OR 2015

Thanks for the run down.

Found a post on Pata's Dual Aspect fleece/softshell aimed at skiers on Backcountry.com, … but also a small reference to an R3 hoodie on snew or something.

The Dual Aspect a few paras down:

http://www.backcountry.com/explore/outdoor-retailer-2015-roundup

I was also at Outdoor Retailer, and I'd have to agree with the OP that in terms of innovation there was not all that much on display. I saw that 3M's Thinsulate has some new permutations, new wool insulation blends were being promoted, and there were a zillion shoes/boots/sandals.

Any interesting new sleeping pads and crampons?

As a matter of fact, yes:

http://www.eathomas.com/2015/01/27/or2015gearreport/

Those Fischer climbing skins look pretty awesome, though they will probably only be available as a package with Fischer skis for the foreseeable future.

About those StS sleeping pads (all regular sizes):
– Ultralight at 12,5 oz. and R = 0,7
– Ultralight Insulated at 15,5 oz. and R = 2,5
– Comfortlight at 16,2 oz. and R = 1
– Comfortlight Insulated at 20,5 oz. and R = 3,5
– Comfort Plus at 21 oz. and R = 1,5
– Comfort Plus Insulated at 25,6 oz. and R = 5

Ultralight's 2" and Comfort's 2,5" thick.

The Patagonia R3 Hoody is mentioned and pictured on The Alpine Start

Looks like it’ll be a great alternative to Polartec Alpha when used under a windshell.

As for crampons, Black Diamond has a new vertical monopoint called the Snaggletooth.

Personally, I’m interested to see how Polartec Power Wool pans out. I like the next-to-skin feel of wool but not the moisture retention and durability. Wondering if they’re going to be able to make a lighter weight version for summer, like 150g/m2 fabric?

Snorkel, as always, did a great report.

The sketchy looking hikers in the sleeping bag is disconcerting, however…

(Being serious, while there were some interesting goodies, I personally felt like I was trapped in REI for 3+ days. :O )

Why haven't they made an r2 hoody yet?

Also what do they mean by reversible?

Looks a lot like the monkey man grid fleece.

Looks nice but what will it weigh with the hood? My original R3 jacket from 2000 with the grid fleece came in at 23 oz. whereas last years high loft came in at over 16 oz (again jacket, not hoody).
Still that R3 is nice looking stuff along with the Dual Aspect dual-faced one.

Ed: emp

Do those awesome arcteryx gloves have inserts?

I was lucky enough to attend the Winter OR with the Boy Scouts of America. It was my first OR show so I was super excited to be there checking out some cool gear. I am a national volunteer with the Boy Scouts of America and was lucky enough to attend the OR show with my two good Scouting friends.

My two friends and I were there to check out some neat gear for our National Order of the Arrow Conference event this summer with 15,000 Scouts and Scouters in attendance at Michigan State University. We were focused on cool gear that Scouts aged 13-20 would find amazing like electronics, lightweight gear, and cool stuff that they could show their friends.

So with that in mind, we stayed away from the shoe companies and apparel lines. There lots of shoes and clothing companies all over OR. I think that Keen footwear had the biggest booth from what I remember. The North Face, Patagonia, Mountain Hardwear, Columbia, and Merrell had the biggest booth areas.

These were some neat items that I saw and I think that the lightweight backpacking community would find interesting.

Goal Zero had a great booth with almost all of their product line on display. They just introduced their new Flip 10 and 20 at CES recently. It's a smaller version of the Switch 8 and will retail for $30.

Mpowered Luci Solar power lanterns had a small Luci EMRG solar powered lantern that weighs 2.6 ounces and has 4 LED lights with 25 lumens on super bright mode. It has 4 different settings. It has a 100 foot lighting area.

Western Mountaineering is introducing a new liner/quilt/sleeping bag. The Everlite has a full length side zip to completely open up to use as a quilt or liner. The regular size weighs 14 ounces and stuffs down to a 5"x8" package. The fill weight is 6.5 ounces and it will retail for $295. There is a 6'6" long size that weighs 17.5 oz and retails for $315.

Another neat item I saw was a company called FixnZip. Their product is a replacement zipper that will clamp down on your existing zipper that the slider has either broken or failed. They retail for $10 for each of the 3 different sizes they sell. They currently sell their replacement zippers at Joann's in the zipper section. With 3 small kids and being an active Scouter zippers are somethings that get broken easy or the slider needs to be replaced. Their product to me is extremely useful to have and carry on backpacking trips.

I saw a pair of Montane gloves that had Cuben Fiber on the back of your hand and a lightweight material for your palm. I am not sure of the retail price on them but I thought they were intriguing.

Another great kitchen item we saw was a small lightweight muffin tin from a smaller company called Backcountry Bakery's Muffin Maker. You can bake muffins, biscuits, brownies, cornbread, etc. This is something our family will use on our backpacking trips in the near future.

It was neat to see the different Tenkara USA rods that they had in their booth. I have a BPL Hane and an 11 foot Iwana but it was great to see and hold their Rhodo and Sato rods. I know it's not new but it was new to me and my Scouting friends.

Solio had a cool booth and they showcased their products. Their Alva LED light was interesting since it plugs right into a USB port. It retails for $20 and is a great light for when you need some extra light at camp, cooking, or packing your gear.

One of the coolest things was the Columbia booth in which you would through a fake snowball at various Columbia clothing products. What ever you hit, Columbia would donate that item to Big City Mountaineers. Lucky I hit 4 out of 5 snowballs. I am always happy to support a non-profit that gets kids into the outdoors. Great job Columbia. They might do this every year but I thought it was worth a mention. Thank you Columbia.

There was so much stuff to see and take in, it was hard to see everything in the time we spent there. My two Scouting friends and I really enjoyed the OR show and if you saw three adults walking around the halls in Boy Scout uniforms. That was my friends and myself.