OGZ Membership Recruitment
Last weekend I took part in the Shirataka Hill Trail Kick-Off Event, a trail event held at Yamagata City's Youth Nature House and Prefectural Forest.
The Shirataka Hill Trail is one of the new trails in Tohoku that Saito Masashi, who has been pioneering Gearjin's support for interviews and talk events.
Needless to say, Saito is a leading expert on long trails, who has walked tens of thousands of kilometers on long trails around the world. He met Kato Noriyoshi, a pioneer in Japan, and took over his legacy. In order to preserve the natural environment, which is still under destruction by humans, and to continue to share the same scenery with the next generation 100 years from now, he has established an NPO called "YLT Club," and is steadily developing trails on his own, mainly in Yamagata Prefecture. OGZ cannot help but support people who look with their own eyes, think for themselves, and try to unlock new possibilities for Japan's outdoor activities in their own way. Of course, that's true, but the nature of Tohoku at this time of year was really pleasant, and I also enjoyed meeting up with the participants again, so I went to Yamagata to open a flea market booth this year, following the first event last year.
The weather is sunny. The temperature is just as cold when you're in the shade, and the quiet venue is filled with refreshing air and warm weather, and no matter how much you look at it, it's comfortable.
The photo shows the event booth. This time, we were able to talk to many participants through the release of shoes, backpacks, clothing, gear, etc. that fit the car. What I felt was that everyone's knowledge of tools is getting better every year. Is this an alpha? Or is it an octa? Or, I don't like this one about this Zack right now, but is there anything good? I was impressed by how much information was absorbed by people about better tools than everyone else, such as the fact that air mats don't have any sound, which is hard to imagine from their appearance, and personally I felt a sense of firmness once again. The event then went on to have dinner outdoors, a bonfire, a bingo competition, a campfire (it's so nostalgic and fresh that it's surprisingly fun), and yet we never ran out of talk and talked until late at night (although the next day there was an unfortunate punchline of an incredible hangover).
Meet yamada packs
On this day, OGZ had another purpose. That's to meet Yamada Packs, a local backpack brand in Yamagata.
I've heard from Saito-san, but the author, who has walked the long trail, has been working on the features he really needs, and has been making carefully selected backpacks that are tailored to the mountains of Japan. All are handmade and the sizes are custom-made.
Rather than making it lighter than the author's mischief, the concept of lightweight yet firm structure that can be carried on the waist and simplicity that removes waste is very close to my ideals, so I would have liked to carry the actual product on my back and listen carefully.
So I actually got this to be carried on my back.
https://ymdpacks.com/front/gears/backpack40/
Oh, this is crazy, I felt like I had discovered the item I was looking for. The hip belt (waist harness) that fits around the waist is particularly impressive. It firmly holds the load with your waist, does not shake due to movement, and the cushion on the back is moderately comfortable, and the shoulder harness is three-dimensional and has a good fit, making it an almost ideal carrying experience. It's amazing how they could make this on their own even though they didn't have any particular specialized training. He also hit it off in that he likes Tohoku, a mountain stream fishing, and a Kakuneda River. I'm now dreaming about how we can do something together with Outdoor Gearzine.
A talk event is coming up in May! And the next event information will be released on June 26th
On Thursday, May 30th, the first talk event since the reopening will be "talking all the secrets we've never heard of yet about Haglöfs"!
We would like to ask key people in our home country that can only be heard here, such as Hoglovs, a backpack manufacturer that is not well known in Japan, the secrets of calculated patterning, the secrets of unique coloring, the close relationship between work-life balance and manufacturing that is unique to Scandinavians, and more, and more, not just about product development, but about what nature and outdoors are like for the lives of Scandinavians, so please come and see them!
To apply for participation, please visit the following below:
Enter the event (Go to the Peatix ticket purchase screen)
The next talk event has also been decided to be Wednesday, June 26th. Details will be announced soon, but the theme is the outsole and Vibram special feature, "We don't know anything about Vibram yet"!
Sorry for the core topics as always. But this time is sure to be a really interesting talk event. The person who will be talking about it is Mr. Hirano from Vibram Japan. How is the outsole designed? How is it made? What is an amazing outsole? What will the future sole be like? Enjoy the deep world of soles you've never thought about them before. On the day, we will also bring a trial stand with a mega grip outsole. The latest information on the 2025 season will also be released for the first time! ? We have prepared lots of interesting stories that can only be heard here (and also souvenirs) and are looking forward to seeing you!
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