The Gear Guide

New Outdoor Gear from the 2009 Outdoor Retailer Summer Market

By Chris Weiss

Despite the sagging economy, this year’s Outdoor Retailer Summer Market, which took place from July 20 to July 24, was the host of numerous exciting outdoor gear first-looks. Prior to the show, one would have expected the focus to be more on minor product updates and line expansions in light of the poor economic climate—the Outdoor Industry Association cites that retail sales for all core outdoor stores experienced a 5-percent drop from 2008 in the first half of ’09. That wouldn’t appear to be a great climate to break out expensive new outdoor wares. However, upon hitting the water at the Open Air Demo in Ogden, Utah and walking the floor of the Summer Market in Salt Lake City, the expo show where outdoor industry leaders gather and manufacturers present their new gear for the following spring and summer, didn’t disappoint. Here are a few of the highlights from the show floor—brand new gear that will be hitting retailers within the next few months.

Brooks Range Rocket Tent
Those that enjoy activities like winter camping, backcountry skiing and snowboarding, and mountaineering are used to lugging around four-season tents in excess of five pounds, so a tent rated for winter use and weighing in around three or four would be a very welcome addition to any gear chest. How about a winter tent that weighs well under two—lighter than even the lightest ultralight, three-season tents on the market? Sound good? Sounds like the Rocket Tent by Brooks Range.

The logic behind the Rocket Tent is surprisingly simple, but extremely smart: rather than requiring added weight from redundant gear, it turns the gear you’re already carrying multi-functional. Eliminating the need for tent poles, The Rocket is pitched with the three-meter avalanche probe (extender is included for shorter probes) and ski poles that you have with you. It doesn’t stop by eliminating poles, though; it also makes use of the extremely light yet durable CT³ sailcloth in its construction, helping to shave even more weight.

The fabric is reflective to keep you warm and insulated (or cool in summer), while the aerodynamic shape and guyout structure are designed to provide maximum strength and stability. The result is a two-person, four-season tent that weighs a ridiculous 1 pound 6 ounces. In the summer, it actually gets a little heavier—since you won’t have your probe and ski poles with you—but is still extremely light at 2 pounds .4 ounces (yes, that’s a decimal). The Rocket Tent retails for $600, comparable to other two-person, four-season tents available, and is already available for purchase at
www.brooks-range.com.

Go Pro HD Helmet HERO
High definition action cameras like the VholdR ContourHD are already on the market. However, these have been limited to the lesser-end of HD—720p. The GoPro HD Helmet Hero is the world’s first 1080p (that’s the top of the heap for those that don’t know much about HD) wearable sports camera. It shoots 1080p footage at 30 frames per second (fps) or 720p at 60 fps. 720p footage can take advantage of the 170-degree, wide-angle filming that GoPro has been known for in its previous HERO cameras and can provide slow motion HD playback. In an effort to put the audio on the same plane as the video, the HD Helmet HERO includes a built-in transceiver to augment the internal sound system. The transceiver can be used with an optional wireless microphone (sold separately) to extend the recording range to 30 feet—so you can narrate even if your buddy is filming you. A firm release date had not been established at the time of the show, but the HD Helmet HERO should be available by the holiday season at a retail price of $300.

Therm-a-Rest Haven
To save weight, Therm-a-Rest has eliminated the back and zippers on the Haven Top Bag and designed it to be used in conjunction with a tapered Prolite or other sleeping mat. The Prolite mat can be slid into the open, elastic back or the Haven can be strapped onto a larger sleeping pad to provide the same warmth and protection of a traditional sleeping bag while getting rid of excess material (read: weight). The resulting weight for the 700-fill down bag rated 20 F is just 1 pound 6 ounces. Apparently, eliminating redundant material to the tune of 1 pound 6 ounces was the overarching theme of the year. The Haven will be available in January for $239.95 (regular) and $249.95 (large).

CamelBak All Clear UV
Water Purification System
There are many solutions for filtering and purifying water on the market. The CamelBak All Clear UV Bottle is sure to be one of the most convenient. That’s because the UV purification hardware is built right into a special water bottle cap. An LCD interface lets the user purify 99.99 percent of bacteria and other impurities in just 80 seconds. All one has to do is press the power button, flip the bottle up and down every 10 seconds to make sure each molecule is getting hit with UV and wait until the check mark shows up on the LCD display 80 seconds later—water purified. The UV component is then removed and the bottle is like every other BPA-free bottle in your cupboard.

The UV top works with standard 63-mm water bottles and can be transferred from one to the next. The system is powered with your choice of replaceable or rechargeable batteries. The UV bulb is rated at 8,000 cycles, or as CamelBak has pointed out, long enough to purify three liters a day for six and a half years. The purification kit, which includes a 1-liter bottle, UV cap, regular cap and batteries, will be available in October for $100 (replaceable batteries) or $130 (rechargeable batteries). A $30 recharge kit is available for those wishing to save money now and recharge later without a price penalty.