At last, time to write up the Monsal Head Shenanigans :-) August Bank Holiday saw the get-together of a bunch of folks who only knew each other through Twitter! Film-maker, blogger, and outdoor guy Terry Abrahams organised the meet so as a bunch of users - that's in the outdoor gear sense not any other - could get together informally, with a few of us providers of outdoor gear thrown in to the mix.
For us it was a treat. As an internet company we rarely get the chance to meet our customers and potential customers face-to-face. The big outdoors shows not only cost a lot of money, but imprison you behind a stall and there's very little chance of really getting to know anyway. Terry's idea was the bees knees as far as we were concerned. More about socialising and walking than selling and putting faces to Twitter names was interesting to say the least.
Saturday morning saw us in Bakewell as Rog the dog had managed to snap his collar! There we got sidetracked by the Farmers Market where we lunched on excellent venison pasties and local icecream. The weather, despite the forecast, was warm and sunny, so we returned to Monsal Dale and spent the afternoon walking along the Trail and then down along the Wye. Turning the old railway into a trail accessible to just about any and everyone was a brilliant idea. It's used by everyone from serious long-distance walkers to families with small children, horse riders, cyclists and wheelchair users.
The views are terrific over the dale. It would have been good to have had the time to walk up to Fin Cop, the iron age hill fort - next time perhaps. Also hoped to revisit Arbor Low but Sunday proved somewhat damp and gloomy so as we were all packed up at the end of the Meet, we headed home.
We weren't the only gearmongers to join in Terry's Peak Meet. Ali from Terra Nova joined the group on the Friday, Other company reps turned up too, Gareth from WebTogs, and Mark from Rab. Although both these companies have some merino in their ranges, they concentrated on their other producst - which was nice of them. The evening between returning from various walks and heading to the pub to eat, was when we showed our wares - a short enough interval not to impinge on folks' time - as it should be.
On the subject of selling other stuff - Webtogs stock inov8 footwear. Over the weekend I was testing my new Inov8 Roclite 400GTX walking shoes. I'd seen the video review of these by Cameron McNeish and they looled like exactly what I wanted. They were and more. Never had a more comfy pair of walking boots - make that just shoes! They're made on the same principles as Inov8's climbing and running footwear - and I think they're brilliant.
Apart from some of our own gear, we'd taken along some samples of the sort of thing that's being pushed as "superfine" and "ultrafine" merino to show folks, and a lot were shocked by how poor it really was. It's hard getting through to people that just because something is labelled "merino" it will be good. Far from it. To be good, the wool has to be sorted properly, spun properly and then made into a fabric that will stand the test of wear. The samples we took along had the same things in common. Thin, single jersey fabric that was almost see-through, with wide bands of flat seaming stitched with coarse polyester thread that was abrasive on the skin. We'd also taken pics of the fabric under a microscope where it's possible to see all the short threads sticking out that cause itching. The third sample was thicker than the other two, but not "ultrafine" as it said on the labelling; it was at least 21 micron - 2 grades coarser. Again under a micrscope you could see the short ends,and matted nature of the fabric in some areas.
The fact is you can buy cheap merino, or you can buy quality merino. You can't buy cheap and quality merino. We've heard from more than one retailer that they get so many returns on these lines, that they're thinking of not stocking them anymore. We're not, surprised. And as there's so much else they have to sell, we doubt it would do them any harm to stop selling cheap China-made "merino". Almost all merino wool fabric now comes from China, made by either Solarwool or Zhangjiagang Luckywool. Both these produce fashion fabrics. However a merino fashion fabric is not the same as a merino performance outdoor fabric - and the difference is huge.
To return to the important part of the meet - the people @DaylightGambler, @MixedupMessedup, @AVassoodaven @GemaVass @SocialHiking @PilgrimChris @atkypne @GilesBabbidge @theMuss78 @Backpackingbongos (& Reuben) @Chris25119600 @Backpackingliight @Gareth @BarefootChild @ThatSteveKnight, @TrekkingBritian @Chriscox303 - to name but a few. Thanks everyone for a hell of a time. A special mention also for Dave from MyOutdoors who not only came along but pitched in to help with provision of bacon butties and coffee. All in all it was just what a weekend should be - a great mix of walking, photography, socialising, chatting, drinking, eating - the food at the Monsal Head pub is seriously good.
Finally, a huge thank you to Terry for organising the entire event including the great little campsite Park House, just a few hundred yards from the Monsal Head hotel where we recommend the Stable Bar from good beer and excellent food.
For us it was a treat. As an internet company we rarely get the chance to meet our customers and potential customers face-to-face. The big outdoors shows not only cost a lot of money, but imprison you behind a stall and there's very little chance of really getting to know anyway. Terry's idea was the bees knees as far as we were concerned. More about socialising and walking than selling and putting faces to Twitter names was interesting to say the least.
Saturday morning saw us in Bakewell as Rog the dog had managed to snap his collar! There we got sidetracked by the Farmers Market where we lunched on excellent venison pasties and local icecream. The weather, despite the forecast, was warm and sunny, so we returned to Monsal Dale and spent the afternoon walking along the Trail and then down along the Wye. Turning the old railway into a trail accessible to just about any and everyone was a brilliant idea. It's used by everyone from serious long-distance walkers to families with small children, horse riders, cyclists and wheelchair users.
The views are terrific over the dale. It would have been good to have had the time to walk up to Fin Cop, the iron age hill fort - next time perhaps. Also hoped to revisit Arbor Low but Sunday proved somewhat damp and gloomy so as we were all packed up at the end of the Meet, we headed home.
We weren't the only gearmongers to join in Terry's Peak Meet. Ali from Terra Nova joined the group on the Friday, Other company reps turned up too, Gareth from WebTogs, and Mark from Rab. Although both these companies have some merino in their ranges, they concentrated on their other producst - which was nice of them. The evening between returning from various walks and heading to the pub to eat, was when we showed our wares - a short enough interval not to impinge on folks' time - as it should be.
On the subject of selling other stuff - Webtogs stock inov8 footwear. Over the weekend I was testing my new Inov8 Roclite 400GTX walking shoes. I'd seen the video review of these by Cameron McNeish and they looled like exactly what I wanted. They were and more. Never had a more comfy pair of walking boots - make that just shoes! They're made on the same principles as Inov8's climbing and running footwear - and I think they're brilliant.
Apart from some of our own gear, we'd taken along some samples of the sort of thing that's being pushed as "superfine" and "ultrafine" merino to show folks, and a lot were shocked by how poor it really was. It's hard getting through to people that just because something is labelled "merino" it will be good. Far from it. To be good, the wool has to be sorted properly, spun properly and then made into a fabric that will stand the test of wear. The samples we took along had the same things in common. Thin, single jersey fabric that was almost see-through, with wide bands of flat seaming stitched with coarse polyester thread that was abrasive on the skin. We'd also taken pics of the fabric under a microscope where it's possible to see all the short threads sticking out that cause itching. The third sample was thicker than the other two, but not "ultrafine" as it said on the labelling; it was at least 21 micron - 2 grades coarser. Again under a micrscope you could see the short ends,and matted nature of the fabric in some areas.
The fact is you can buy cheap merino, or you can buy quality merino. You can't buy cheap and quality merino. We've heard from more than one retailer that they get so many returns on these lines, that they're thinking of not stocking them anymore. We're not, surprised. And as there's so much else they have to sell, we doubt it would do them any harm to stop selling cheap China-made "merino". Almost all merino wool fabric now comes from China, made by either Solarwool or Zhangjiagang Luckywool. Both these produce fashion fabrics. However a merino fashion fabric is not the same as a merino performance outdoor fabric - and the difference is huge.
To return to the important part of the meet - the people @DaylightGambler, @MixedupMessedup, @AVassoodaven @GemaVass @SocialHiking @PilgrimChris @atkypne @GilesBabbidge @theMuss78 @Backpackingbongos (& Reuben) @Chris25119600 @Backpackingliight @Gareth @BarefootChild @ThatSteveKnight, @TrekkingBritian @Chriscox303 - to name but a few. Thanks everyone for a hell of a time. A special mention also for Dave from MyOutdoors who not only came along but pitched in to help with provision of bacon butties and coffee. All in all it was just what a weekend should be - a great mix of walking, photography, socialising, chatting, drinking, eating - the food at the Monsal Head pub is seriously good.
Finally, a huge thank you to Terry for organising the entire event including the great little campsite Park House, just a few hundred yards from the Monsal Head hotel where we recommend the Stable Bar from good beer and excellent food.
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