Montrail, Hard Rock

The Montrail Hardrock is my "go to" running shoe. I might race in a lighter shoe from time to time but I put in most of my miles in the Hardrock. This is because it is the most supportive and protective trail shoe I have found. It protects my foot from the elements. The shoe was designed for ultrarunners running the Hardrock 100, considered the hardest of the 100 mile ultramarathons. The course is notorious for rough rocky terrain including extended scree sections. The hardrock has a protective plate that runs the entire length of the sole for protection when you land on those jagged rocks. This past winter I ran the Presidential Traverse in my Hardrocks. This traverse is 26 miles of nothing but rocks. Without the Hardrocks I would have suffered severely. Instead I finished without a single blister or injury. Recently in training i put in a 200+ mile week of trail running. I would not attempt this with any other shoe period.

I occasionally suffer from knee pain and have had surgery on one of my knees. With the Hardrock I know I'm getting the most cushion and supportive trail shoe on the market. This shoe takes care of me and fits great as well. The reinforced heal cup keeps my heal in the shoe and happy when climbing. And for those long days on the trails there is plenty of room in the toe box for your toes to move around (and not blister). I know many people who use this shoe for various other activities. Hikers are starting to realize they don't need a big leather boot to hike. I have many friends who use the Hardrock as their main hiking shoe, or even an approach shoe.

If you want a great protective trail shoe, or are someone who puts in a lot of miles the Hardrock is the shoe for you.

Rudy Project, Ekynox

I have owned a pair of 2006 Rudy Project Ekynox sunglasses since last April. I have adventure raced, mountain bike raced, worked, and skied with them all year. They are very comfortable, good looking, and (most of all) durable.

The durability of these sunglasses became starkly apparent to me during a ski trip. It was a beautiful, sunny Northwest winter day and the Ekynox specs were a necessity.

Just after noon, I was ripping down the mountain at 25-30 mph came upon a well concealed “cat track”. Before I knew what hit me, I was kissing the hard packed snow with my face. Ouch! The impact flipped me forward onto my feet (skis ejected) 20 feet further down the hill. To my surprise, my face was unscathed. My Ekynox glasses had taken to brunt of the fall on the right temple of the frame, just under the brim of my helmet. Equally amazing was that the glasses were undamaged! Had I not been wearing my Rudys, I would have sustained significant facial trauma. The Rudy Project site states that the Ekynox frames are made with “Grimlamidä TR 55 LX construction providing structural integrity and stability”. I would add “safety” to that description. Great sunglasses for any sport!
Written by Tyler Patterson
Photo by Tyler Patterson

Arc'teryx, Gamma MX

Personally I think that endurance athletes make the best product testers on the planet. We are in our gear for very long periods of time and we hammer on it. I wore my new Gamma MX soft shell from Arc’teryx exclusively for 17 hours of ski mountaineering during the 24 hours of Sunlight race this past weekend. I think without a doubt Arc’teryx makes the best gear on the planet, and this coat is probably the best I’ve ever worn. I fought the soft shell revolution while the industry buzzed and everyone I knew bought one - I somehow did not. Because of the 24 hours of sunlight was, well, 24 hours, I had laps that were completed in the mid teens as well as some that were -8 degrees. The only thing I changed was how many layers I had under this jacket. For the warmer afternoon laps I had one super thin layer on under the Gamma MX. In the dead cold of 2:00am I simply added another light weight breathable long sleeve. The wind stopper protection was perfect for the cold down hills in the middle of the night and because it’s soft-shell it breathed very well on the way up in the sun. It also dried extremely fast as well. This is the best technical piece of ski gear I own. You can find it for around $300.00 US.

Written by Matt Hart