(Also at OR,) I met with Theresa Blake of Verde (a PR company) to check out Metolius. While nothing big is in the works for 2011, a couple small upgrades are worth mentioning of theirs. First up, Metolius is releasing the full color line-up of their FS (full-strength) Mini carabiners (last year they only had green and black). They now have blue, yellow, orange, red, black, and green – a simple color addition, right? Not exactly – they are meant to match Metolius' cams & nut (sizes #1 – 6) for easy identification, which gives them a little “cool” factor. (BTW, the mini biners are rated to 22kN, and weigh only 23-ounces.)

Also new for Metolius is their long quickdraws: they measure 12-, 16- and 20-inches long, 10-mm wide Monster Sling (40-percent Dyneema, 60-percent nylon), and come with either two FS Mini or Inferno carabiners. A simple concept to reduce rope drag without adding loads of over-the-shoulder slings, but I certainly wouldn't fill my rack with more than a few of them.

Next, I chatted with Erin Brosterhous of Montrail (and Mountain Hardwear, but we focused on Montrail the most, so that's what you'll be hearing about). Montrail has been working diligently with their athletes to come up with their top-of-the-line trail running shoes and technology. Their newest tech is a midsole called FluidPost that controls how much or how little you pronate when running on trails. It's strategically blended to be soft where your heel strikes, then gradually firmer the more your foot rolls in, giving your midfoot support without the shock of a firm section just glued next to a soft section. You'll find FluidPost on their Badrock shoe (the updated version of their uber-popular Rockridge), and their Fairhaven shoe (which is a new hybrid road/trail shoe).

Also new from Montrail is the Lithia Loop & Lithia Slide – basically a recovery sandal. For comfort, the sandal uses a thermo-moldable footbed made of low-density foam, which increases the surface contact area of the foot to the shoe (reducing pressure points). For support, they integrated their Integrafit last (first introduced via insoles), which puts the arch support farther back on the foot and widens the toe-box so your toes can spread out as you walk.

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