Despite our success we have stayed true to our ideals.  We scour the market for things we think we will like.  We evaluate those items and if we like them, we incorporate them into our systems and use them in the field.  If we use them, we promote them here and other places.  We are objective, independent and what the marketing folks call "authentic" which means you can trust what you read because nobody paid for the time, exposure, publicity or promotion.  I like to say that we can be persuaded and educated but not bought or bullied.  Anybody that knows me will attest to that.

As we become more well known different opportunities present themselves.  Some I accept, some I don't and sometimes I just laugh.  Here is one I accepted because I like movies, especially good movies about interesting people doing something they love with passion and commitment even when it doesn't make a lot of sense to anyone else.  180º South is one of those movies.

I received an invitation to be a screener of 180º South and based on the brief description (a group of climbers/surfers re-trace Yvon Chouinards epic trip to Patagonia in 1968) of the movie I responded immediately.  Sure as shoot'n the FedEx dude (see how hip I can be) showed up a few days later with a DVD.  I fired up the big screen and watched it.  I liked it.

It is documentary like in it's feel and it has a soft ecological message to it but it wasn't in my face or preachy.  It made sense to me.  There are extraordinary places in the world that deserve to be protected so that future generations can experience and enjoy them.  To do otherwise is selfish and short sighted.

I particularly enjoyed the cutaway scenes with Yvon Chouinard.  He is a piece of work that belongs on a wall somewhere, a character and somebody I'm sure I would enjoy spending some time with.  He is the epitome of the word "interesting" and you have to be impressed with what he has done with his life and how he has done it.

Anyway, check it out.  It was a good flick that reminded me of some other movies I liked.  Touching The Void, Dogtown and Z-Boys, and Riding Giants are also about interesting people and their obsessions.

Sorting through the fads and fashion of the outdoor equipment industry to identify and promote the very best wilderness gear for high end recreational users, backcountry professionals and government agencies.

Hardcore Outdoor is dedicated to those who can't or won't turn back.