We told you a bit about
Berghaus's
new for winter kit last week, but we've also had a sneak preview of
what's coming from the North East-based brand
early in 2009
including some very neat-looking new packs, a revamp of their
most popular walking boot and some clothing updates.
New Packs
The
big changes to the range this autumn have been to the Extrem technical
packs an the launch of the new Sentinel with its transformer-style
strippable design. For next spring, there's one more addition to the
Extrem range in the shape of the
Arete
Pro 45, a 45-litre development of the Arete line.
It borrows features from the higher end Extrem Pro packs like the
flexible Fusion Pro Verteflex back system which flexes with your back,
to allow greater mobility and modular construction, which allows you to
remove frame, hip-belt and lid to save weight.
You also get wand pockets, alpine ice axe holster, reinforced wear
points and more at a price of
£90
compared to, say, the £115 you'd pay for a Sentinel 35 with
its Dry Liner waterproof system.
Walking Packs Spiced Up
The big development is the new range of
Roam packs aimed
squarely at hill and mountain walkers. Berghaus took a long look at its
existing range and decided it was, well, a bit conservative looking
really.
What they've come up with is a range of closer-fitting, more
winter-friendly packs that borrow more from their climbing sacs. In
other words, they look like climbing packs, but they're not.
It's not just about styling though. The back-system uses perforated EVA
pads which don't absorb perspiration, which should help keep your back
less soggy. There's also a new hip-belt design which includes cut-outs
for hip bones and also alters shape to suit hip angles as well as
pivoting for extra freedome of movement.
It makes a lot of sense to us. Walkers don't need the support that most
climbing sacs incorporate to cope with heavy hardware loads, but
sleeker lines work better for scrambling and - let's face it - look
better too.
All the Roam packs get a reinforced durable base, lid pocket, tool
fittings, mesh pockets and removable foam sit pad. There are three
sizes,
Roam 25, Roam 30
and Roam 35 priced at
£40,
£45 and £50. There's also a
women-specific version of the Roam 30. They're available in loads of
different colours by the way, including good old black...
Freeflow Velocity 25
Also new for spring is the
Freeflow Velocity 25 which
uses Berghaus's ventilated Freeflow back system along with perforated
EVA shoulder straps in a top-opening 25-litre package complete with
stretch pockets, pole attachments etc. Looks nice, costs
£75.
Explorer Boots Get
Complete Revamp
On the footwear front, the longstanding and best-selling
Explorer walking
boot has been triplicated with three revamped models for spring 2009.
Basically there's a leather version, a suede/fabric one and a
lightweight variant. All recognisably Explorers, but all slightly
different - below. Note the corporate-coloured cushion/sofa ensemble...
The
Explorer Ridge
is a new leather version of the boot complete with a Gore-Tex
liner for waterproofing. It uses the same sole unit as the current
Explorer, but the last has been changed making it 3mm deeper and more
suitable for the high volume Brit' foot.
The suede / fabric version is called the
Explorer Trek GTX
and weighs pretty much the same as the leather one at around 600
grammes for a size 42, which is reasonably light. It also gets a
Gore-Tex lining.
Finally there's the
Explorer
Light - above - which is around 70 grammes per pair
lighter than the other two, but also looks a bit more streamlined. It
has a Gore-Tex XCR liner and the same Asylum sole unit and PU
cushioning as the other two.
There are women's versions of all three and prices are £100,
£90 and £85 respectively. We like the new tongue
graphic as well. Just call us shallow...
Clothing Tweaked
We're not really going to go into clothing specifics, but
one interesting development is that Berghaus has had a re-style of some
its walking legwear so it has lower waistlines and baggier legs - in
other words, less like dad pants... They look nice close up too with
some interesting textured finishes.
Last but not least, we had a quick rustle through the Ator range.
Ator's taken a bit of a hammering on the forum from folk who reckon
it's evidence of some evil sell-out to the forces of high street
consumerism, but it uses some good technical fabrics in some very
nicely designed, contemporarily-styled garments.
Put all the launch marketing guff on one side, and it's simply
technical clothing that doesn't look like traditional technical
clothing, but should still do the job. Plus there's the added bonus
that you can nip down the shops on a rainy day without looking like a
sad refugee from a mid-80s Bonington attempt on Everest.
Full details of the current Berghaus range at
www.berghaus.com,
the spring / summer 2009 kit above will be in the shops early in 2009,
usually around January / February.
