Outdoor Retailer Winter Market "Best in Show Awards" - Part 1

I just returned from Salt Lake City after four days of traversing the ginormous Outdoor Retailer Trade Show.  With over 1000 brands, 20000 attendees and literally millions of products, it's hard to find more gear under one roof anywhere else on the planet. This is part one of our "Best in Show Awards"

Sierra Designs launched a new line featuring what they call DriDown.  The thought of taking down sleeping bags and jackets into canoe country has long been one that evokes nightmares.  There was lots of talk of "nano-technology" and "change on a molecular level", that made my head hurt, but based on their demonstrations this stuff really works.  SD stopped short of calling it "waterproof", but for the first time ever I dare to bring a down bag into the BWCA.

Petzl makes a wide range of headlamps for a variety of different uses.  Their newest are brighter and more efficient than ever, some throwing out well over 200 lumens of blinding light.  The one that caught my eye however was designed as an emergency light.  Tiny, waterproof and bright enough (about 40 lumens), it makes the larger, more cumbersome headlamps seem silly for around camp.

How many times have you had to remove your gloves to answer your phone or operate your touch screen device? Well, not any more.  A number of brands are touting gloves utilizing TouchTec leather that will work on touch screens.  My personal favorites from the show were from Dakine.  They were the most comfortable and least limiting in range of motion, and I was able to operate my iPhone without issue.

Continuing the Barefoot trend, but ready for amphibious use are the Merrell Water Current Gloves.  Minimalist, uber-light and at home in and out of the water, these could be my new BWCA shoe of choice.  Now if I could just find a lake that isn't frozen solid...

Garmont's Momentum IceLock boots are a blend of hiking boot and bomber winter boot.  Good looking and incredibly warm, these boots are light and fast and grip ice like Spider-man.  The outsole is embedded with tiny fiber glass shards to improve grip as much as 600% on icy surfaces.  Say goodbye to spikes.

Winter Sandals?  Yup!  Sanuk will be delivering a line of boots for winter 2012/13 that are guaranteed to keep your feet happy.  As if I needed any more reasons to love this brand, they just keep the goods coming. I'm just sad we have to wait until fall to get our hands on a pair...

This is just the tip of the iceberg.  More OR Show highlights to come, so stay tuned...

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OR Show Preview

It's that time again.  I am headed to Salt Lake City for the country's largest trade show for the Outdoors world.  The Outdoor Retailer Winter Market runs from Wednesday to Sunday next week, and I will be there for the whole thing.

At current tally there are 1,015 names on the Exhibitor List.  Check it out and let me know if there is something you want us to report back on.  I have roughly 100 booths on my "Must-See" list, so I am going to be one busy guy.  My inbox has been blowing up for the last couple of weeks with press kits and sneak peeks at new gear.  Here are a few I can't wait to check out...

Millet's 7/24 Ride Jacket:  This is a new brand for me.  French alpine gear that looks like it's ready for 10 feet of powder and sub-arctic temps.  And I just dig the design aesthetic; simple but a bit funky. There is a whole category of gear that is quickly becoming a major player at the show.  Back-country snow gear is all the rage.  Much of it is designed for ski and snowboard junkies that want to hike into untouched powder.  I know this stuff will be bullet-proof for any snowy adventure, no elevation change needed.

Wolverine Trivor Mid-Cut Hiker:  These go-anywhere hikers were built to be everyone's best friend.  Not Uber-technical, but fully trail capable, these look to be a great all-around boot for the neighborhood park or the trail head.

Hi-Tec's Timaru Down Hoodie: This is not your usual down jacket.  Constructed from transparent 15D nylon and filled with multi-color dyes down, you get a funky pattern that changes as the down moves around inside.  The dying process is actually supposed to improve the down's performance too.  That's just cool...

Teva's ReForge Ion-Mask Water Shoes:  Based solely on the description these should be an ideal canoe camping footwear choice.  Touted as the marriage of a "classic hiker and an amphibious multi-sport shoe" they should go from rocky portage to slimy creek bed like a champ.  If they are even a slight improvement on the Churn water shoes we tested this spring, I am more than a little excited...

Vapur Water Bottles:  Its a bottle without the bottle part.  Like a reusable Capri Sun pouch with a spout.  Ultra packable and uber-light, these make a great back-country drinking system.  Plus, they come is a smaller .4 liter size for the kiddies...


Stay tune for more preview items as we get closer to the show.  I'll let you know if I see anything else cool.

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Hi-Tec Rainier Event WPi Hikers - Gear Review

We have another new writer on the Paddle Junkie crew.  This time we bring in a good ole southern boy from Tennessee. Not only does this guy like to hike and camp, but he is a professional raptor trainer and handler.  He ran the bird show at Dollywood and is just an all-around cool dude.  Now, before anyone gets their undies in a bunch, I know we just reviewed these boots, but everyone that has tested them loves them.  The crew over at Hi-Tec got it right and we all want to share.  

Review by Jordan "Birdman" Jones

So here’s the scoop! The Hi-Tec Rainier WPI Men’s hiking boot is jam packed full of all the bells and whistles you could need as a backpacker or everyday outdoorsman. The Vibram outsole will literally grip everything. This includes the frozen lakes of Siberia (aka Wisconsin) where I have recently moved. Since I moved to this snow covered tundra my old hiking boots that had performed very well over the past two years on the AP trail in Tennessee were in desperate need of retirement. I needed a pair of boots that would give great support, be extremely waterproof, moisture wicking, and double as a disciplinary tool for wife and kids (just a joke).

With the Stabila-flex support on the back of the boot you can still move your foot but be assured you have to try very hard to roll your ankle in these bad boys. I have to make a big deal about the Ion-mask waterproof technology since it blew me out of the water, no pun intended. First of all, Ion-mask was originally developed for military clothing designed to repel chemical agents but Hi-Tec are pioneers in the introduction of Ion-Mask in the footwear industry! If it is good enough for our military it is good enough for me! These boots are incredibly waterproof which is perfect for hikers like myself you have to trudge through mud and snow 10 months out of the year. The E-Vent Technology is equally amazing. This waterproof membrane lining the inside of the boot is porous allowing vapor caused by sweat to pass through to the outside of the fabric without being absorbed by the fabric itself. Therefore, the boots stay dry inside and out even better than the all mighty gortex.

There are a couple of cons to this boot but each one can be worked through. The rubber toe cap started peeling away on the sides due to very heavy use in the first two months. This was quickly fixed by putting a drop of glue under the rubber and letting it set. Remember, you don’t want to stitch an area back together on any pair of water proof boots since this will punch holes in the waterproof membrane. Also, this goes along with the incredible support I spoke about earlier. These boots are incredibly difficult to break in! It took 3 months of heavy use to finally tell myself that this boots were comfortable. This is partly due to the fact that the boots are made with V-Light technology. They lack a ton of padding inside the boot but once they are broken in they are very light and are a joy to hike in. The last con I could have, and I am knit picking here, was that the outsole’s upper region is painted brown it seems and after light use it started to split and flake away making me leery that I may have a pair of cheaply made boots. They have definitely redeemed themselves in my mind. Besides the worn look only adds character. If the bones are good who cares what they look like. I would definitely recommend these boots to the hiker or outdoorsman looking for a very sturdy, supportive, waterproof boot. At $239 they are priced with the big boys in the industry but would hold their own any day. Take care and Happy Hiking!

 P.S. I bet my grandfather wouldn’t have complained as much about hiking to school up hill both ways in the snow if he had a pair of Hi-Tec Rainier WPI Men’s hiking boots!!!

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Hi-Tec's Rainier Event WPI Hikers -Gear Review

If Lewis and Clark wore these....

Straight out of the box, the Hi-Tec Rainier Event WPI hiking boots molded to my feet and performed like to my expectations. The day after Christmas my family took a hike around a very muddy, very slippery, very hilly trail around a nearby lake. Everyone else in my troop was wearing shoes that were not prepared for such a treacherous hike. I, wearing the Hi-Tec boots, continuously found myself holding others from slipping or catching people mid-fall.

The Rainier Event WPI boots are equipped with Vibram soles. Vibram soles are renown for their quality and special rubber compounds for specific uses. These soles have enough rigidity to provide a good grasp on all surfaces while still feeling light and flexible. Plus, at the end of the day, knocking all the mud and grime off of them was a breeze. Cheers to Vibram.

The second feature of these boots that proved itself during this very wet hike was the Ion-Mask technology. From first look these boots appear to be made out of plastic. However, further research into Ion-Mask reveals that through working on a molecular level, the technology improves the surface structure and which creates a less permeable barrier. In essence, this technology creates Tony Stark Iron Man leather.

With all of this technology on the outside, Hi-Tec did not overlook the breath-ability factor of a hiking boot. Through creating an envelope, using Event Waterproof Fabric, this boot can block water from going in while allowing sweat and moisture a path to go out. These boots kept my feet dry from mother nature's moisture and my own.

Another positive was that they needed no breaking-in time. I am not a fan of buying a shoe and waiting two weeks for the shoe to mold my feet. These boots worked right away. No blisters or aches post-hike.

These are a heavy duty boot, so on a simple 5 mile hike I expected them to perform to their hype. I think what makes any kind of gear is how can it handle in the unexpected. I look forward to continue to challenge the Hi-Tec Rainier Event WPI hiking boots because they appear to be ready for whatever comes their way.

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