Salt Lake City, UT –Forklifts are swirling in a choreographed dance today inside and outside the cavernous Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City to load semi-trailers as another Outdoor Retailer trade show has come and gone. The semi-annual gathering of over 20,000 product exhibitors, retailers and members of the media provides not only an opportunity for retailers to place their orders for next year’s gear, but also delivers a glimpse of the products that will soon greet the outdoor enthusiast on store shelves around the world.
The Summer Market edition of Outdoor Retailer, showcasing new product available at retail next year, clearly has less relevance to an editor of a snowsports periodical than does its winter counterpart. Having just spent three of the past four days traipsing across the one million square-foot floor of the world’s largest outdoor trade show, however, it’s nonetheless difficult to whittle down what’s new and noteworthy to a preferred short list of items that possess crossover appeal for a skiing and snowboarding audience.
Perhaps the most remarkable observation, though, relates not to product but rather to the show itself. There were signs of economic recovery, or at the very least optimism for it despite the stock market’s free-fall in recent days. Summer Market saw increases in every measurable category, including exhibitor booth space, exhibiting brands, retailers and overall attendance, with most categories posting double-digit percentage growth. Some exhibitors were relegated to hallways or mezzanines, a phenomenon not seen since the current economic downturn began. New exhibitors occupied a massive temporary pavilion erected in a parking lot across North Temple street from the main show floor. Aisles bustled with so much retailer traffic that at times it was difficult to make headway.
“The outdoor industry has been resilient during recession times, and that dynamic, combined with the popularity of the active outdoor lifestyle, has fueled even higher interest in Outdoor,” said Kenji Haroutunian, Outdoor Retailer show director. “The technology, innovation and youthful energy evident at the show is exactly what businesses want to be a part of.”
“It’s even busy today,” Scott Kaier of Waitsfield, Vt., representing Kelty, Sierra Designs, Brunton and Primus through Pale Morning Media, observed on Sunday, adding that his clients had a very busy week. Sunday is the show’s final day when many exhibitors begin breaking down their booths early and others head to the airport to catch a flight home. Typically attendance on Sunday is a fraction of that for the show’s first three days.
“The energy at this show was tremendous and it rebooted everything for me as I head back to my store,” said Shelley O’Neill, store manager at Tooth of Time Traders in Cimarron, N.M. “Talking with the manufacturers I work with, their business results are up. Our sales are up. People are excited.”
As impressive and upbeat was the mood on the show floor, outdoor products remain the primary focus of Outdoor Retailer and we saw more than a few exciting new items that caught our eye.
Perhaps the most amazing to us was the Scarpa Alien ($799) and Alien 1.0 ($1,600) alpine touring ski boots, the latter featuring a carbon fiber cuff. Designed for only the most avid randonnée race weight weenies, the Alien tips the scales at a paltry 1 lb. 15.39 oz. per boot, usurped only by the Alien 1.0 at 1 lb. 7.98 oz. To save weight each boot utilizes a Boa lacing system to tighten the shell, and the A-Light ski/walk mechanism also closes the cuff while locking it in place. Where carbon isn’t utilized the shell uses neither polyurethane nor Pebax, but instead is constructed of a unique blend of select polymides.
Clearly they’re not designed for everyday ski touring or to power wider skis, but be sure to move out of the skin track if a racer pulls up behind wearing a pair of these remarkable new boots.
www.scarpa.com
In fact, reduced gear weight was a theme prevalent across the show floor this summer. Utah’s Klymit has further expanded its sleeping pad offerings this year with a three-quarter length pad, the Inertia X-Lite ($89.95) that still retains the loft pockets of its original Inertia X but weighs only 6.1 oz. to save a full three ounces off its full-length brother. While not suitable for winter use (the original Inertia X can be filled with inert gases to increase its insulation value for full four-season use), the new X-Lite is perfect for those heading to the mountains for a summer backpack with a minimum of grear.
www.klymit.com
One of the heaviest items in a summer backpack is the tent, and Easton Mountain Products is providing a new solution in the form of its svelte new Kilo 1P ($369), a one-person three-season tent that weighs a scant 1 lb. 14 oz. trail weight. Unlike claustrophobia-inducing bivy sacks the Kilo 1P features full sit-up headroom thanks to a single carbon fiber tent pole that’s cut in 14-inch lengths, rather than the usual 20 inches to keep pack size small. The Kilo 1P still features Easton’s patent-pending AirLock connectors that decorate the rest of the company’s tent line.
www.eastonmountainproducts.com
When we tested the Recon Instruments’ first-generation GPS goggle with a heads-up display last winter, we were flooded with questions from passers-by wondering why our goggles had a blue flashing light. The company’s second generation, however, is nothing short of astounding. Now built on the Android operating system these instruments are available as an add-on to goggles from Uvex, Briko and Alpina. This means that goggles can be swapped or replaced without losing the pricey equipment from Recon. It also means that a variety of frame styles and shapes will be available to accommodate virtually any face shape or helmet interaction.
Building the instrumentation on Android offers a number of advantages and new features, not the least of which is allowing the Android developer community to build apps for the system. Available in either a standard model called the MOD ($299) or the Bluetooth enabled MOD Live ($399), the latter will connect with a phone to display caller ID information and text messages, audio playlists, trail maps and more within the goggle. Select wireless video cameras will connect with the MOD Live to turn the goggle’s micro LCD into a viewfinder. Either model will feature the standard speed, jump airtime, GPS location, vertical and distance skied, air temperature, altitude and time on the goggle display. The whole unit is controlled via glove friendly buttons that strap onto the wrist over a ski jacket. Both will be available in stores this fall.
www.reconinstruments.com
For bringing your skis or board to the hill, Yakima has acquired a New Zealand-based manufacturer of car roof racks and has thus launched Whispbar ($349-$439), a new premium line of crossbars and towers that nearly eliminate wind noise and hum. And to prove it the company brought a full wind tunnel to the show floor to demonstrate impressively the new product line’s improvement not only over its competitors, but over Yakima’s traditional round bars as well. The Whispbar’s airfoil shape reduces not only wind noise but also drag by up to 70%. If you have an existing Yakima rack system, though, fear not for Yakima will continue to sell and support its tried-and-true rack systems side by side with Whispbar. The company’s flagship RocketBox ($359 for the ski-oriented RocketBox Pro 11) has also been redesigned with two-sided opening and the ability to reposition the cargo box so as not to interfere with opening a hatchback door.
www.yakima.com
To achieve that perfect fit, Footbalance is a new company established by Finnish physiotherapists that crafts custom EVA footbeds ($80) via computer-aided analysis tools for not only ski boots, but for virtually all athletic footwear. They’re molded in about 10 minutes and the Footbalance Recommendation System software spits out a personalized analysis of your unique paws and sends it to your email account as well. The Winter Race model, designed specifically for ski boots, provides efficient power transfer for better edging while the slim profile eliminates any unnecessary heel lift.
www.footbalance.com
Whether it’s to repair a broken ski binding or to provide some necessary security it’s always good to have some high test strength line available. Survival Straps ($24.95-27.95) provide a length of 500-lb. test paracord woven into a wearable bracelet. When in a pinch, simply unravel the cord and deal with your emergency. For a little extra versatility forgo the plastic buckle and opt instead for the stainless steel shackle ($9.95) which itself has a variety of emergency uses.
www.survivalstraps.com
Finally, we were heartened to learn the story of Liberty Bottleworks. The company manufactures its single-wall bottles from 100% recycled aluminum with local employees right in the U.S. at its factory in Yakima, Wash., the only company to do so. Rather than endlessly unscrewing the cap to get a drink, the Liberty bottle requires only a quarter turn and a click. The innards are coated with a flexible food grade coating that won’t chip or flake. The company donates 1% of its sales to various environmental, educational and charitable programs, and employs artists including freeskier Lynsey Dyer and street graffiti artists from the Yakima area to design the bottles’ artwork and give the latter a more responsible canvas upon which to work. The company is in the process of also organizing a bottle trade-in program whereby used water bottles from any manufacturer will be collected, sterilized and stored ready to be deployed to natural disasters worldwide.
www.libertybottles.com