Red Rock Rendezvous

Red Rock Rendezvous, the nation's largest outdoor climbing festival, is this weekend.

Located in the Red Rock National Conservation area near Las Vegas, Nevada, the escarpment has an estimated 1,700 different climbing routes of varying skill levels.

The festival offers clinics and climbs for all experience levels.

Beginners get personalized instruction in small groups to help get hooked on climbing. World- Class climbers put on clinics for intermediate and advanced participants looking to learn new skills like self rescue.

Check out all the details here.

An Intro to Speedflying

Suunto Ambassador Neil Amonson is at it again. This time Neil introduces us to the world of Speedflying. Neil and a few friends were at the Canyons resort near Park City, Utah this week and he shared his adventures.

Speedflying is a relatively new sport that has a large following in Europe, combining a high speed paraglider with skiing. Unlike my summer hobby of BASE Jumping, no cliff is need to start this type of flying. Just a steep slope and the speed generated from your skis and you quickly lift off the ground. You can choose to fly hundreds of feet off the ground, just a few inches or ever stay in contact with the snow.

I wear my Suunto Core and it came in handy recording the altitudes gained during our hikes that day, the rising temperatures reminding us to keep an eye on snow conditions, as well as making sure we didn't lose track of time.

For video of the adventure go here. To see everything Neil is up to, go here.

A special thanks to Jacom Stephens for the picture.

Suunto t6c Contest

Andy Potts wants you to have a free Suunto watch.

To kick off the 2010 season, Potts is giving away six t6c watches - the same kind he uses in races and training sessions.

The t6c is like a sports laboratory on your wrist. The professional-grade tool monitors, analyzes and optimizes your training. Features include real-time Training Effect, EPOC, heart rate and calories burned. The t6c also has a graphic barometer, training logbook and an altimeter to monitor your hill and altitude performance.

The contest is being held through Competitor. You can check out all the details and enter to win at www.competitor.com/suunto .

Good luck and happy training.

Saving the Poles

Polar Explorer Eric Larsen is on a mission to show the world the effects of Global Warming. He's has embarked on a Save the Poles Expedition and will visit the North Pole, South Pole and the Summit of Mt. Everest within 365-days.

Larsen's purpose is to document the effects of global warming in some of the world's coldest places and tell the story of how our actions are affecting the planet.

Larsen just completed the South Pole journey - with the help of a Suunto Compass, the MC-2 - and has posted video on the adventure.


Check out the video here.


And his website here.

Jenny Fletcher Goes Pro with Suunto

Supermodel turned triathlete Jenny Fletcher has signed with Suunto to help her compete in her first professional triathlon season. Her first race is next month in Florida at the Miami International Triathlon.

Fletcher is currently in Australia training for the upcoming season. Her manager Jim Garfield says Suunto is helping her take the next step. “Suunto provides a very accurate measure of effort and ultimately results,” says Garfield. “When you perform at the elite level you want to have the best tools at your disposal because the difference between first and tenth can be a matter of seconds and anything that helps your performance becomes a tool of your trade.” Fletcher uses the t6c wristop heart rate monitor with speed and distance PODs for running and cycling to help her train and compete.

Fletcher started a modeling career at age 15 when she was discovered by an international agency. She was soon traveling the world alone and balancing the fast-paced lifestyle with being a teenager. During that time Fletcher was also living out another dream – being a world class athlete. She spent summers with the Canadian National team and at 16 competed in the World Championships for the modern pentathlon.

Fletcher has now found a formidable replacement and new love – the triathlon.

“I’m at this new place in life,” says Fletcher, “I’ve had this incredible career in modeling and great results in sports – the latest being triathlons. Now I’m ready to take it to a whole new level.”

Suunto Rocks for Charity

Suunto teamed up with the Love Hope Strength Foundation (LHS) and other outdoor brands to bring Big Head Todd and the Monsters to this year's Outdoor Retailer Winter Market in Salt Lake City. In addition to the show, one lucky winner took home a Suunto-customized Epiphone guitar.

Suunto North America's Matt Kaplan with Big Head Todd and the Monsters

Winter Market attendees who made a donation of $15 dollars or more to LHS got a ticket (worth $25) to see Big Head Todd and the Monsters play at the The Depot, an SLC hotspot. Before the show, the guys from the band came out to meet fans and encourage donations to the international charity, whose mission is to fight cancer through the power of music. Fans who went to the show said it was a lot of fun, and that Big Head Todd and the Monsters continue to put on fantastic live performances.

As part of the LHS fundraiser, guitar-maker Epiphone created customized axes for each sponsor. Market attendees entered to win the customized guitars by dropping their business card and a donation to LHS in the guitar case, then claimed their prize at the concert. Steve Nahomiak of United Knitting took home the coveted Suunto guitar. Check out the incredible detail on the Suunto guitar, which recreates a watch face on the guitar body.

Epiphone's customized Suunto Guitar

Winner Steve Nahomiak holds his prize

All in all, a great weekend for Suunto, and an even better weekend for the Love Hope Strength Foundation, which raised a lot of money to fight cancer around the world.

Andy Potts and Matty Reed Race for Charity

US Olympians and Suunto sponsored athletes Andy Potts and Matty Reed will face-off in a relay race to raise money for charity.

Both Potts and Reed will captain a relay team during the Memorial Hermann Gateway to the Bay Triathlon in Kemah, Texas. The race is April 11th and raises money for Jenny's Light - a charity that helps women with post-partum mood disorders.

Other spots on the relay teams will be auctioned over the internet. For Team Potts, you can bid on the bike and run leg. For Team Reed, you can bid on the swim and bike leg. You can find the on-line auction here.

Potts and Reed will also put on clinics during the weekend to help participants with triathlon training and performance.