NEWS: More on the flatpack helmet + full winners list from the OutDoor 2007 awards

Live from OutDoor 2007: when we first got our hands on this product we had no idea what it was. Was it a knee pad for mountain bikers? A cricket box?

No it turns out it was a folding climbing helmet that sits flat in your pack but then folds around your head when you want to use it.
The Madillo's revolutionary design, by German gear firm Edelrid, has scooped the Gold OutDoor Award 2007 at this year's show.
"This product is a 360 degree innovation," says the award jury, which includes Trail´s Graham Thompson. "Helmets used to be essentially just metal pots in one shape or another but this product is completely astonishing and displays just what makes this a true consumer product."
The helmet allows mountaineers to pack safety gear easily in their rucksack without the packing nightmare of accommodating a standard helmet.



Silver awards went to the following (citation comments follow each item):



• R 320, Harness, Arc’teryx, Canada
“This product changes the way we think about harnesses. Instead of an uncomfortable, often poorly designed belt, here you have an aesthetically pleasing design solution with perfect functionality. This belt is just as functional as a belt, but looks better and is also very comfortable. In the outdoor industry, function is usually everything, but this product breaks that trend, as it shows that good design and functionality can go together hand-in-hand.”

• Carbon Fyre, Trail running shoes, The Timberland Company/Golite, USA
“An innovative shoe consisting of a plastic-barbed sole, which prevents slipping on mountainsides. The look of the soles tells you immediately what the shoe is for. This is a unique solution. The entire shoe is also well-designed, with all parts coming together well.”

• Radikal, Mountaineering shoes, MILLET SA, France
“The shoes impress with their successful mix of materials. All parts and materials come together well and look good. If you think of traditional mountaineering boots, and then see these light, well-designed shoes, which fulfill all expectations and replace the traditional leather with rubber and other modern materials, then it’s not only highly functional, but also a nice design.”

• Primus EtaPower MF, Outdoor multi-cooker, Primus AB, Sweden
“This is a complete cooking set, whose low weight minimizes the total backpack load and also works extremely efficiently. Everything has been though of here. In this product you can find many small innovations that all come together to form a complete outdoor cooking solution. The result is a single backpack cooking system, that is not too technical to operate – you can hold the pot even when there’s warm water in it, etc. – and which fulfills one or more useful functions, such as the textile bag, which is used to carry the cooker, keep food warm, save fuel and you don’t burn your fingers. This makes the system very easy to operate; you can’t do anything wrong.”

• ColdBlack, Treatment method for black textiles, Schoeller Textil AG, Switzerland
“The ‘product’ here is a special treatment technology for handling black fabrics. It ensures that black materials do not warm up too much under heat and expend heat in the cold. This means black textiles ‘work’ the same as normal white or light-colored fabrics. This a great functionality boost for the outdoor industry, as it means black materials can be used in a much wider range of applications.”

• Big Turn Catch All, Fastener, Fidlock GmbH, Germany
“This is an unconventional and, in comparison to other fastener mechanisms, completely innovative idea. This fastener can be used in any number of situations, and the best thing is, it’s a magnetic system that provides a truly functional fastening action. The two key elements of a lock, the closing and opening functions, are solved here easily and cleanly.”


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