The Outdoor Retailer show is a gearhead’s dream. Gear as far as the eye can see – you can look at it, touch it, try it out, and marvel over new technologies, new designs, and even some good old standbys.
My day was packed with appointments for setting up the next few months of gear testing for BGT, but I still found time to browse around and check out some of the fun new things at this year’s show. Snowpeak was showing off some clever new stove and fuel cannister designs, such as the Metal Crab, shown in the photo above.

I stopped by the Vibram booth and tried on a pair of their Five Fingers, a pair of ‘shoes’ with individual toes. I’m a big fan on Injinji socks and my feet really liked the unique feel and fit of the Vibram shoes. They had a full vibram sole with a neoprene sock-like body, great for slick rock and water crossings. The best part? They were nice and lightweight, making them a good candidate for a camp shoe.

The day was topped off with a book signing by Ed Viesturs, some gear giveaway raffles, and plenty of free flowing beer. Not a bad way to spend a day. Tomorrow I have fewer appointments so I hope to spend some time exploring a bit deeper into the new goodies that will soon be on the market.