagic.com/reviews/jackets/shell-jackets---waterproof/mountain-equipment-firefox-jacket/37307.html

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4 part "Speed" series?

http://www.alpinist.com/doc/web11w/wfeature-speed-alex-honnold

Steck on Everest?

http://www.himalayaspeed.com/2011/05/uelis-everest-adventure/

Making Fruit boots for hard mixed climbing?

Now is a good time to put some thought into Fruit boots if it is something that interests you for next winter's mixed season.

I'll have a review on the newest Boreal Ice Mutant model later on as fall approaches and the temps drop. 

But nothing like thinking ahead.   The fun I was having in my home made pair is why I searched out a commercial pair.  One caution?  You'll want your boot crampon combo to come in at around 2# total per foot to really take advantage of a lwt technical combo.  BD raptors come in at 10oz per foot.  That leaves you with 22oz per boot before you bolt the crampon on.  More than one climber is just using the front half of the crampon so that can drop some weight as well.

http://bigfootmountainguides.com/2010/03/03/how-to-make-mixed-climbing-boots/

http://climbs2high.blogspot.com/2010/11/new-project-fruit-boots.html

http://rockandice.com/articles/how-to-climb/article/359-make-fruit-boots-do-it-yourself-crampons