We announced the launch of Neo at the end of 2010, and we just took the news to Europe and held a press conference at the ISPO show. Turns out, just like assorted cheeses and David Hasselhoff, NeoShell is also a big hit in Europe. If you forgot why that might be, here is a reminder.

The European launch was incredibly successful, as was the launch party. Check out a few photos below. I think Polartec’s Global Director of Marketing, Nate Simmons looks a little like Steve Jobs sans the black mock turtleneck, am I right?

Polartec NeoShell will appear in Fall 2011 collections from some of the best outdoor apparel brands in the world including 66 North, Mammut, Marmot, Montura, Rab, The North Face, Vaude and Westcomb.

No matter which way you ski, however, the season is slowly moving upon is, and the newest ski movie trailers have been popping up everywhere. The winner of last year’s Scufoneda-in the tele category, and also a member of our Polartec Athlete Advisory Board, Nick Devore, spent this past winter shooting with tele film company, Powderwhore. The film is also sponsored by Polartec partners, Black Diamond and Mountain Hardwear, two more brands that when it comes to free or locked heels, seem to be pro choice.

Here is the trailer, enjoy!

So lets see, it turns out that Leonardo Da Vinci sketched the first bicycle in the now famous, Atlantic Code. The bicycle then went through quite a few design changes in the late 1700’s until in Dunlop invented the pneumatic (compressed air) tire in 1888. Then things really took off. In the early 1900’s, cycling races were organized in Western Europe and in 1870, the first Italian road race was held between Florence and Pistoia: 33 km covered in about 2 hours. The first ‘classic’ Italian race was the Turin-Milan in 1876 at 150 km.

In 1909, six years after the first Tour the France, thanks to the editor of the main Italian sports newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport, the second of the Grand Tours, the “Giro D’Italia,” was started. He founded the race primarily to increase his circulation, but now the race obviously has a reputation as one of the top three hardest stage races in the world, alongside the Tour and the Veulta de Espana of course.

This weekend, Polartec will sponsor the Val di Fassa Bike, a mountain bike race we consider to be an emerging new event in the European bike world. In its third year, the Val di Fassa hosts three separate races, each for different ability levels. There are three lengths to this race, all three begin in the same location however. The “Marathon” track, for bikers that are part of the Italian Championship, is just under 40 miles with a difference in height of a grueling 9055ft. The “Classic” track of approx 30 miles with a difference in height of 6909ft., and the “Short” track, which is dedicated to biking enthusiasts, runs about 30 miles with an elevation gain of just over 3000ft.

Polartec representatives will be around for the event and we will present the winners and top 12 finishers of each category with Polartec prizes. We will also be receiving updates from the event from our Italian representatives and will keep you in the loop with photos and announcements of the winners. Until then, if you speak italian, head here for more info. http://www.valdifassabike.it/ If you don’t speak italian, go have a glass of wine, its close enough.

This past weekend was the annual Mt. Washington Hill Climb bike race. Mt. Washington (just under 6300ft.) is the highest peak in the northeastern United States and the annual hill climb is known as one of the toughest in the world at 7.6 miles in length, with an average grade of 12% with extended sections of 18% and the last 50 yards is an oppressive 22%.

Polartec has sponsored the race for the past 10 years, donating Thermal Pro blankets to all of the riders. Due to the threat of hypothermia when finishing the race they are no longer allowed to even hold the race without these blankets. This year, John Brodie from the Polartec marketing department decided to give the race a shot.

“I finished at 1:31:04 at a 5mph average, which I was pleased with for a first time ride,” Brodie said in an email to the Polartec staff. “I wasn’t sure how the legs would hold over the length of the course so I kept an even steady pace, and had enough left to push the last 1/4 mile at about 10-12mph. The weather was perfect, actually a bit warm until getting above tree line. Views of the Presidential range were awesome, and there was a very large crowd at the summit.”

Congrats to John and all of the riders that attempted the Hill Climb! I was feeling pretty good about my 5 mile run this morning until just now.

The route, which circles Mont Blanc, begins in Chamonix, passes by Aiguille de Bionnassay and will cross the Col du Bonhomme. In the early morning, racers will cross Col de la Seigne into Italy and the Val Veni overlooked by Noire du Peuterey and the glaciers descending Mont Blanc. Later they will reach the Val Ferret, guarded by Dent du Géant and Grandes Jorasses before finally turning into Switzerland. They will then climb over Bovine and Les Tseppes. Then, with Aiguille Verte in front of them, under the vertical heights of the Drus and with Mont Blanc before them, they will dive down towards the finishing line in the heart of Chamonix. Alongside the UTMB, is the CCC, a 100km race in the same region. Polartec’s own David Gatti should be mid-way through this route right now, we wish him the best of luck.

You can see the virtual course here on the North Face website, and you can also follow the racers on this Live Trail site by typing in their bib number. Polartec’s David Gatti is #7276.

Check out this awesome footage of the starting line yesterday morning.

Some of the new developments covered include Polartec Power Shield Pro (a new soft shell technology launching to consumers August 2010), new even higher-efficiency fabrics for base layers and insulation, wool/poly blends, recycled content fabrics and a bunch of stuff we can’t talk about yet.

During free hours, the group managed to fit in some climbing, hiking, trail runs, fly fishing, paragliding, and a few great meals (thanks to Cache Cache, Jimmy’s and Montagna). The scenery, gorgeous weather and quick access to world class recreation even inspired an ardent New Hampshire-ite to take back all the things she’s said over the years about Colorado (she will remain unnamed for her safety).

Attendees from Polartec included Andy Vecchione (President), Jon Adelman (EVP Sales and Marketing), Mike Baron, Steve Cuthbert, Nate Simmons, Karen Beattie, Allon Cohne, Jane Ruth and Ruthann Brown.

The full roster for the Polartec Athlete Advisory Board includes:

- Sari Anderson (30, Glenwood Springs, CO) is a national mountain bike champ, a world class adventure racer and randonnée ski racer.
- Antoine Barthelemy (54 of Annecy, France) is an accomplished alpinist and ski mountaineer.
- Bill Belcourt (45, Salt Lake City, UT) is a crusty alpinist and champion paraglider pilot.
- Janet Bergman (29, Madison, NH) is an accomplished all-around climber and consultant to outdoor nonprofit organizations.
- Gord Betenia (47, Vancouver, BC) is a talented ice climber, mountaineer and gear flogger.
- Kelly Cordes (40, Estes Park, CO) is a renowned alpinist, climber, writer and self-proclaimed dirtbag.
- Nick Devore (24, Aspen, CO) is a telemark freeskiing world champion and ski mountaineer.
- Doug Heinrich (47, Salt Lake City, UT, is a world-class all-around climber and multi-sport athlete.
- Mike Kloser (49, Vail, CO) is a world champion mountain biker, adventure racer and legendary multi-sport athlete.
- Laurent Valette (39, Rotherens, France) is an accomplished ultra runner and adventure racer.
- Michael Silitch (48, Chamonix, France) is a certified international mountain guide.

There was a lot of discussion about the location of the next meeting – Chamonix, Alyeska, Mt. Washington – we’ll have to keep you posted on that one.

In late April, Kent State University’s New York Design Studio held its tenth annual edition of “Stretch to the Future,” one of the longest-running fashion design competitions sponsored by a fiber company. Created in 1999, the “Stretch to the Future” Design Scholarship Competition inspires the creative development of design students while educating them about the technical aspects of garment construction using fashion fabrics containing a highly technical fiber.

This year’s winners were selected from a field of 51 students — 20 more than last year’s entrants. The students competed with garments designed in stretch fabrics containing RadiciSpandex RadElast® spandex donated by Polartec and a number of other fabric manufacturers.

The contest was judged by a panel of industry experts, headed up by Jeffrey Chow, Creative Director for contemporary womenswear label Poleci and also included members of the charitable organization The Underfashion Club (UFC), which returned for a third year as sponsor of the contest’s lingerie award. The judging panel selected scholarship winners in the categories of eveningwear, activewear, swimwear, lingerie and an overall grand prize.

Both the activewear and lingerie category were won with Polartec fabrics. Bethany Clark won the activewear category, and Phillip Fry emerged as the lingerie category winner with a bra-and-panty set featuring a combination of Polartec and TBD Tecidos fabric. Check out the winning garments below.

Our very own Global Director of Design, Allison Spahr, also had a seat on the judging panel alongside other industry experts. Although a spot on Project Runway’s celebrity judging panel may be a long way off, we have Allison practicing her Heidi Klum attitude and “auf wiedersehens” just in case. Congratulations to the winners of this year’s competition!

With temperatures plummeting to an all-time low, a cutting wind and some powder still to be found on the Northern aspects, the clear blue skies watched as the gauntlets were thrown down for the ultimate challenge for Polartec® fabrics and skiing prowess.  This year saw the European pros testing their mettle against the honed talents of some visiting Americans:  Nick Devore, a former Telemark Freeskiing World Champion (and member of Polartec’s Athlete Advisory Board) Flylow’s Dan Abrams and Eben Mond and our very own director of marketing Nate Simmons battled it out on the slopes of San Pellegrino. In the overall ranking, the Europeans defended their home turf with a win in the Freeride Race with Italian Armin Senoner grabbing first place and Nick Devore nudging his boots with a second and “Best Trick” accolade. Nick Devore was also the winner of the Telemark category.  Germany’s Fritz Trojer came in third.

Nick Devore celebrates his win

The Alpine category saw Italians Matteo Bordoni and Aldo Valmassoi bag first and second place respectively.  Canada’s Ross Janzen came third.  The Snowboard category was won by Italy’s Francesco Fersuoch followed by fellow Italians Maurizio Davarda and Mauro Tarter.

Eben Mond goes huge (he bashed his nose on his knee on the landing, kept it together and skied across the finish line gushing blood. Luckily he was fine and joined the crew for a 7 course meal Dolomites-style at lunch).

For those who attend the event but choose to watch rather than race, Scufoneda offers great guided tours at various skill levels throughout the week. The groups split up for a few hours in the mornings and then reconvene for Prosecco, salami and cheese in the afternoons.

As title sponsors of the event Polartec® was all over Moena.  From its welcome tent, banners and flags denoting the race routes to its competing staff. It was also a perfect testing venue for 20 European journalists to hit slopes and experience the performance of Polartec Power Shield Pro first hand. Garments will hit the consumer market in the Fall of 2010.

The Polartec® Scufoneda – Telemark & Freeride week was inspired by SCUFONS del COGO, a non-profit association based in Moena, Trentino (most of the original Scufons are local police officers and they also count a high-level regional judge and the mayor among its ranks – it’s good to have the law on your side when you throw a week long party).  Founded in the 90’s by a group of Telemark enthusiasts it is now the point of reference for Telemark fans worldwide.

Polartec Marketing Team - Left to Right - Alessandro Perseo, Allon Cohne, Eric Yung, and Nate Simmons

Oh, and the ripped pants?  Let’s just say, a Polartec® employee double ejected on a narrow couloir and went for a wild ride to the bottom on his backside. After a quick visit to the emergency room and 7 stitches later, he was back in business for the party that evening and skiing the next day.

Want to come next year?  Check out www.scufons.com or Polartec® Scufoneda page on Facebook for details on next year’s Polartec® Scufoneda Telemark&Freeride week.

With your help, Polartec® is donating 1,000 fleece blankets to the homeless this holiday season.

For every 10 new fans added to our Facebook Fan Page, Polartec® will donate one fleece blanket to a homeless shelter. We will donate 100 blankets to shelters in the top ten US cities where our fans live, so encourage your friends to become a fan of Polartec® and help someone less fortunate in your hometown.

The blankets we are donating are made from Polartec® Thermal Pro® fabric so they are incredibly warm, soft and durable.

The promotion will start on December 22, 2009 and end at midnight EST on January 4, 2010.  Become a fan here. Please pass this along!

Thanks, and Happy Holidays from your friends at Polartec!