Day 2 at the ISPO trade show in Munich found us checking out the autumn/winter ranges from the likes of Odlo, The North Face, Mountain Equipment, Montane, Marmot and Sprayway.
The Odlo name is synonymous with synthetic baselayers and the big news in their autumn/winter range is their Muscle Force range of tops and bottoms. Aimed specifically at the ski market, though we’re sure other outdoorists will pick up on this, the Muscle Force garments use reinforced mesh zones in areas where your muscles are taking a pounding, such as the quads when skiing, and the effect it has is to provide support to those areas and therefore increase performance. Available from September the Muscle Force baselayers come in a long sleeve crew neck top, and 3/4 and full length pants.
Over at The North Face, the company’s snow sports ranges have been aligned under the sub sectors of Steep, Alpine, Park & Pipe and Summit, of which the Summit and Steep ranges are of most interest to T&M readers. Summit is the ski mountaineering range, and the Alloy softshell jacket and pant caught our eye, with its body-mapped insulation (specific to men and women) among many other features, these are really well-thought out pieces. Thermoball is a new synthetic down technology which uses ‘pellets’ of synthetic insulation which is then used to fill square-shaped (men’s) or diamond-shaped (women’s) baffles on the hoody and full zip (jacket) versions. Offering packable insulation, these garments give the equivalent warmth of a 600-fill down jacket, according to TNF. Lastly we checked out two new mountaineering boots – the 8000m boot, the Verto S8k, which we’ve been expecting for a while now, and the Verto S6k Extreme, a cold-weather technical boot, which we weren’t expecting, but looks pretty handy. These two models complete a very impressive line of mountain walking and climbing boots from TNF.
Marmot had some pretty innovative products on display, including a couple of pieces that use the new Polartec Alpha breathable synthetic insulation. The Isotherm Hoody won a gold award at the show and it is essentially an Alpha-insulated jacket, but with Marmot’s DryClime wicking layer inside, making a super dry and breathable jacket for high energy activities. A variation of this is the Project Alpha Jacket which also has the DryClime liner but also utilises PowerStretch Pro on the arms and side panels. Elsewhere in the range the Ascension jacket uses Marmot’s own Fusion Dry system, which combines their Membrain membrane with a wicking backer to give an impressive performing jacket (according to the stats) when it comes to breathability and waterproofness.
Mountain Equipment are coming out guns blazing for the season with their flagship hardshells. Not only are they working with Gore-Tex’s latest Pro membrane but they have added to their range the hyper-breathable Polaretc NeoShell as well. The well-established Changabang jacket is now sporting a better, more universal fit as well as an updated version of their excellent helmet-compatible hood system, and also features four cavernous pockets and pit zips. Next down in the Pro range is the Tupilak, and both this and the Changabang use Storm Construction which comes in the form of addition protection for exposed pockets with an internal storm flap as well as draining channels. The more climbing-orientated Cneturion jacket is constructed from the very tactile and breathable NeoShell fabric and is ideal for faster moving Alpine style use. The hardshell trousers are no less impressive with extended ankle kick cuffs, additional wear areas for harnesses and aggressive articulated and reinforced knees.
In term of insulation Mountain Equipment are also sprucing their range up, refining their ever-popular Lightline down jacket and introducing a new Arete hoody for the micro down market, but steering away form water-resistant down for the time being. On the synthetic side of things the Firestorm is the no-hooded jacket for fast moving activity and makes use of Polartec Alpha but backed up by addition pit zips and a wicking internal mesh. The Compressor is the mid to outer layer Primaloft One hoody for when things get a little colder. You’ll also be seeing a new sleeping bag range hitting the shelves this spring and summer as well as updated softshell Pulsar trousers.
Montane are pushing forward at an amazing rate, developing their product range extensively along with the sponsored athletes and dedicated development team There are some very exciting new products due for autumn/winter 2013 with regards to hardshell, softshell and insulation, all with amazing levels of detail. A great range of bags will be availeble this spring including the Grand Tour 55 which has brilliant load carrying capability, a myriad of pockets form stretch zip front, zipped hip and water bottle pockets. The back system is well padded, simple and yet very supportive, looking like it will take big loads in its stride. The real winner for this spring has to be the excellent and innovative Minimus Mountain Jacket and even lighter smock. These weigh in at a mere 232 and 143 grams respectively and if you add the paired trousers you have a set of ultra light weight waterproofs for under 300g!
Spayway are by no means the new kids on the block and next year will be celebrating 40 years in the outdoor garment business. Still based in Manchester, they are staying true to their origins and have been busy developing some bombproof new lines for 2013. The Phantom and Fury 2 lead the way with practical design and durability of Gore-Tex while keeping weight to a minimum. Great functional pockets, double external storm flaps and cavernous map pockets all add up to a very usable, year-round hardshell. For when the weather turns colder the Fuel 2 jacket will keep that northerly wind at bay, using their own brand Insutherm synthetic insulation. Spayway are also introducing for the first time a softshell jacket to the range in the guise of the Alpha (men’s) and Sierra (women’s), and again this is a good-looking, functional softshell with great contrasting colour details in zips and cuffs.
That’s it for Day 2, check in again tomorrow for our final report from ISPO, covering our third and final day at the show.
RELATED LINKS
ISPO Day 1 report