In a word – ‘wow!’ The folks in the fly fishing department at Patagonia were read the riot act by Yvon Chouinard a while ago because they were not doing as well as he thought they could. Well, having spent a few hours going over the new product lines we can say with confidence they have nailed it ! Many know the Patagonia name in fly fishing circles but those same people may not know about the company…
Yvon Chouinard started rock climbing as a 14 year old in California in 1953 and his passion for the sport and the lack of good equipment at the time spurred him to start designing his own climbing gear. Like the inspirational story I posted a few days ago about Dick and Ricky Hoyt, the story of Yvon Chouinard’s life and his love of the outdoors is another worth learning about because it is an example of what good in the world one person can accomplish if he puts his mind to it. Well, Mr. Chouinard’s love of fly fishing and his single-minded pursuit of excellence is something from which all fly anglers are yet again about to benefit.
If you are not aware of the commitment Patagonia has to the environment you should know about it. This company was one of the first to move away from polytetrafluoroethylene (aka PTFE – Google it and be dismayed) because of the harm it causes to the environment. GoreTex, while a great product, is made with this technology and Patagonia committed itself to developing a more environmentally-friendly technology for its products. The folks at Patagonia have also spent the last couple of years consulting people in the fly fishing industry to get their feedback on how they can improve their designs – and from what we saw they have done a lot of listening !
Patagonia’s waders are completely revamped with new anatomical (marino-lined!) booties with better grip on the soles. They have added 1″ to the bottom and 2″ to the legs and also streamlined the fit. They have relocated the seam off the primary friction point on the inside of the leg and come up with a clamp suspender that both Bill and I thought was clever as hell. They have inserted removable knee pads and a fully waterproof interior pocket and simplified the sizing. Like I said, they have nailed their wader design and Simms, the market-leader in waders, is definitely going to be impacted in wader sales next year.
As far as clothing and layering technology is concerned, because of its roots in climbing Patagonia was already known for being one of if not the best brands in the business. Well, they have become better! Patagonia incorporates Prima Loft technology into their clothing lines which makes their clothing lighter, warmer, more breathable and longer lasting. I won’t get into the minute details but suffice to say you will be reading more about Patagonia in the coming months !
Just an FYI – we can’t get the new waders until Feb 2011…
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