Last 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.
UK outdoor brand Craghoppers will launch in the United States in the Spring. The launch includes two lines: Craghoppers and Bear Grylls for Craghoppers. Bear Grylls is the host of TV’s “Man vs Wild”. A former SAS operative who broke his back in a parachuting accident in South Africa, he went on to be the youngest Briton to conquer Everest as well as climb remote peaks in Antarctica. All Bear Grylls products are designed, developed and tested in partnership with or by Bear himself.
One interesting aspect of the line is that they include NosiLife technology which has been tested independently by Europe’s leading test authority (London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine). They claim it gives Craghoppers and Bear Grylls products the world’s only permanent insect-repellancy.
New company Prime Outerwear is releasing several new pants including the Stealth Cargo Pant. Manufactured from cotton twill treated with Nanosphere, the rear pockets feature magnetic closures. Additionally, Prime Outerwear has developed what they call Intelligent Storage which is designed to be accessible whether standing or seated.
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.
Not 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
As we reported some time ago, Crye did in fact win the SOCOM contract for their Low Viz vests. They produced two variants, one for the RBAV armor and the other for the MBAV. They both accept a small chest rig that attaches via SR buckles and the cummerbunds are interchangeable with the skeletonized AirLite cummerbund.
This is the AirFrame helmet with Chops and MultiCam mesh cover.
In addition to the GunClip we wrote about last year and is now available, Crye showed their new MagClip. Weighing a mere ounces, it fits US GI as well as PMAG magazines, clamping around the base of the mag and relies on two fork-style bars that fit around belts or into PALS channels. Unlike other systems, the MagClip remains connected to the magazine.
Crye has also made a couple of changes to their G3 field and combat clothing including larger jacket pockets with huge side entries as well as zippered back pockets and a new tool loop on the trousers. Additionally both field and combat pants share identical pocket layouts. They also are introducing an all weather combat shirt and field pant as well the FieldShell seen above as well as the WindLiner, a simple, lightweight wind shirt. Finally, for clothing Crye is reintroducing the range vest in a much more streamlined form as a cover up for the combat shirt when no armor is being worn.
Crye also introduced FastMits which is a product designed specifically for fast roping. For years, operators have used a variety of solutions including welding gloves which prove to be bulky and difficult to transition from rope to weapon ready. Crye developed an overmitt that is lightweight and is easily stored. They are placed over the operator’s gloves and can be quickly diffed in order to expose the hands to wield a weapon or operate radios or other equipment once safely on the ground.
In the photo below you can clearly see the MagClip attached to the PALS on a Blast Belt in addition to Crye’s dump pouch and zip off back panel.
