Outdoor Innovations Top 50
The search is on for the most innovative outdoor gear of the last 50 years. Nominate your top outdoor gear and win an HTC Wildfire Smartphone (unlocked).
Innovative, pioneering and ground breaking are all words that have been used to describe the products that have made the biggest difference to our experience in the outdoors over the last 50 years.
This is your chance to nominate outdoor gear that you think is the most innovative of the last half century, Rucksacks, Outdoor Clothing, Sleeping Bags, Footwear, Tents, Cookers, Hardwear and Technology. They do not have to be in production today but its nice if they are.
This is your chance to nominate up to three products. We will be profiling on Rohantime some of the companies you nominate for the stories behind the products.
Everyone who takes part in the nominations will be entered into a free prize draw for the latest HTC Wildfire Android Smartphone worth over £200 – innovative technology.
Readers Choice Outdoor Innovations 50/50 will run until the 31st October 2010. The top 50 will be revealed on Rohantime on Monday 1st November 2010.
Outdoor Innovations 50 50 Gallery
Mike Parsons talks to Rohantime In this interview Mike gives insights into his innovation philosophy, his inspirations and why he feels past knowledge informs.
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19 Comments
Goretex without a doubt.
Hi Graham yes please do
can I nominate cycling gear
mountain bikes, snowboards, The North Face puffy coat, and smartwool socks
Great idea for a contest. My thoughts go back to basic items such as a padded hipbelt on a rucksack. It seems simple enough now, but at one time packs didn’t have hipbelts let alone padded belts.
Modern rain wear is light years ahead of what existed 50 years ago.
LED lighting is 100% better than old style lights.
Self inflating sleeping pads are great.
Most pieces of gear are simply refinements over old designs. Baffled down sleeping bags are largely unchanged, for example, other than better grades of down and lighter fabrics and perhaps a more tailored fit of the bag.
+1 on the Lowe Alpine suspension system.
Softpacks such as the widely copied in its day, and now back on the market, Rivendell Jensen pack. Nothing else was quite like it and for a given weight limit still carries like a dream.
It has got to be wicking base layers, which I’m sure Rohan pioneered with a fabric from Bayer – Dunova.
I still have a blue and orange, and a grey and orange Dunova t-shirts. I also have a micro-meshed t-shirt which I think is also Dunova. Horder, me? Never.
Well. not any more. I currently have some 20 to 30 year old Rohan items on Ebay, with more to come…..at the insistance of my OH.
Some people have no sense of history!
I read somewhere about the texture of Dunova fabric being like cotton. I think is feels quite like chamois leather.
For me the Men’s Velez Adventure provides all the multi-activity features I need, it’s a must piece of kit for your sac…
Good luck!
Ian
I don’t think Tom can have rock-boots though… I’d thought of those but some research revealed Pierre Allain was pioneering them well before 50 years ago!
I put in some noms a few days back, and Greg Lowe’s rucksack frame was top of my list so in full agreement there.
three great suggestions Tom
I would suggest the Lowe Alpine back system on Rucksacks, a huge step forward that everyone copied.
As a climber I would also put forward, rubber climbing shoes, I couldn’t imagine using hob nail boots, those old climbers were nuts. Again on the climbing theme what about Friends/Cams, they opened up whole new areas for climbing that would have been impossible to protect previously.
See you in store,
Tom
It’s obvious its got to be Rohan, Rohan and Rohan job done
Great idea I will have to give it a lot of thought I’ll be back
what about my heart rate monitor I use for running?
I always take my iPod on my outdoor trips. It makes the evenings in the tent more pleasent. Can I nominate it?
Hi George 50 years is the cut off, so much has happened in the last 50 year we had to call it at some point. Regarding innovation its personal choice, all about what you think thats the important thing.
Hello April, Yes canoes and cycling gear welcome
If its outdoor gear and you think it’s innovative please nominate it
can I nominate cycling gear and what about my favourite sea canoe?
Great Idea – makes you think!
The term innovative is somewhat ambiguous what is the criteria?
Can I nominate a product older than 50 years?
Sarah, good question!
My first reaction would be to highlight 3 products that have removed the discomfort from participation from the Outdoor experience – but I am sure that some hard-liners will say that it brings people into the outdoors who are not enjoying the outdoors for what it offers. The three products are the Jogbra, the walkman & comfortable footwear (e.g. Brasher Hillmasters)
On an extension of this the German Alpine Association gave a good presentation here at Outdoor, Friedrichshafen where they referred to not mountain sports, but motor sports as the participants arrived by motor car too often…
Back to your question – the 5 things I quote that have made monumental change, but were not originally developed for the Outdoor experience are: Pertex; Goretex; Polycotton; fleece, & pile
Look forward to hearing other’s comments
regards