Highlights from the 2014 winter Outdoor Retailer show

This past week I attended the 2014 winter Outdoor Retailer show, where I discovered some of the latest in sports apparel, products and gear. This biannual show in Salt Lake City, Utah attracts thousands of buyers, decision-makers and journalists…all in search of the latest-and-greatest in the outdoor space.

The following items were some of my highlights from the show.

As an outdoor enthusiast with lots of camping and backpacking experience, I’m a big fan of natural down, which I prefer over its synthetic counterpart. Down is lightweight, compactable, breathable and a wonderful insulator…as long as it stays dry.  The downside to down…it’s useless if it gets wet. I will never forget camping in Yellowstone under a clear, star-filled sky.  In the middle of the night it began to rain and my sleeping bag got soaked. Cold, wet and miserable, the only thing I could do was pack up and wait inside my truck for dawn to break.

DOWNTEK
Thanks to Downtek, wet down will soon become a thing of the past. Downtek is a nanotechnology that treats down to prevent the feathers from absorbing moisture. I got an opportunity to see a demonstration of just how the Downtek technology works. A Downtek rep put un-treated down in a jar full of water, while putting some that was treated in another jar full of water. We then shook the jars vigorously for a good minute. You could see what happened to the untreated down…it was a clump of useless feathers. The Downtek however maintained its full loft. When I touched the Downtek, I could feel that it was moist, but again, it maintained its loft and insulation capabilities…the moisture was limited to the outside of the down. It was a remarkable demonstration and made me a believer in the technology. Twenty four brands are currently using Downtek in their down jackets and sleeping bags. I’ve reached out to a couple of manufacturers and look forward to testing a few Downtek implemented products in the field very soon.

CĀBLZ
Cablz is an eyewear retention product made of lightweight coated stainless steel cable with industrial strength rubber for attaching your glasses. Cablz is not your father’s Croakies, but rather the next generation in eyewear retention. One of the advantages of Cablz is that the product extends past your head…preventing it from getting snagged on your clothing—not only that, its slim design looks really cool. There are several models and colors to choose from.

LIFEFACTORY
Water/reusable bottles are a dime-a-dozen these days, the vast majority of which are made from various plastics, stainless steel and aluminum. One material you’ve probably not seen in a reusable bottle construction is that of glass. Lifefactory is the maker of a colorful and smartly designed line of glass bottles encased in a protective silicone. The bottles come in several sizes, various colors with several interchangeable caps (straw, flip or classic). Glass is a great choice for the best and most clean taste, while also being a highly abundant and recyclable material.

OSPREY
Osprey is a leader in backpack technology, so it comes as no surprise as they expand their Kode series to include ABS, which is a life-saving airbag technology. Osprey’s Kode ABS Compatible Series comes as a fully functioning, backcountry-ready pack. The Kode ABS compatible pack body unzips to separate from the back panel, hip belt and harness so the base unit can be attached. With a single zipper, Osprey integrates the technology of ABS (for avalanche survival) into the Kode series to deliver optimal safety and peace of mind in the backcountry.

Outdoor Retailer was bustling with an array of products that would make any outdoor enthusiast drool, this is but a snapshot of some of the products that stood out for me.