Blog

They helped NASA build a helicopter for Mars, but Goodwinds Composites is still a very down to Earth company. When we were looking for a US carbon fiber tube manufacturer for our Cnoc trekking poles, we knew we couldn't do better than a local, family-owned small business with a focus on caring for both people and planet. When we visited their modest factory in Washington, we wanted to get to know our collaborators. “You know, I’ve got kids,” says Amelia Cook, who owns and operates the Mt. Vernon, Wash. manufacturer with her brother, Leland Holeman. “I want them to have a world to...

When we wanted to reduce the carbon footprint of the friction quick-lock clamps on our new Cnoc trekking poles, local manufacturer Rex Plastics helped bring our innovations to life. “Most of the innovation comes from customers because we’re on the cutting edge of product development” says Rich Clark, president of the Vancouver, Washington-based plastic injection molding contract manufacturer. Beyond offering superior outdoor gear that performs where it counts—out on the trail—we wanted to collaborate with US manufacturers and source locally whenever possible. We believe in supporting sustainable manufacturing practices by shortening the supply chain and creating jobs in the US. Here...

Photo by Eric Holder. Happy Halloween 2019! When it comes to gross water, no one really wins, but hopefully we can all laugh/cry together and soften the sorrow with some prizes. We asked readers to send in their most terrifying tales of water woe. Here are the best stories of the worst hydration situations. Honorable Mention Drought and Purple Drank October 2016 I was hiking with my family at Fall Creek Falls State Park in Tennessee. It was nearly the worst drought year in Tennessee’s history. The main falls, the highest drop east of the Mississippi River, was barely a trickle....

The disposable mindset of product manufacturing in the last few decades has been leading to a counter-movement in the USA: The Right To Repair. This is not a new concept, humans have been opting to repair their things since the time that we realize that making stuff is hard, expensive and resource-heavy. The change in approach from the repairable to the disposable is a new one, it is as recent as the last 40-50 years. With the development of cheaper plastics, simpler injection molding processes, and mass global economics, manufacturing became cheap and fast. So cheap in fact, that lately,...