Eddie Bauer Goes back to Its Roots
MONDAY, 30 MARCH 2009
SEATTLE, WA In a bold return to its heritage, Eddie Bauer has joined up with a dream team of mountaineers to build a new
line of outerwear and gear called First Ascent. First Ascent combines Eddie Bauers legacy as the original expedition outfitter
with the expertise of some of todays most renowned mountain guides and climbers, including Peter Whittaker, Ed Viesturs,
and Dave Hahn.
Weve assembled the dream team to design and build the most significant new line of mountaineering gear in a generation,
says Neil Fiske, President and CEO of Eddie Bauer. It doesnt get any better than Whittaker, Viesturs, Hahn and team.
The First Ascent Guide Team is led by Peter Whittaker, son of acclaimed mountaineer Lou Whittaker and nephew of Jim
Whittaker, who wore Eddie Bauer gear on his historic first American ascent of Everest. Also part of the team is Ed Viesturs,
the only American to summit all fourteen 8000-meter peaks without bottled oxygen, and Dave Hahn, who has summited
Everest ten times, more than any non-Sherpa. Joining Peter, Ed, and Dave are three accomplished guides from Rainier
Mountaineering, Inc. (RMI), the largest guide company in the U.S.: Melissa Arnot, Seth Waterfall, and Chad Peele. Lou and
Jim Whittaker have acted as advisors to the team.
The role of the guides in the development of this line is unprecedented, says Peter Whittaker, co-owner of Rainier
Mountaineering, Inc. and Whittaker Mountaineering. Combined we spend more than 1200 days a year in the high mountains.
We know what gear works best out there, and what it takes to be prepared. We designed it. We built it. We live in it. And
nothing goes to market until we literally sign off on every detail. We put our names on it, right down to the hangtags. The
team built the line from the ground up, leading the design and development process with rigorous field tests on expeditions of
Rainier in Washington state; Ecuadors Cotopaxi, one of the worlds highest active volcanoes; and Aconcagua in Argentina,
the tallest mountain in the Americas. The team is preparing for an Everest expedition in April.
Our approach to First Ascent is to keep the product pure, focusing only on what you need, says Ed Viesturs. The guiding
mantra has been about simplification, functionality and performance. Thats why we say its everything you need, nothing you
dont. Its that simple. And simple is better.
Nearly 80 guides around the world work for Rainier Mountaineering on the big mountains of Everest, Rainier, Denali,
Cotopaxi (Ecuador), Aconcagua (Argentina), Kilimanjaro, and others. Beginning in April, all RMI guides will be outfitted in First
Ascent gear, along with many of their clients.
The name of the line hearkens back to many of the first ascents outfitted by Eddie Bauer, including:
The First Ascent of Gasherbrum I in Pakistan (1958)
The First Ascent of Masherbrum in Pakistan (1960)
The First American Ascent of Everest (1963)
The First Ascent of the Everest West Ridge (1963)
The First Ascent of Mount Kennedy in Canada (1965)
The First Ascent of Vinson Massif in Antarctica (1966)
The First American Ascent of Dhaulagiri in Nepal (1973)
The First American Ascent of Peak Lenin in the Russian Pamirs (1974)
The First Ascent of the North Ridge of Nanda Devi in India (1976)
The First Ascent of Great Trango Tower in Pakistan (1977)
The First American Ascent of Makalu in Nepal (1980)
The First Ascent of the Everest East Face (1983)
First Ascent takes inspiration not only from these great historic achievements, said Neil Fiske, but also a timeless
aspirationto be first, to do what has never been done, to believe that anything is possible. That drive is the heart of
exploration and human achievement.
The guides built the First Ascent line as a complete system from base layer to insulating layers to softshell and hardshell
outerwear. Each piece is designed to work with every other piece in the system to ensure the best fit, comfort and
performance. The result is a streamlined system so versatile that it can cover any condition on the mountain. As First
Ascent Guide Melissa Arnot says, “There are a lot of dangers up there. Things we can’t control. But one of the things we
can control is the quality of our gear. Our lives depend on it.” In addition to the garments, the First Ascent line includes
backpacks, tents, knives and other essential gear.
The idea for First Ascent was born on a successful climb of Rainier, led by Peter Whittaker with Neil Fiske as a client. Its
great to re-unite two great names in American mountaineering history, Eddie Bauer and the Whittaker family, said Neil Fiske.
Eddie would be proud of what we have built.
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For more details on this news, please visit www.rockclimbing.com.
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