Hyperlite Mountain Gear wins 2016 American Made Outdoor Gear Award

ARCATA, CALIFORNIA – Hyperlite Mountain Gear (www.hyperlitemountaingear.com) was named the overall winner of the fourth-annual American Made Outdoor Gear Award. The award was announced during a ceremony at the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market in Salt Lake City, UT.

Conceptualized and hosted by Kokatat Inc., (www.kokatat.com) the leading US manufacturer of technical apparel and gear for paddle sports, the American Made Outdoor Gear Awards were open to all American manufacturers with a compelling story.

“Each year we are impressed by the amazing made in America stories from all our entries,” said Jeff Turner of Kokatat, the founder and host of the American Made Outdoor Gear Award. “Hyperlite Mountain Gear was a clear stand out this year with how they have focused on domestic manufacturing to drive their innovation and growth as well as their commitment to their local community

Hyperlite Mountain Gear makes ultralight packs, shelters and accessories using state of the art Dyneema® Cuben Fiber in a repurposed mill in Biddeford, Maine.

“We maintain a high commitment to our customers, our employees, our community, and the innovations and quality that propel our growth,” said Hyperlite Mountain Gear Co-founder and CFO, Dan St. Pierre. “We are thrilled and honored to be recognized for our American-made manufacturing as it is a driving force behind that commitment.”

As winners of the American Made Outdoor Gear Award, Hyperlite Mountain Gear will take one-year ownership of the “Sassy” travelling trophy — a two-foot tall, hand carved, redwood Sasquatch from Humboldt County, CA.

Kokatat’s hosting of the awards is rooted in its own history, as the brand’s founder and president, Steve O’Meara, recognized from the start that keeping production local was necessary in order to control quality and continually develop the finest and driest paddling apparel in the world.

In addition to the overall winner, winners in several categories based on company size were also awarded. The category winners received a miniature version of the Sassy award during the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market celebration.

Category winners of the 2016 American Made Outdoor Gear awards include:

• 100+ Employees: Farm to Feet (www.farmtofeet.com) of Mt. Airy, NC, a sock manufacturer.
• 50-100 Employees: Timbuk2 (www. timbuk2.com) of San Francisco, CA, a bag manufacturer.
• 10 to 50 Employees: DPS Skis (www.dpsskis.com) of Salt Lake City, UT, a ski manufacturer.
• Under 10 Employees Duckworth (www.duckworthco.com) of Bozeman, MT, a wool apparel manufacturer. In the four years of the program the American Made Outdoor Gear Awards has received 290 entries from domestic manufacturers. Past overall winners have included Liberty Bottleworks, Benchmade Knives, and Sterling Rope.This year’s awards were presented in the Sterling Rope booth during the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market in Salt Lake City, UT. The statues presented to the winners are hand carved by a local artisan near Kokatat’s headquarters in Arcata, CA. Earlier this year the artisan had a stroke, but she was proud to still be able to produce the small statues in time for the awards presentation.For additional information about the 2016 American Made Outdoor Gear Award visit www.americanmadeoutdoorgearawards.com. For more details about the results please email pr@palemorning.com.About the American Made Outdoor Gear Award:
  Founded by Kokatat and shared with the Outdoor Industry, the American Made Outdoor Gear Award is a celebration of American manufacturing. First awarded in 2013, the American Made Outdoor Gear Award recognizes companies with compelling domestic manufacturing stories. Finalists are announced annually on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, and the winners are recognized at an awards ceremony during the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market. The company with the best “made in America” story receives one-year ownership of the ‘Sassy’ travelling trophy — a hand carved, 3-foot-tall, redwood Sasquatch from Humboldt County, CA — and all category winners receive miniature versions of the award. Along with highlighting company stories, the program tracks domestic manufacturing trends and insights in the outdoor industry. Learn more at www.americanmadeoutdoorgearawards.com and follow us on Twitter at @AMOGAward.About Kokatat Inc.:
  Kokatat has been manufacturing paddling gear in Arcata, California for more than 40 years. At a time when many technical apparel brands were moving manufacturing offshore, Kokatat continued to invest in infrastructure in the United States. Kokatat founder Steve O’Meara was committed to the development of the finest and driest paddling apparel in the world and recognized the need to control and continually evolve the development of our dry wear. In the early days, Kokatat worked closely with W.L. Gore & Associates, makers of GORE-TEX®, to refine the sewing and sealing techniques required for full immersion suits and tops. Today, our hands-on approach to manufacturing continues to set the standard in paddling apparel. Into the water with Kokatat! Please visit www.kokatat.com and follow Kokatat on Facebook, Twitter “@kokatat”, and Instagram @kokatatusa.