Designers of cold-weather outdoor clothing like to put all kinds of bells and whistles into their garments. Pockets and storm flaps, hoods and vents, high-tech fabrics and breathable linings are standard features.
But the people who wear that gear in the most extreme conditions — mountain climbers — take a different approach.
“When I look at a jacket, I think, ‘What can I eliminate?’ ” said Peter Whittaker, a mountaineer who has been to the top of Washington’s Mount Rainier 227 times and was a member of an American team that summited Mount Everest in May.
Whittaker and other elite climbers have spent a year and a half working with Eddie Bauer to come up with First Ascent, a line of clothing for extreme outdoor types, as well as folks who just want to be warm and comfortable at the top of their favorite 14-er. First Ascent is part of Eddie Bauer’s larger plan to return to its rugged roots. The company this year debuts a skiwear collection, will outfit 600 Steamboat Springs ski and snowboard instructors and has redesigned its fashion outerwear.
Whittaker demonstrated the First Ascent line earlier this week in Boulder and talked about the process of working with a dozen designers. “Mountaineers won’t put up with features that don’t have a purpose,” said Whittaker, 50, who comes from a legendary climbing family. His uncle Jim Whittaker was the first American to summit Mount Everest in 1963 — and not incidentally, the elder Whittaker wore Eddie Bauer gear.
When you’re carrying a heavy pack at altitude, you don’t want an extra ounce or bit of bulk on your back. So clothing needs to be as light and functional as possible, Whittaker said. That’s why the First Ascent down jacket doesn’t have a storm flap over the main zipper, and why there’s no hardware on the zipper pull on the chest pocket of its Frontpoint all-mountain jacket. Hoods are designed to fit over helmets, and pockets are placed high enough so they don’t interfere with the waist strap on a backpack.
Whittaker and such climbing partners as Ed Viesturs and David Hahn were even involved in color selection and naming of the First Ascent line, which includes “Igniter” pants, a Rainier Storm Shell jacket and down “sweaters.” Black and gray might be best-sellers, but when you spend a lot of time above treeline looking at snow and rocks, color is refreshing to the eyes, Whittaker said. Hence, red and bright blue, teal and lime green are in the men’s line; women get additional choices of mulberry and peacock blue.
Base layers are important too, Whittaker said. “I probably wore my top for 50 days when climbing Everest. You don’t want it to look like a long john.”
Items are available now online and the full collection will be in 183 of the company’s 300-plus stores by Oct. 12. They’re building special departments that include plasma televisions showing the Everest expedition, and five such shops already are open, including one in the Cherry Creek Shopping Center store. The Park Meadows store will be one of 10 nationally to carry an extended selection.
Andrew Turner, director of Eddie Bauer outerwear, said First Ascent is part of the retailer’s plan to return to its outdoor lifestyle heritage. The company recently emerged from bankruptcy and has a new owner, Golden Gate Capital, a private-equity firm based in San Francisco.
For its venture with Steamboat Springs, Eddie Bauer involved ski and snowboard instructors in designing their jackets and pants. The consumer version of the jacket, which will sell for $349, has a stretch waterproof, windproof nylon shell. With lots of pockets (one with a built-in goggle wipe), a hood and snow skirt, it’s designed for a variety of cold-weather conditions. Another key to the skiwear line is that it offers three levels of insulation that can be worn on their own, or under a midweight shell. The lightest is recycled fleece, which comes as a vest, $59.50, or jacket, $79; a Primaloft synthetic insulation jacket, $89; and warmest, a goose down insulated jacket, $149.
On the fashion side, the company has expanded its offerings of quilted down-insulated jackets and vests, offering such items as a women’s metallic gray jacket with faux-fur- trimmed hood; and a diamond quilted plaid down vest. On the men’s side, the company is reviving “the parkas that made us famous,” Turner says. Chief among them is the green B-9 Bomber down insulated jacket, used by the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II.
Both then and now, Turner said, “People want to buy a jacket that lasts, that’s made from great materials — and know that it won’t fall apart on them.”
Suzanne S. Brown: 303-954-1697 or sbrown@denverpost.com
