The Outdoors Station

In this podcast Andy Howell meets up with Phil Sorrell for a geeky afternoon discussing social media, and how many outdoors users are becoming involved with his Social Hiking website www.shareyouradventure.com which is specifically designed to allow users to share their outdoor experiences, using photos, tweets, routes and so on. Hear more behind is history and how Phil has integrated all the current digital networks into a total interactive information resource allowing you track others, or your friends and family to follow you and your adventures anywhere in the world.

The is the final interview in the five part series where I've been discussing the future of ultralight gear with three of the main contributors to the arena in the last 10 years. Ron Moak, Henry Shires and Glen Van Peski. Glen explains more about how a hobby became a cottage business and along the way it becomes clear that it isn't an easy option if you prefer to be out hiking, rather inside designing. As with Ron and Henry, Glen's relationship with customers forms the biggest part of this enterprise. Both from an end users input into design, as much as ensuring the products perform how they should. As did Ron and Henry, he also opens his pack for us and allows us a glimpse into the contents, before I do my best to conclude the similarities between my three guests and the subject in hand.

Part 4 of the 5 part series discussing the future of Ultralight Gear with some of the key makers and shakers in the US cottage industry who have been there from the very start. Ron Moak, Henry Shires and in these last 2 interviews Glen Van Peski of Gossamer Gear. There's more to starting a small manufacturing base than you might realise and Glen very honestly talks about some of the key life decisions he has had to make along the way.

The discussion into the future of Ultralight Gear continues this time with Henry Shires of Tarptent.com who starts, as did Ron, by sharing his thoughts on the current state of play from his point of view. Henry Shires sold his first Tarp tent way back in 1999 and has continued producing shelters based on his lightweight principles since then. He with Ron Moak, Glen Van Peski and Brian Frankle have been the backbone of the ultralight cottage industry which has grown significantly since then. We continue to touch on numerous topics in this podcast including why he hasn't explored using Cuben Fibre in his manufacturing, his reflections on completing the TGO Challenge and the social aspects of the crossing, his ideal perfect fabric and how customer relations have played such an important part in shaping his company. Plus, of course we delve into his rucksack for a hunt around to see what gear he's actually paid for!

The second part of my interview with Ron Moak from Six Moon Designs, where we continue our discussion regarding the current state and future of the lightweight and the ultra-light market. Is the future more about education, rather than gear for gears sake? Is it time to drop the definitions between ultralight and just being lighter generally? How have consumer shopping habits changed, does the internet make research easier, or does it give people too many choices? Is there too much politics in the whole lightweight movement, shouldn't we just be getting out there and doing? And finally, what does Ron have in his rucksack and what did he actually pay for?

It has been 12 months now since the original "Cottage Stagnation and Recent Gems" article was published by Ryan Jordan and now that the waters have calmed as we head into 2013, I wanted to explore with some of the current key players in the lightweight cottage industry, their thoughts on the recent past, present and future of this niche areana and what the future holds, for them and ultimately for us. The first interview in the series is with Ron Moak from Six Moon Design and we discuss his lengthy reply to the original post and discuss his more in depth views on the current state of play of 'lightweight' and what the future holds for Six Moon Designs.

Welcome to part two, the conclusion of the interview with Keith Foskett, a UK through hiker who has completed the Camino de Santiago in Spain, the Pacific Crest Trail and now the Appalachian Trail. Here he continues his chat with David Lintern about his walking experiences and some of the mental and physical aspects long distance hikers go through and have to consider. He is also the author of two books based on his experiences The Last Englishman and The Journey Inbetween and these can be found on his website www.keithfoskett.com

Keith Foskett is a UK through hiker who has completed the Camino de Santiago in Spain, the Pacific Crest Trail and now the Appalachian Trail and in this first of a two part series, he chats with David Lintern about his walking experiences and some of the mental and physical aspects long distance hikers go through and have to consider. He is also the author of two books based on his experiences The Last Englishman and The Journey Inbetween and these can be found on his website www.keithfoskett.com

Our world is changing with the advent of more and more on-line mapping, eBook, apps and the slow decline of hard copy maps. But each have a place and this podcast is reviewing the positive aspects of each format, and how it relates to the 'real' outdoor world. I meet up with John Baker from The Map Shop, a small little shop in the hear of England solely specializing in hard copy maps and discuss the future and the true value of hard copy. Andy on the other hands reviews a couple of eBooks produced by Cicerone Press and compares them to the hard copy, to see if there is one format which appeals more than the other, when planning your trips. More information, pictures and links on the website www.theoutdoorsstation.co.uk

This is the fourth and final podcast from the four part series recorded at the 2012 Outdoor Show in Friedrichshafen and the final interviews all might be of interest to those heading out for longer. Ortleib are well known for their range of waterproof bags and protective covers and for 2013 they are introducing several bags specifically for the outdoor photographer and video user. Ralf Vogt is the Marketing Manager and he explains what to expect. GSI are a brand who specialise in making quality lightweight products for fine dining outdoor market, both backpackers and glamping and Andrew Weller from the UK distributors Rosker, takes us through a handful of items which might be of interest to the traveller who seeks a little luxury in their diet. Finally, Tom Entwhistle the European Sales Manager from Osprey gives us a break down of their forthcoming larger pack range the mens Xenith 75, 88 and 105lt and womens Xena 70 and 85lt packs, which balance capacity with features to suit the remote long distance hiker. That concludes the Friedrichshafen 2012 series. I hope you've enjoyed the interviews and they have inspired you to get out and about soon.