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Archive for February, 2011

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Brits Adopt Revision Eyepro

Tuesday, February 8th, 2011

Revision has won the UK MoD’s first competition for protective eyewear since 2005. The Combat Protective Eyewear Tender (number DC4/4055) has an estimated contract value of £3.4 million to provide the UK MoD with Revision’s Sawfly® Military Eyewear System and Bullet Ant® Goggles.

“Revision is extremely proud to receive the UK MoD contract for Protective Combat Eyewear,” said Jonathan Blanshay, CEO of Revision. “The focus behind all Revision eyewear is to meet and exceed the stringent requirements set forth by our military customers. It’s an honor to be supplying UK troops with what we believe to be the best performance-enhancing eye protection products.”

Colonel Peter Rafferty, Team Leader for Defence, Equipment and Support’s Personal Combat Equipment Team added, “All troops currently in Afghanistan are issued with protective eyewear as standard and these new additions are an enhancement over what is already out there. In addition to the ballistic protection these items offer, IED’s are a significant threat to our troops in theatre and the debris and dirt thrown up from a blast can be just as harmful to troops as the initial blast or fragmentation itself. This protective eyewear is the best chance they have of minimizing injuries to the eyes while still maintaining situational awareness and thus the ability to do their jobs.”

The Bullet Ant Goggle System provides ballistic protection against medium-energy fragmentation while protecting against the environment: sand, wind and dust. The goggle system features interchangeable OcuMax® coated lenses for high-performance anti-fog and anti-scratch capabilities and provides flawless optics for unprecedented visual clarity. It also accepts prescriptions.

www.revisioneyewear.com

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Uncle Cries Uncle on MultiCam Insignia

Tuesday, February 8th, 2011

When MultiCam was first approved for use in Operation Enduring Freedom as OCP, the associated patches and insignia items produced in the MultiCam colorway were restricted to issue only meaning you couldn’t purchase additional issue items through commercial outlets let alone through the Clothing Sales Store. This restriction extended to the actual manufacturers who could not offer the items to retail outlets.

Well all of that has changed. Recognizing that troops will be troops and that they were starting to purchase poor quality knock off products from questionable sources, the Army Institute of Heraldry is authorizing the manufacturers of issue insignia to offer them to resellers. This allows manufacturers to compete openly and ensures troops will have access to authorized insignia.

As an aside, this got me to thinking. What is the Air Force going to do now that they have too adopted OCP? Their NCOs have an obsession with sleeve rank. It’s one of the only traditions the service has kept and to be blunt, one of the worst. Dating back to the Army Air Corps of WWII, sleeve rank made the leap over to the Air Force from the Army. However, the Army dumped the practice for field uniforms during the Viet Nam conflict. The Air Force briefly flirted with the concept during the post Desert Storm “McPeak” Air Force, removing enlisted rank completely from the BDU. But, like throwing out the baby with the bathwater, the concept was hated by the Senior NCO ranks and the stripes were later returned rather than developing collar or chest mounted versions. Consequently, you can determine the rank of an Air Force Chief from across the flight line.

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Propper Announces Management Changes

Tuesday, February 8th, 2011

Propper International™ announces two key personnel changes, effective January 3, 2011. Rob Granick has been appointed President of the Commercial Division, and Joanna Jones has been appointed Vice President of Marketing – both responsible for growing the company’s presence in the commercial military, tactical, law enforcement and public safety markets. Propper commercial products are distributed through more than 2,500 military, law enforcement and specialty retail stores and websites across the country.

Mr. Granick comes to Propper with more than 20 years of broad industry and functional experience in operations, marketing, finance, consulting, sales and strategy. Having previously owned and operated a sporting goods company, he has unique insights into retail, identifying market opportunities and organizational management across multiple functions and locations.

“It is a privilege to have been entrusted with the position of President – Commercial Division,” said Mr. Granick. “I look forward to working with everyone at Propper to build on our unique brand story, achieve sustained growth and profitability and provide unparalleled value to our dealers and consumers.”

In addition, Joanna Jones, a seventeen-year veteran of advertising and brand marketing, was appointed Vice President of Marketing – reporting to Mr. Granick. Ms. Jones is charged with building the Propper brand name and evolving in-store and online presence.

“The appointment of Rob and Joanna in key roles is evidence of Propper’s commitment to our Commercial Division, and we are confident they will help take the company and brand to the next level,” said Tom Kellim, President and CEO. “More than ever, Propper is committed to the expansion of our commercial offering, and building on our rich and authentic military heritage – with the highest quality and service in the industry.”

www.propper.com

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Magpul Releases Rifle Length MOE Handguards

Tuesday, February 8th, 2011

Designed for rifle-length ‘direct impingement’ or external-piston gas systems, these MOE handguards can be installed by the operator. Like all MOE handguards they feature slots for accessories including removable Picatinny rail sections. They are available from Magpul or from retailers featuring quality firearms accessories.

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Team SureFire’s Maggie Reese Chosen for “Top Shot”

Monday, February 7th, 2011

Team SureFire women’s shooting sports captain, Maggie Reese, will be a competing in season two of HISTORY channel’s hit competition series “Top Shot.” Reese was selected out thousands of applicants as one of sixteen marksmen who will compete for the $100,000 prize.

“I’m thrilled to be a part of Top Shot,” said Reese. “As a 3-gun shooter, I’m very comfortable with pistols, rifles and shotguns. However, Top Shot tests your ability to do more than just pull a trigger and it’s going to be fun to get outside of my comfort zone.”

Reese is no stranger to competition. She is a semi-professional pistol and multi-gun shooter for Team SureFire on a full-time basis. She is a back-to-back USPSA Nationals 3-Gun Champion and has won a variety of other local and regional shooting matches in just over three years of full-time competition.

“My father literally pushed me into shooting,” said Reese. “ He told me to try it once and if I didn’t like it then he’d never make me go again. I loved it and now it’s great to walk into a competition as a female, feel completely underestimated, send the first shots downrange and watch the jaws drop.”

The 13-week series premieres Tuesday, February 8 at 10pm ET on HISTORY. For more information on Top Shot and to see Maggie Reese’s shooter profile, visit HISTORY.com.

www.SureFire.com

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“Anyone Who Relies on Their Body for a Living is an Athlete”

Monday, February 7th, 2011

“Anyone who relies on their body for a living is an athlete.” -CPT Nicholas Barringer, US Army, 75th Ranger Regimental Dietitian

Unlike “professional” athletes who talk about being “warriors” and participating in “combat” while they play games on any given Sunday, service members really do those things for a living and have really earned the title. In fact, the only thing American service members really have with those in “pro” sports is that they are both athletes.

For several years now, the 75th Ranger Regiment has undertaken an aggressive physical training program called Ranger Athlete Warrior. It recognizes that the Ranger is an athlete but a special type that we are just now coming to recognize and understand.

According to the Army, the Ranger Athlete Warrior program addresses four objectives through the components of functional fitness, performance nutrition, mental toughness and sports medicine:

– Achieve a level of physical fitness that is commensurate with the physical requirements of Ranger missions.
– Understand and choose sound nutritional practices.
– Employ mental toughness skills to enhance personal and professional development. The regiment’s occupational therapist and psychologist coach Rangers on the mind-body connection in order to optimize performance.
– Receive screening, education and skills for injury prevention and “prehabilitation” that prompt effective and thorough treatment through “rehabilitation” of injuries if and when they do occur.

The quote that was used as the title of this article is significant for two reasons. First off, it sums up the very root of the issue. The point now is to increase recognition of this fact across all services and to tailor training for the occupational requirements of all service members based on duties. Secondly, it came from a Dietitian assigned to one of this nation’s most elite military organizations. A Dietitian. Let that sink in.

We find it refreshing to find industry coming to this realization as well. Vertx has begun to develop products for the Operational Athlete, Mayflower engineers their load systems for the Military Athlete and New Balance as well as Under Armour are bringing their considerable experience in athletic equipment to bear on the tactical market. Even our own “Corps Strength” correspondent PJ Rourke, MGySgt, USMC (Ret) espouses occupational fitness and has taken his military experience and is using it to help others develop themselves physically.

Learn more about RAW and CPT Barringer in a press release from USASOC.

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New Balance Introduces Merino Wool Clothing ADS

Monday, February 7th, 2011

Wool really makes sense for military garments but a couple of things have happened over the years that have pushed it to the back of the line. In the late 1980s new, man-made fabrics began to come on the military scene that out performed the issue wool garments which dated back to before WWI. Troops were more than happy to ditch the itchy long johns that their great grandfathers had worn into battle on the Western Front. But then came the IED. Unnaturally (pun intended), the answer was to develop new man made FR performance fabrics since the recently adopted polypropylene and polyester fabrics used in military base layers are very flammable. This was a very costly undertaking. So where was wool, nature’s performance fiber through all of this? Quite frankly, it wasn’t quite ready to make a return.

Traditionally there have been several criticisms of the use of wool:
-Comfort (that itchy feeling)
-Limited domestic availability of Merino wool (considered the best wool for next to skin use, not itchy)
-Shrinkage
-Smell
-Lack of domestic treatment due to EPA guidelines

Despite these generic criticisms, the benefits of Merino wool are myriad:
-Warm even when wet
-Comfortable in a wide range of temperatures as well as against the skin
-Antimicrobial
-Inherently FR (No Melt, No Drip)

We are now at the point where we have almost an entire Army that has never used wool undergarments, and those that have probably don’t have the fondest of memories. Truthfully, current military attention towards wool has been driven by troops with an interest in the outdoors, as commercial wool garments have gotten better and better of the past few years. This has been combined with a concern by those who keep the Army’s purse strings, as they are constantly seeking more economical ways to accomplish the mission.

To mitigate the common criticisms of wool, New Balance has combined Merino with FR Rayon to increase performance and durability. This also increases the FR properties of wool and facilitates field laundering. Then, they have treated the resulting fabric with X-static to further enhance wool’s natural anti-microbial properties to reduce stink. Additionally, there is finally an environmentally green US-based wool treatment facility. Treatment is critical to improving the comfort and performance of the wool. While the US Merino herd is small, as with all things “domestic textile”, the military is a prime customer. In fact, all of the components have just recently aligned in order to allow New Balance to produce a Berry compliant product.

New Balance has developed several garments including Base Layer long and short-sleeved T-shirts, Briefs, light and mid-weight Long Underwear Pants, and a Performance 1/4-zip Shirt. Initially, the plan was to have the Merino products available by July, but user feedback from the test items has been so strong that New Balance is looking to accelerate their schedule.

Units interested in New Balance military products should contact ADS.

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Sabre Defence for Sale to Highest Bidder

Monday, February 7th, 2011

Just shy of a year after being raided by the ATF, Sabre Defence Industries is being offered for sale by creditors. The ATF raid was connected to allegations against individual employees rather than the firm itself, but it wasn’t the first or last time the company had been in controversy. In late 2009 they were sued by a sub-contractor for non-payment for M2 machine gun bolts. Then, late last year, they lost the license to produce the AUGA3 from Steyr.

We don’t know which if any of these unfortunate events are to blame for the demise of Sabre Defence but it is currently being offered for sale under an Article 9 Foreclosure which is generally considered a friendly foreclosure. Interested parties have until 14 February to bid but you have to be serious as the creditor is asking for a $100k deposit in order to bid.

Full details of the sale are available at sabresale.com.

Interestingly, the Sabre Defence website is still working. www.sabredefence.com

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