adidas Outdoor Expands Athlete Team with High-Altitude Alpinist Don Bowie
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Los Angeles, Calif., February 27, 2014 – adidas Outdoor (www.adidas.com/outdoor) the athletic brand in the outdoors, announced Canadian born, high-altitude alpinist Don Bowie will join its team of athletes. Bowie has been climbing for the past 18 years, and the sport has taken him to remote regions of the world to embark on long approaches, unclimbed routes and difficult objectives including mountain ranges in Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, South America, Tibet and the United States. He recently set the solo bike/run record for climbing Mt. Whitney and was part of successful expedition in ascent of Annapurna.
“Don represents the new generation of outdoor athletes with his amazingly fast expeditions and accomplishments,” said Greg Thomsen, adidas Outdoor US managing director. “He is a perfect fit and exciting new addition to our growing team of ambassadors, and our adidas Outdoor apparel and footwear, that is focused on the fast and light needs today’s athletes demand, has also been a great fit for Don’s performance level.”
In September 2013, Bowie set the solo bike/run record from the lowest elevation in the Mojave Desert to the highest in the continental US, Mt. Whitney. Starting in Badwater, Death Valley National Park, he biked 136 miles to the base of Mt. Whitney before running and climbing another nine miles to reach the summit of 14,505 feet in 17 hours and 21 minutes. He broke his previous record of 19 hours and 41 minutes.
Also in September 2013, Bowie was part of the successful expedition to climb a bold line directly up the south face of Annapurna, a section of the Himalayas and the 10th highest peak in the world. During this climb he was wearing adidas Outdoor footwear and apparel including the Terrex Fast R GTX and the Terrex Korum Hoodie. Other expedition highlights over the course of his career include a west face climb of Cho Oyu and attempted a fast ascent of Mount Everest via the north ridge using very light style and no supplemental oxygen, both in the Himalayas. In 2007 he successfully climbed K2, the second highest peak in the world and in 2010 summited Gasherbrum I in Pakistan Karakoram, both without supplemental oxygen.
About adidas Outdoor: adidas Outdoor is the athletic brand in the outdoors. The company’s founder, Adi Dassler, designed equipment solutions for athletes that improved their performance. The long history of adidas Outdoor began in the 1970s with the creation of the first light trekking shoes. Climbing legend Reinhold Messner helped adidas design super light and fast approach hiking shoes for his first Everest ascent without supplemental oxygen in 1980. The tradition continues today with products influenced by Messner, as well as notable extreme outdoor adventurers from around the world.
Contact: Kristen Bujold, kristenb@cgprpublicrelations.com, 781-639-4924 Ext. 115
