News Blog

Just found a load of Helmet Cam footage from my Summer in Whistler and threw it all together.... Check it out!     Read more about Summer?

The Bigstone Office will be closed from December 23rd - 29th and January 1st. The answerphone will be on and messages and emails will be picked up on our return. Lets hope we get some snow to play in... We hope you have a great festive period and look forward to processing your orders in Spring 2010!   Read more about Merry Christmas everyone!

Checkout this great review of the new-for-2010 bike gear from Smartwool by Petesy Read more about Smartwool Review - Biking

Great little Smartwool Ad. Read more about Not just any sock....

Take a look as Brian Goldstone gives us an insight  into a photoshoot for Arcteryx.   Read more about Arcteryx: Behind the scenes.

In Dirt 100, Dainese featured on numerous pages, being praised for its attention to design and comfort. Read more about Dainese in Dirt Mag

Henry's Avalanche Talks have just completed a very successful tour of Snow and Rock shops advising how to have fun off piste wilst staying safe If you missed them you can watch the first part online here Read more about Off Piste and Avalanche Awareness UK Tour

If you like scary movies make sure you go and see Descent 2 this week (out Friday December 4th) and play spot the Arc'teryx bird if you need to distract yourself from the action! Check out the trailer and other info here Read more about The Descent 2

Checkout this latest vid of 5.10 sponsored athlete Harry Heath looking for a ride for 2010   Harry Heath Promo from Aaron Bartlett on Vimeo. Read more about Harry Heath promo vid

Checkout the review of the Venta SV by Rich Cross and Al Powell. "It’s about as close to waterproof as soft shells get, but still has a very soft comfy feel and breathes well – the bonded fleece lining means it rarely feels clammy even when working hard." Read the full review on their blog here Read more about More Gear tests from Alpine Guides

Alpine Guides Rich Cross and Al Powell have been putting Arc'teryx gear through its paces this year and are starting to put reviews up on their blog. They've been getting around a bit and Al even finished 2nd in the OMM a couple of weekends ago (beating Jenny's husband Oli!). Check out the Epsilon SV Hoody with more... Read more about Gear testing where it counts...

PETMAN is an anthropomorphic robot for testing chemical protection clothing used by the US Army. Unlike previous suit testers, which had to be supported mechanically and had a limited repertoire of motion, PETMAN will balance itself and move freely; walking, crawling and doing a variety of suit-stressing calisthenics... Read more about FiveTens help PETMAN walk

Thinking of buying the new Atom LT Hoody from Arc'teryx? "The Atom LT Hoody is a new product from Arc'Teryx for winter 2009. It's part of a new range of lightweight garments with synthetic insulation designed primarily for use as mid layers in cold conditions.  Arc'Teryx have long used Primaloft as an insulating... Read more about Atom LT hoody Review on planetFear

If you’ve not been to SmartWool.com lately, it’s time to take a look. Click on Discover Smartwool and then What to Wear to visit a great new page where you can find the best base-layers/ socks and accessories for whatever your activity and the weather conditions!       Read more about Check out the Smartwool website

Well actually we're all just having to work extra hard whilst Andy has a great time in Zion climbing with close friend and head of the German Arc'teryx agency Reiner Kopf. We've been hearing complaints that it's too hot out there - can't say we've been very sympathetic on that one! Next week Jenny, Mark and Jamie fly... Read more about While the boss is away...

The GORE-TEX® products Experiential Rig Roadshow inspires, informs and fascinates. Arc'teryx are delighted to be working together with GORE-TEX® on this. The GORE-TEX® products Experiential Rig is touring the country for the next five weeks allowing consumers to experience the benefits of its technologies and learn... Read more about Gore Interactive exhibition allows consumers to Experience More

Several spottings of top quality Arc'teryx products on BBC outdoor programmes last month! Read more about Bird spotting on the BBC

If everything was easy nothing would be a challenge. If we could fly we wouldn’t bother climbing; the harder the challenge the bigger the buzz. Failure hurts, but without failure there is no success. Without failure there is no need to work hard to gain success. A few weeks ago I was on an 8c. On-sight. It went... Read more about Rodellar - Steve McClure

Bigstone's Jenny Johnson was part of the  Dark Peak Fell Runners team which won the Ian Hodgson Mountain Relays in Patterdale at the weekend 5 minutes clear of Ilkley Harriers. Luckily for the runners and organisers Saturday's gales subsided and the day of the race so mainly sunshine with amazing views from the top of... Read more about Ian Hodgson Mountain Relay

Big Stone Sales Reps Jamie and Mark are working hard at Eurobike. You can find them on the Dainese and FiveTen stands (or somewhere in between!). Read more about Eurobike - FiveTen and Dainese

Funny game climbing, sometimes it's like buses, you wait for ages, getting more and more frustrated, and then, just when you’ve given up, two come along at once! With damp weather during August my motivation had been sliding downwards as fast as I slid from the greasy footholds. Mentally I packed in climbing... Read more about Inside Out - Steve McClure

Joe Bowman is enjoying the last few weeks of his 'year out' in Whistler, BC. Last weekend he finished 3rd in the Canadian Open Enduro Senior Men's race in a time that wouldn't have placed him last in the Pro's race. Looking forward to seeing him back home next month...   Read more about Crankworx podium for Joe

Just got back from the Bronx Rock invitational comp in Germany. The idea was to get a range of climbers from across europe to set the most interesting problems they could to provide the crowd with a good show. After setting, we all tried each others problems and the winner was the person who topped out the most... Read more about Ned Feehally at the Bronx Rock invitational comp

Hubble was first climbed by Ben Moon at the cliff of Raventor in the Peak. The world’s first F8c+, one small set of moves for man, but one giant leap for mankind. The route is pure power, it’s a boulder problem. It would be a font 8B boulder problem if it had a flat grassy landing. Seven hand moves, nine... Read more about Hubble versus Stealth Paint

This year has gone surprisingly well so far. I don’t think many people expected me to be able to achieve so much despite being so new to the sport. I have been riding for nearly two years. Last year I was a junior and it was my first season in racing and riding downhill and I won the Junior National Champion... Read more about 5.10 rider Jess Stone's 2009 Adventure!

The Petzl roc trips get better and better, bigger and bigger. This year was no exception, with single pitch routes 100m long, I don’t think they get any longer. I was invited again, obviously as the token Brit, there for dry humour and poor dress sense and perhaps because I’ve won a few trips, even up... Read more about Long Routes: Steve McClure reports from Petzl roc trip

Cliffhanger 2009 saw over 20,000 people descend on Millhouses Park, Sheffield. The event included the British Bouldering Champs with FiveTen sponsored climber Ned Feehally defending his title against stiff opposition including 2nd placed Dave Barrans (3rd in the World Champs last week) and in 3rd fellow FiveTen... Read more about Big Stone success at Cliffhanger 2009

Last night saw a very lively press event take place in the big top marquee at Millhouses Park. Heavy rain which saw flooding in parts of the city made virtually everybody late, and kept some people from coming at all, but a large crowd of sponsors, organisers and members of the press gathered for an informal battle on... Read more about Cliffhanger - this weekend

Big Stone will be at the Outdoor show in Friedrichshafen representing Arc'teryx, FiveTen, Smartwool and Edelweiss from July 16th-19th. If you are one of our dealers and will be attending the show but haven't yet arranged an appointment please give Jenny a call in the Bigstone office on 0114 258 6688 and be sure to... Read more about Outdoor

Check out this video The packs are  available to view by buyers in the Big Stone Showroom, Sheffield and at Friedrichshafen and KORS. They will be in store Spring 2010. Read more about Arc'teryx S10 - new pack lines

5.10 sponsored Ned finished in a respectable 6th place, despite just finishing his University finals, which gave little time to train. He said he was psyched despite making silly mistakes that kept him out of the money, and hopes for better placings in the future. Check out the Stealth Paint modifications to his... Read more about Top-6 for Ned Feehally in World Cup

On April 26 2003, in a split second, Jane Sowerby's whole world was turned upside down.  A simple trip, a fall and an unlucky landing left her with a broken back.  She suddenly found herself completely paralysed from the waist down. Jane spent the next few weeks worrying that life as she knew it was over.  The... Read more about Jane Sowerby - British Disabled Ski Team

Jenny and Andy are just back from viewing the Spring 2010 range at Arc'teryx Vancouver. There are some great treats to look forward to from the brand including a new 'fast and light' range of packs. After a tough week working at HQ they enjoyed a Euro rep fun day biking on the Sunshine Coast with the Arc'teryx guys,... Read more about Arc'terx S10 Sales Meeting

Checkout this cool pic of Taunton based Freerunner Pip Anderson. Pip recently left the Urban Freeflow team to pursue a solo freerunning career - involved in acting, coaching, advertising and loads more. He still works with Escape Parkour and FiveTen are proud to be able to support him with the best shoes in the... Read more about FiveTen proud to support PipTrix

We’re very proud and excited to be working with Arcteryx /Bigstone! Al Powell and myself run a small specialist guiding company called Alpine Guides Ltd. Our work is varied and ranges from teaching basic Alpine skills, right through to technical winter alpinism and exploratory ski touring in the greater ranges.... Read more about Rich Cross and Al Powell join Arc'teryx

Tomorrow (Thursday) 5.10 sponsored climber Katy Whittaker (pictured right)  will open the award winning Infinity Bridge in Stockton-on-Tees with Shane Ohly. Described as freerunners the pair will make good use of the sticky soles on Guide Tennie shoes. According to the Guardian newspaper: "Free-runners will scale the... Read more about 5.10 Freerunners to open Infinity Bridge

A great new book arrived in the Big Stone office this week which has captured our attention. Mountaineering Instructor Paul Smith has put together a great book of climbing games complete with clear instructions and useful pictures. The games are designed to improve climbing skills whilst having lots of fun! Check out... Read more about Climbing Games

One  of ARC’TERYX’s Vancouver-based  Dealer Service Representatives, James Bronson, was fortunate  to travel to Nepal recently. He took along 25 coverts from warranty to distribute amongst villagers in the Mugu District of Western Nepal. “Unfortunately I could not carry enough for everyone in the... Read more about Coverts find a new home

Some days at work it seems everything goes wrong, lap tops die, emails get junked, orders arrive too early or too late, planes get delayed or another sales meeting over laps with a previous one, on top of all that the next trade show seems to come round just after the last ones finished and the next seasons samples... Read more about Bluebird Days

Report from Dan Varian on his recent trip to the north: "I just got back from some brief armchair exploring in Torridon (the blocs are roadside) I found a bunch of amazing lines and projects in the short time I was there, I've wired through some pictures of the best ones. 'Robert the Brute' is a pristine 7c ish... Read more about Calling all member’s of the Secret (Jet) 7 Dragon Society...

"As I type this the snows are still falling across the Scottish Highlands, it's been a long and at times hard winter. But through the false starts, the failed attempts and the long list of crazy mishaps it's been one of the most memorable winter seasons I've had in the mountains. Here in the UK we don't have anything... Read more about Ian Parnell - A Memorable Winter in Scotland

Jamie Reid - our new Sales rep - visited us for a weekend of outdoor activites. Saturday was spent climbing at Stanage with Andy and Jenny followed by a  Sunday of downhill mountain biking at Wharnecliffe with Mo. It was great that he got to see sunny Sheffield before the rain set in... Read more about Jamie visits Big Stone

New for Spring 2009, FiveTen introduces its benchmark Stealth rubber in paint form. Stealth Paint is a rubber compound developed from recycled Stealth Rubber. It is designed for use on rock climbing and outdoor shoes to increase durability and perform spot repairs whilst still offering the friction Stealth Rubber is... Read more about Stealth Paint - available now!

South Yorkshire Orienteers won the Women's JK Relay Trophy on Easter Monday with Big Stone's very own Jenny Johnson running the fastest 2nd leg time of the day. The team of Jo Stevenson, Jenny Johnson and Grace Elson (pictured here on top of the podium) won by almost 2 minutes from the British Army with pre-race... Read more about Orienteering success for Jenny

Steve McClure: Last year I got the chance to set the Skymasters competition at the UK Outdoor Show. It’s a funny show, the ‘outdoor’ show, the weather is always gorgeous and everyone is indoors sitting around stuffing their faces with hotdogs and cakes! This year it had to be even more of a... Read more about Skymasters Challenge - Outdoor Show 2009

We have a new recruit helping us out at Big Stone. Jamie Reid is currently doing a stint with us, mainly specialising in Smartwool. If you are one of our Smartwool dealers, then Jamie could be visiting you soon. Canadian by birth, Jamie is over here seeing what the mother country has to offer. He has a lot of outdoor... Read more about New Face at Big Stone

Good news from Gouveia is that Jess Stone came second in her class, a brilliant result considering that she is a relative newcomer to the scene. This is her report. .hmmessage P{margin:0px;padding:0px}body.hmmessage{font-size: 10pt;font-family:Verdana} 'I came 2nd out of about 8 girls. Tracy Moseley in first and some... Read more about Jess Stone 2nd Place at Maxxis Cup, Gouveia

Arc'teryx have launched their new website.  Lots of lovely product to peruse, and a new sexy layout.   You can see it here   http://www.arcteryx.com/           Read more about New look Arc'teryx website

As you may have seen on the telly last night, all the celebs made it to the summit. Read the full story here http://www.rednoseday.com/climb/diary/comic_relief_climbers_conquer_mount_kilimanjaro     As I'm sure you know a team of celebrities including Chris Moyles, Gary Barlow and Alesha Dixon are this week climbing... Read more about Comic Relief - Red Nose Climb UPDATE

Following a period of reorganisation, SmartWool has renewed its commitment to the European market with the announcement of several key appointments to strengthen its European operations and further expand the brand. Forging forward with its strategic growth plan, SmartWool Corporation (North America’s leading... Read more about New appointments for SmartWool

The weekend was a chance to actually get out there and enjoy the snow which for Jenny meant a long run in the Peak District. Once we'd got over the problem of closed car parks and found somewhere to leave the car there were some fantastic views to enjoy from the top of Win Hill. Read more about Snowy Sheffield pt 2

No problems with the heavy snow if you walk to work but a little bit trickier for the commute from Grindleford. Big Stone coped pretty well with the 'adverse weather conditions' - as you might expect from a company that has all the right gear! Read more about Snowy Sheffield pt 1

Checkout the Feb/Mar issue of Cooler Magazine for some great articles and fashion tips and a chance to win an Arc'teryx Women's Sidewinder SV. Read more here Read more about Cooler Mag

I turned the telly on this evening and saw that Look North was running an article on the local young talent climbing at the Foundry. Good to see the old 'uns passing on their year's of experience and the young guns so psyched. The future is looking bright...   Read more about Local Youngsters giving it max...

On Saturday, FiveTen sponsored climber Ryan Pasquill climbed the wall to the left of The New Statesman at Ilkley, Yorkshire. As noted by UKClimbing his last great problem has been tried by many climbers over the last twenty years. "The line reportedly has a crux section of around Font 8A, at a very 'highball'... Read more about Ryan Pasquill News Update

This Sunday don't miss Gaz Parry's lecture at the Climbing Works - Sheffield. Make sure you turn up early for a chance to try out FiveTen shoes at our boot demo beforehand. Lecture details: In September 2008 six friends travelled to Trango Tower with a dream to climb free, the dream became a nightmare. "A nightmare is... Read more about Climbing Works Gaz Parry Lecture