The Gear Blog, July 4th

By Claire Maxted

Gear news

04 July 2008 12:12

Terra Nova launches super-light rucksacks! 

We thought you should be the first to know the latest lightweight news. Well-established, quality tent manufacturer Terra Nova is gearing up to launch a completely new range of featherlight rucksacks. Out next March, the range will include a 6 litre bumbag at 182g; a 20 litre rucksack at 328g; and a 35 litre daysack at 467g.
Terra Nova’s Carolyn Budding says: “These are aimed at day walkers, lightweight backpackers and adventure racers. The middleweight sack combined with our lightest tent, the 790g Laser Photon, weighs only just over 1kg [that’s less than a bottle of wine!]. The sacks have elasticated bungees for compression, integrated clips, and the smaller two have easy-access hipbelt pockets but the largest sack hipbelt is more streamlined.”
>> www.terra-nova.co.uk

 
Haglöfs’ new foot-kindly culture

All Haglöfs shoes, including models already on the market, will be sold with adaptive insoles as standard from spring 2009. Special SOLE insoles, which are heat-mouldable, will either be adapted to the shape of your foot in the shop, or through wearing them for a few days or popping them in the oven at 90 deg C before standing on them. Haglöfs’ Scottish agent Gus Sandeson said, “This isn’t some cheap, plastic insert you can buy for 50p. SOLE insoles give extra shock absorption and stability; and, because they support the foot completely, it can react more quickly to impact on trips. The inserts can sell for £35 on their own, but the price of the shoes will not be affected.”
However, Trail’s gear expert Graham has a few words of caution. “Heat-moulded footbeds, moulded by putting weight on the foot, won’t offer as much support as a custom-moulded footbed, as by definition the foot is no longer held in the correct shape once it is loaded. These inserts are much better than nothing, but you’d be better off having inserts such as Superfeet fitted by trained staff, or – better yet – having them custom made by a podiatrist.”
>> www.haglofs.se

 

Ajungilak’s 3-season jacket-bag

Ajungilak thinks it’s found a solution to the problem of ill-fitting women’s sleeping bags, and its name is the Kira. Apart from a special female fit and padded footbed, the unique selling point of this bag is a sort of in-built coat, with elbow-length sleeves and poppers at the neck and shoulders. Chris Roberts, the director of Mammut UK, says, “The internal baffle keeps you very warm at night, no matter how much you move, and is also handy if you want to sit up and have a cup of tea while still in your bag: it keeps you cosy while protecting your modesty.”


Compared to the women’s version of Trail’s last synthetic 3-season sleeping bag winner, the Marmot Wave III, the Kira costs £40 more at £115, and has a temperature rating of only -1 deg C as opposed to –7 (though Ajungilak is notorious for being conservative with its ratings). It is lighter, though, at 1650g compared to 1800g. So, if you’re a lightweight fanatic, a fidgety sleeper or just not a morning person, the Kira may be for you.
>> www.ajungilak.no

 

When tent poles attack

In the last issue of Trail (Aug08), reader Ade Alabi’s tent pole snapped at 3am on our ferociously windy My First Time Wild Camping feature, and some of you have emailed to ask how this could happen. A quick chat with Terra Nova managing director Andy Utting reveals why a pole can snap and how best to avoid being a wild camp victim:
“The tent in question, the Terra Nova Solar 2.2, is an ultra-lightweight model and the poles are not as thick as something like our more robust Voyager. If you pitch the Solar 2.2 front end into the wind, strong gusts can force the pole to the ground and create a stress build-up near the end of the pole, which can lead to a breakage. From customer feedback and pole stress research at Bristol University, we know that 99 per cent of Terra Nova tent pole failures are due to environmental conditions. These include high winds, orientation of the tent into the wind, corrosion of the aluminium (especially prevalent with sea kayaking campers, as salt water can destroy poles within weeks), poles clanging together on assembly, and incorrect erection. Take care of your tent poles, put them together with care, pitch your tent with the doors unzipped to reduce stress, make full use of your guy ropes for stability, dry poles after use and check out the video of how best to erect a Solar 2.2 on our website.”
>> www.terra-nova.co.uk

Weird gear

Scary bivvy-waterproof combo

Scare kids and go super-lightweight with this combined waterproof-cum-bivvy from Hilleberg. Developed by the Swedish Air Force survival team, you can wear the Bivanorak over your rucksack as a rainproof and use it as a shelter. But there is no mention of its appeal for Hallowe’en; surely they’re missing a huge marketing opportunity here…
>> www.hilleberg.com/2006%20Products/NewBivanorak.htm

 

Love your bum
They’re called ‘angel kisses’ – the odd tingling sensations in your behind from some premium anti-friction powders, if you ever use them to calm your chafing flesh on a mountain walk. Anti Monkey Butt Powder saves the day by absorbing more sweat than the others, so check out the link if you’re prone to walker’s bum rub in the summer.
>> www.antimonkeybutt.com

 

Shoo, shark!

Humans are more likely to be killed by cars than falling off mountains, and the probability is even more minuscule for a shark attack, but Shark Shield has gone ahead just in case and developed the SharkPOD, a soon-to-be commercially viable wetsuit accessory that emits an electric field to befuddle the shark’s brain. Good job sharks can’t drive. Or walk.
>> www.sharkshield.com

 

This week’s best gadget

Moving from sharks that can’t mountaineer to a fish that can, the Li’l Guppie multi-tool is the latest backcountry gadget from America. This wee gadget will cling to your backpack ready to perform as an adjustable wrench, knife, flat and Phillips screwdrivers, and bottle opener. Caution: not great with chips.
>> www.crkt.com/lilguppie.html

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