The first two weeks of January 2012 we all took a trip to the Ecuadorian Andes. My family, hosted the group in a farm close by to the capital city, Quito. During this time, we had a great experience climbing a few of the mountains in the northern region of Ecuador. We reached the summit of Pasochoa (13779 ft), Illiniza Norte (16,818 ft) and Cotopaxi (19,347 ft). We also did some rock climbing and a short backpacking trip to the crater lake of Altar. During these travels we all experienced and analyzed some of the areas of design we want to explore. Here are some images of the adventure and stunning landscapes.

Manastash / eco-friendly clothing

Manastash is an outdoor brand, established in Seattle, USA in the year 1994.
Its philosophy is to make the best possible clothing, using sustainable materials, such as hemp or recycled fleeces.

http://www.manastash.com/en/keyword/index.html

Pedometer wristband

Pedometer wristband motivates schoolchildren to be active

MOVband is a wristband pedometer designed to motivate and reward exercise.

We’ve already seen wristband devices designed to motivate kids into physical activity, but what makesMOVband different is that it is available to schools through a loan program, which could encourage a far wider uptake of the device.

MOVband was created by a teacher and fitness instructor in response to rising child obesity in the US and budget cuts in schools that have caused a decrease in physical education. It was designed to be simple, stylish and accessible, ensuring kids will want to wear them and can use them easily. The black band — priced at USD 19.99 — displays the number of steps made by the wearer and comes with a range of colored accessory bands — USD 4.99 each — that wearers can “earn” once they achieve certain mileage. In this way, the device aims to promote exercise through friendly competition between individuals and groups. For schools with minimal budgets, MOVband will initially loan the wristbands for a fundraiser challenge, then take payment from the money raised. The video below explains MOVband in more detail:

Statistics show that child obesity figures in the US have trebled since 1980, and also that more active children perform better academically. Can you think of more ways to inspire children to stay active?

Website: www.movband.com

Anon M1

Here's another new product changing things up with magnets. The Anon M1 snow goggles are not out yet, but check out their preview video. They have a main body with removable lenses in different tint and clear options. The lenses are held in place and easily removed with magnets. As observed on the National Geographic gear review, there could be the possibility of the lenses popping off in certain situations. Sounds like the design team at Anon is still adding finishing touches to increase the ease of switching. I wonder what they propose as storage for the loose frames, especially in the case that you want to bring them up the lift and down the mountain...afterall thats the point of being able to change lenses so quickly without removing the goggles right? Ultimately, Anon is beginning to cover one of the things that we ourselves are most concerned with.... How can one design do what two or three do?

MICROspikes

MICROspikes are kind of a neat little almost-crampon device for regular hiking boots; not sure if I'd ever use them for anything too serious, but I'd love to try on a pair and see how well they work out on some tough snow conditions.

Interesting Gear List

Here is a very interesting read about a motorcyclist's choice of gear what they brought and why it worked so well:

http://www.corporaterunaways.com/2011/04/07/what-worked-and-what-didnt-a-gear-review/