Alps Region Launches Winter Ecological Tours Marketing Campaign

A combined initiative of many agencies and organizations of the Verbano-Cusio-Ossola region of the Italian Alps is working to promote a new ecological winter tourism marketing effort titled "Winter in Valle Strona". Between January 28 and February 6 the entire region will be hosting expeditions, ice climbing, snow shoes and cross country skiing. A television commercial has also launched to promote the event, which has been described by several outdoor industry publications as ground-breaking for new types of tourism in the Alps.

Tubbs Sponsors Subaru Women's Winter Tour

The Tubbs Snowshoe Company announced it will be a contributing sponsor the 2005 Subaru Women’s Winter Tour; an all women’s tour on skis or snowshoes. Begun in Traverse City Michigan in 1999, the event started as a memorial fundraiser in honor of Madeleine Anne Thomas, an advocate for women and children. Proceeds from the first event went towards funding Madeleine's House, a transitional living program for homeless mothers and their children. Since then the event has continued to grow and the Subaru Women’s Winter Tour now provides women all over the U.S. the opportunity to enjoy a non-competitive tour, all helping to benefit women and children throughout each region.

“As the sport of snowshoeing continues to grow in popularity more and more women are trying the sport of snowshoeing," said Kathy Murphy, Tubbs Snowshoes General Manager. “And events like the Women’s Winter Tour, which introduces women to the fitness benefits of the sport while providing financial assistance to women’s charities is a perfect match with our company’s objectives.”

In addition to financial sponsorship, Tubbs will also be providing snow shoes and accessories to be raffled off or given as prizes, including snowshoes, snow shoe-hiking poles, baseball caps, ski hats, and t-shirts. Tubbs has been at the forefront of snowshoes specific to women's needs, addressing the unique style and specific anatomic needs for women. Over the last three years Tubbs has seen a 300% growth in its women’s snowshoes product lines.

2005 Women’s Winter Tour Schedule

Minneapolis, Minnesota January 23
Marquette, Michigan February 6
Tournee hivernale Diva, Mont Tremblant, Quebec February 6
Winter Park, Colorado February 6
Madeleine Thomas Memorial Tour, Traverse City, Michigan February 6
Waterville Valley, New Hampshire February 13
Sassy Lassies, Crystal Mountain, Michigan February 19
Charlevoix Ladies Tour, Charlevoix, Michigan February 27
Garland Gals Getaway, Lewiston, Michigan March 6

Tubbs Snowshoes Romp to Stomp Out Breast Cancer Event Added to Outdoor Retailer Schedule

Tubbs Snowshoes recently announced it will be hosting a smaller version of its popular Romp To Stomp Out Breast Cancer event series to Outdoor Retailer Convention's Backcountry BaseCamp in Brighton Backcountry, UT, on January 28. Tubbs Snowshoes will be creating a 'Romp to Stomp Out Breat Cancer' event for buyers and outdoor industry publishing editors with a marked snowshoe course. For everyone who snow shoes the course, Tubbs has made a commitment to donate $5 to the Susan G. Koman Foundation. The first 100 participants that sign up for the snow shoe event will also receive a pink Nalgene water bottle with the event insignia on it.

Tubbs Snowshoes reports that it will be introducing, at the same time as the event, its first official women’s specific 'Romp' series pink ribbon snowshoe, which will be available next winter. The 'Romp to Stomp' snowshoes are intended to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer testing, screening and research.

Begun in 2003, The Romp to Stomp Out Breast Cancer series is a combined effort between Tubbs Snow Shoes and the Susan G. Komen Foundation. The events have raised over $110,600 in the past two years. 100% of the proceeds from each location’s event goes to the local area Susan G. Komen Foundation to benefit breast cancer research, education, screening and treatment. “We have been overwhelmed by both the corporate and the public response to our events over the past two years”, remarked Kathy Murphy, Tubbs Snowshoes General Manager. “This series would not be possible without the generous financial support from our sponsors and participants and we’re delighted to have this opportunity to showcase the event to the outdoor industry."

Traditional Wood Snowshoes Built by Native Americans to Display at Logan Museum of Anthropology

The Logan Museum of Anthropology announced that several examples of Native American snowshoes are currently on exhibit. Titled "Floating on the Surface of the Softest Snow: Native American Snowshoes," the exhibit features snowshoes that originated from the Kutchin people of Alaska and the Mantagnais of northern Quebec, Canada. The museum also reports that later this winter, the exhibit will be supported by a video presentation showing Attikameg Cree people from northern Quebec making traditional snowshoes.

30 Pairs of Atlas Snowshoes Provided for California District Educational Purposes

California's Lassen National Forest Recreation planners recently won approval from the county Board of Supervisors to purchase and have on hand 30 pairs of snowshoes for after-school education purposes including guided after-school and weekend snowshoe adventures. Local retailers have made commitments to providing Atlas Snowshoes for the program.

Former Little Bear, Atlas, Tubbs Snowshoes Factory Nears One Year Anniversary of Closing

Former employees of the closed Grand Junction snowshoe plant, the WinterQuest snowshoes factory, are reported to be planning an informal gathering to mark the closing of the factory in February 2004. The former Grand Junction plant manufactured Atlas Snow Shoes, Tubbs Snowshoes and Little Bear snowshoe models. Former plant managers said it produced 100,000 to 120,000 pairs of snowshoes annually, accounting for most of the snowshoes made in the United States.

K2 Inc., which purchased WinterQuest in 2003, outsourced the snowshoe manufacturing operations to an existing manufacturing facility in southern China, costing Grand Junction 20 year-round jobs and about 120 seasonal production jobs.

Snowshoe Mountain Resort in Virginia Reports Significant Increase in Snowshoers

Joe Stevens, public relations director for Snowshoe Mountain Resort in Snowshoe, West Virginia, recently reported the resort has seen "quite an increase" in the number of people using snowshoes. "Modern snowshoes, which are lighter and more compact than the old-fashioned kind, seem to have sparked people's enthusiasm to try the winter activity."

Stevens said Snowshoe Mountain Resort began offering snowshoeing to its list of winter activities five years ago. "It's picked up, especially with folks who don't ski," Stevens stated. "We now offer guided trips on the resort's trail system, and on trails in the Monongahela National Forest."

Tubbs Snowshoes Hires BRM Representatives for Upper Midwest Region

Tubbs Snowshoes has announced that BRM Representatives, an independent rep agency, was selected as the upper Midwest agency for the Tubbs Snowshoes Brand, beginning January 1st, 2005.

“After meeting with many of the leading rep groups in the Midwest, Bruce Marsh [principal sales manager of BRM Representatives] proved himself to be the agency to carry on the leadership position for Tubbs in that territory. Our decision was based upon Bruce’s extensive knowledge of the outdoor market and his direct involvement at all levels of sales and service," said a Tubbs Snow Shoes spokesman.

Sources close to the matter stated that former Tubbs upper Midwest rep agency, Bing Associates, decided to accept an exclusive opportunity with industry footwear leader, Merrell. The transition is expected to be seamless in continuing to work with current dealers and building long-term relationships with future Tubbs Snowshoes dealers.

"Snowshoeing" Book Author Offers Tips and Recommendations

Author of the book "Snowshoeing", Steve Griffin, of Michigan recently offered information about the winter activity. "The pastime's main appeal is its ease. If you can walk, you can snowshoe," he stated. "I've had six knee surgeries. I can't downhill ski, and I can only nordic ski a little bit. But I can snowshoe."

"Snowshoeing is more visible here than it ever was," Mr. Griffin added. "Twenty or 30 years ago, you only saw snow shoe tracks leading into and out of the woods. Now you see them on all kinds of trails, in city parks and on golf courses. Walking and jogging on snow shoes has become a fitness and recreation activity, not just a way to get from Point A to Point B."

He said that traditional wooden snowshoes are still are available, but most prefer the new smaller, lighter models with frames constructed of aluminum and webbed with synthetic fabrics. "The platforms of modern snow shoes are made of solid fabric, which gives you more support with less surface area," he said. "If I used old-style wooden and rawhide-laced shoes, they'd need to be 60 inches long to support my weight. I can get away with 36-inch shoes if they have the new fabric webbing."

Mr. Griffin also added that most people "like to look at traditional snowshoes, but they prefer to walk on modern snowshoes. Especially since modern snowshoe bindings are so much better. My first snow shoes were a cheap pair with horrible leather lace-up bindings that looked like some kind of bondage equipment," Mr. Griffin recalled. "I needed to stop every 20 minutes to take up the slack in the laces. Nowadays, you have bindings with one or two-buckles. You step into them, and snap you're off and snowshoeing."

He also reminds anyone thinking of taking up the activity that modern snowshoes are not that expensive. Most models from major manufacturers such as Atlas, Tubbs and MSR Snowshoes run in the $100 to $200 range. "It's difficult to buy a bad snow shoe now," Griffin stated. "The quality is much more uniform. I wouldn't hesitate to buy entry-level shoes to get started. Today's beginner models are better than most high-end shoes used to be. I don't know of anyone who's ever worn out a snowshoe, and no one is likely to," Griffin continued.

Snowshoe sizes also depend on the weight they're intended to support. Griffin recommended that a good rule is to buy a shoe that will allow the wearer to sink slightly into the snow rather than walking on top of it. "If you are using snowshoes that keep you from sinking into the snow, they are too big," he added. "You should sink in just a little bit. The idea is to control how far you sink."

He also has some recommendations when snowshoeing. They include using one or two snowshoe poles for balance and stability when hiking uphill, wearing sunglasses to protect eyes from glare off the snow and wearing nonabsorbing synthetic clothing to stay warm during a typical snowshoe outing that includes really heating up on uphills and cooling down on downhills. "Cotton kills," he stated. "I cringe every time I see someone wearing jeans. Clothing that gets soaked with sweat can rob you of body heat as soon as you stop or slow down. If it's cold enough, you can get a nasty case of hypothermia."

Winter Sport Specialist Discusses Basics of Snowshoes

REI winter sports specialist, Jen Kohl, recently publicly discussed the basics of snowshoeing for consumers considering taking up the winter activity. Some of the points highlighted include the fact that snowshoes are constantly getting lighter, even without compromising their durability and stability. She also stessed that it is one of the few winter activities that virtually anyone can take up without much experience needed.

She highlighted the three main categories of snowshoes as well, which include recreational, adventure and backcountry. Beginners will do fine with recreational snowshoes. Adventure snowshoes are aimed at those users planning to go snow shoe hiking, backpacking and off-trail exploration. Backcountry snow shoes are ideal for mountaineering and extreme backcountry activities. The running snowshoes category, while still relatively small, is growing as runners wanting to train in the snow can now strap on running snowshoes and go trail running. Snowshoe racing is becoming more popular as a result too.

Yowie Snowshoes Now Available for Purchase Direct from Australian Manufacturer

Yowie Snowshoes, manufactured in Australia, announced that it has recently added the ability to order Yowie snowshoe models directly from their website. They also indicated they have partnered with a distributor in the United States.

Yowie Snow Shoes began manufacturing products in 1991, developing a network of retailers in Australia. The company reports that currently it holds a 50 percent market share in Australia, with plans to increase market share overseas.

A Yowie spokesman describes the current line of products as versatile and able to withstand the variable conditions and extremes experienced around the globe. Extensive testing has also been performed in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, United States, Europe, Scandinavia, Antarctica and Japan.