Magnum USA just released this cool video of their SHOT Show experience. Watch this space for some interesting news on Magnum products.
Archive for the ‘Boots’ Category
Magnum Recaps SHOT Show
Saturday, January 29th, 2011Bates Footwear Partners with Wounded Warrior Project
Friday, January 28th, 2011Bates Footwear has announced they will be partnering with Wounded Warrior Project (WWP), a nonprofit organization that supports thousands of wounded warriors each year during their transition back to civilian life.
WWP began when several veterans and friends, moved by stories of the first wounded service members returning home from Afghanistan and Iraq, took action to help others in need. What started as a program to provide comfort items to wounded servicemen and women has grown into a complete rehabilitative effort to assist warriors as they recover. Over 40,000 of our nation’s armed forces have been physically wounded during the current military conflicts. Hundreds of thousands more are estimated to be recovering from invisible wounds of war, including post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression, and traumatic brain injury.
WWP assists wounded warriors and their families through a holistic approach to their recovery. Whether through caregiver retreats, combat stress programs, career and education services, or adaptive sporting opportunities, WWP empowers warriors with the tools essential to not just survive their injuries but to thrive and achieve personal and professional success.
Manufacturing quality boots and shoes to protect the men and women that wear them is part of the value that drives Bates to give back. “We are grateful to show our support and gratitude to warfighters who have honored our country with incredible sacrifice by supporting a worthy cause such as Wounded Warrior Project†said Ron Woznick, Bates VP & General Manager.
N.Tel – What’s It All Mean?
Sunday, January 23rd, 2011Last week we reported that OTB was rebranding to “N.Tel”. This is not the true story. OTB is in fact coming together with athletic and tactical wear fully under the New Balance banner. The N.Tel is actually the philosophy that drives how the entire team at New Balance does business. NB looks at the military as a collection of athletes and designs clothing and footwear with this in mind. The game might not be the same as traditional athletes but the level of commitment and need for stamina and physical prowess is still there. NB has a set of capabilities that they bring to a challenge and they listen to their customers to see how they can use their skills to solve problems.
We sat down yesterday at Outdoor Retailer with the team and we can tell you that in addition to the OTB line and New Balance’s System 7 there is some really cool new products on the way including Berry compliant Merino pieces that will blow your socks off.
OTB Rebranding
Thursday, January 20th, 2011
Right before last year’s SHOT Show, OTB Boots was purchased by New Balance. Now, a year later, we go to SHOT Show and see a brand new booth with banners proclaiming, “OTB, in alliance with New Balance” and “N.Tel Intelligence”. From what we can gather, the OTB line of products, along with new clothing and athletic footwear specifically tailored for the military is being combined into N.Tel.
Essentially, the message is “Your Intelligence Drives our Intelligence”. For those of you unfamiliar with this notion it actually an extrapolation of the concept “intelligence drives operations”. This means that you can’t go kill bad guys if you don’t know where they are and New Balance can’t produce their products without the input of Elite Soldier Athletes. Makes sense to me. However, I’m not too sure on how the name will play.
The only thing missing now is a dedicated website.
www.OTBboots.com,check it before it transforms into something new.
Under Armor Goes MultiCam
Wednesday, January 19th, 2011Not only is Under Armour introducing an entire new line of footwear which includes the MultiCam Speedfreek. I haven’t worn them yet, but I can say that they are very lightweight.
They are also offering long and short sleeved T-shirts in the MultiCam print.
Under Armour has a whole slew of really cool new products as well as specialty Wounded Warrior Project wear. www.underarmour.com
Bates to Unveil New Footwear at SHOT Show
Friday, January 14th, 2011Naturally Bates is going to unveil at least a couple of new styles at SHOT Show. After all, they are a footwear company and that’s the prime place to do it. But we have been fortunate enough to see behind the curtain and preview a couple of these styles at their headquarters in Michigan last fall. What we saw was awesome.
Bates is expanding their iCS line with the Delta-9 in Desert Tan. What it does is introduce the Individual Comfort System’s (ICS) Adjustable Comfort Technology to the world of desert boots. This “dial†technology allows each individual can choose the comfort zone that’s right for them by inserting a disc shaped dial into a channel in the heel of the boot. Different positions correspond to different ways that the foot interacts with the boot’s sole.
Additionally, Bates is introducing the Light Hiker and we think it is going to give the Improved Combat Hiker currently used by troops in Afghanistan a run for its money. Obviously, by looks alone you can see that it is not the same boot but rather incorporates some commercial technologies that many in the military will already be familiar with from the outdoor segment. The Light Hiker is just that, being designed for use as a hiker and perfect for scrambling and carrying light loads.
These are but two of the many tactical and duty footwear that Bates will be launching at SHOT show. Be sure to visit them in booth #12262.
Magnum to Release MultiCam Boots at SHOT Show
Thursday, January 13th, 2011Magnum is definitely a favored brand of the British armed forces who adopted a MultiCam variant called Multi-Terrain Pattern developed specifically for them by Crye Precision. MTP is restricted to the UK MoD but MultiCam isn’t and due to the matching colorways, it blends right in. As we reported last September Magnum has developed two new boots in the MultiCam pattern. Unfortunately at the time we were unable to take any photos but here you can see that Magnum went to painstaking detail to manufacture a MultiCam boot that also integrated a camouflage sole. Oddly enough, when our Editor worked with the Australians in Kuwait in 98 some of them had Taipan boots with camo soles. Apparently, they had noted that their troops stuck out while in the prone due to their solid colored soles but the project was just a one off and didn’t go anywhere. Interestingly, the Canadians looked at camo soles recently and found that the enhancement made no discernible improvement in the Soldier’s signature.
At any rate, we wouldn’t be surprised to see some serious interest in these across the Pond. In fact, one of Magnum’s advisors on the project is a former Royal Marine Both the Sidewinder and Spider are impressive and include the ion-maskâ„¢ hydrophobic surface enhancement which essentially shrink wraps the entire boot so that it cannot absorb moisture into the materials.
The Sidewinder includes printed suede patches and looks to be the heavier of the two.
The Spider is one helluva boot combining numerous special touches such as a patch of super fabric to mitigate wear and tear on the boot during fast roping as well as a Tec-Tuff leather toeguard, Vent-Guardâ„¢ sandproof ventilator technology, and TPU exoframe reinforcement for increased stability.
Check them out in booth #11164.
Check Out Under Armour’s New Boots at SHOT Show
Sunday, January 9th, 2011Right about the time you will be at SHOT Show, UA (Booth #6104) will be releasing the first of several models of new tactical footwear. They’ve actually been showing them at various trade shows since early Fall but most of these have been rather specialized shows with restricted entry. The Valsetz Trail boots are extremely lightweight and feature a 6″ upper but I am told that 8″ boots that are AR 670-1 compliant are in the works. Additionally, waterproof breathable models are also on the way. Currently, the Valsetz will be offered in Black and Tan. This photo we received gives you a good idea of what they look like.
UA has been refining their footwear technology for several years now and these boots are no exception. When the weather was warmer I was wearing a pair of their Tactical Mirage boots which are actually low top trainers, to the gym. The upper is made from a mesh so they are definitely not an inclement weather shoe but they are great for the hot, muggy mornings we get here in the Tidewater. However, while the uppers breather very well, a quick jaunt in light rain won’t leave your feet soaked. Why all of this is important is that the Tactical Mirage are very comfortable and the same technologies used to create them have been integrated into the entire line.
