In the spirit of full disclosure, I am going forewarn you that this entire week will be dedicated to recapping and sharing my Columbia OmniTen adventure with y’all. Luckily, I know you love me so you’re just as excited about it as I am…..right??! Bueller??
Anyway, I wanted to kickoff my Columbia week by sharing the entire purpose of the trip with you: we found out that Project Z stood for Omni-Freeze Zero!
Columbia announced last week that they will be launching a new technology that, quite honestly, is pretty freaking cool. I mean, it is literally cool! This new magic fabric claims to cool your body temperature down while you are working your hardest.
How does Omni-Freeze Zero do this? Let me explain! The fabric has little blue rings of a cooling polymer that cover the surface. When exposed to moisture (like the gallons of sweat that pour from my body every time my heart rate rises!), the rings swell like little goosebumps. This bumpy surface then allows the air to pass around the rings, cooling your body temperature down with a “mechanical” reaction.
My favorite part of Omni-Freeze Zero is that it actually uses your own body sweat to trigger the cooling reaction. As Mick McCormick, Columbia’s executive vice president, claims in the press release, sweat can now be considered a renewable resource. And you know what? I absolutely love that idea! In a world where so many resources are wasted daily and we are always scrambling to find the next great break, why not use something our body produces naturally?
Y’all, I know, this all sounds like an awful lot of the same old BS that companies spout every time they come up with a “new” technology. However, I truly believe that Omni-Freeze Zero is different. I was fortunate enough to test out multiple products over the span of the week by hiking, mountain biking and running in the 100+ degree temps of the Arizona desert….and the stuff worked! I’m typically not someone who exercises in anything other than a tank top because I sweat like a man-beast, but I found myself choosing one of my Omni-Freeze Zero tech tees almost every single day. And this neck gaiter? Saved my life! All you had to do was dip it in a stream to get it wet and the put it on your neck, your head, wherever….best feeling ever in a desert 🙂
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| Katie, myself, and Heidi, all wearing Omni-Freeze Zero shirts and neck gaiters. Photo credit to Heidi! |
The catch? The new material is not available until Spring, 2013. This makes me super excited that I was generously provided with so much of it because I cannot wait until next year when I can buy more!
I’ll share more about my adventures in the coming days, but I just wanted to get this out of the way first: Omni-Freeze Zero is legit y’all 🙂
33 Comments
Dude that sounds freaking awesome – what an innovative idea. Can’t wait for next spring!
ps- you guys rock that apparel like it’s your job.
Ha thanks! Good thing…because it kind of WAS our job for the week 🙂
Sounds like really impressive technology… it’s going to be mid-nineties in Boston this week and I’ve got mileage to tackle… any chance I can take a time machine to Spring 2013 and pick up one of those gaiters? 😉 Can’t wait to hear more about your trip– sounds like the adventure of a lifetime!
Seriously! I almost wore the gaiter to work today because it’s so freaking hot out!
I think I would definitely be interested in something like this, I heat up really badly during runs! I was struggling during our 6 miler this weekend when it was 80 degrees out!
This sounds amazing!! What a great idea and can’t wait to check it out when it comes to market. Sounds like you all had an amazing time on your trip! Can’t wait to hear more!
I want some!!! I always get so hot when I exercise, I’m always looking for ways to cool off! Lucky duck, so cool that you got to try this all out 🙂
I really do feel incredibly lucky 🙂 It was a trip of a lifetime!
Now I have a reason to get excited about 2013! Thanks for this info; very helpful.
It sounds…interesting. But without someone I know actually trying it out and vouching for it I would probably just brush it off as another one of those PR things.
And I’m a tank top runner, mostly to avoid farmer’s tan lines! 🙂
Luckily, you hike mountains with me sometimes, so you’ll be seeing a lot of it in action, in person!
Whoa doggies. You said “running in 100 degree heat.” Well wrap me in wet neck gaiters and drop me in the pool with some of this Columbia gear! Meantime I will do my part to provide renewable sweat resources! Love that photo and piqued with interest about this technology from Columbia. (KymberlyFunFit)
Weee! Like you said, reliving it all over again. I’m more of a tank girl myself but I am not wearing my Omni-Freeze Zero ALL THE TIME.
This EXCITES me more than anything else as I LOVE columbias OMNI-heat collection and found that even in the middle of winter running, while my water was freezing their gear kept me warm, so I love the idea of the reverse happening! When is the giveaway?!?! 😉
I love the Omni-Heat too! I have an omniheat fleece that I’m a huge fan of, and they actually gave us all Omni-Heat Reactor sleeping bags on the trip. Granted, the canyon was 400 million degrees so I didn’t get to truly test it out, but I plan on taking it into the CO mountains to see how it fares with legit chilly temps…I have a feeling it’s going to rock, and it is so light!
That sounds pretty awesome. I’ll try anything that utilizes the rivers of sweat I can produce!
Spring 2013?!!! OmniFreeze sounds badass – I love that it’s ‘renewable’ like you said! As long as you sweat, the technology will keep workin’. Can’t wait to hear about the rest of your AZ adventures!
This. Sounds. Awesome!
I love that picture of you guys! I think it sounds totally awesome. I’m all about it–too bad we have to wait!
This sounds so cool! One of the reasons I only work out inside or at a gym is because I feel like I’m overheating outside in the summer. This sounds like an amazing way to work out outdoors in the heat and stay cool!
it looks way cool! I hate that we have to wait!
I was just talking to someone about a company needs to invent a product that keeps you cool no matter what the temp is. Tech wick, moisture wick is fine but I want more. This sounds exactly what I need. Bummer I have to wait till Spring to test it out.
Can’t wait to hear about the rest of the trip!
That was actually a big part of their presentation: the workout gear hasn’t changed in years, other than the “new” invention of wick-away material, which has been around for awhile. I have a feeling more traditional workout companies like Nike, etc will be following suit with this one 🙂
Wow this sounds like an amazing new type of technology! I can’t wait to read more of your reviews and about the experience!!
That stuff sounds unreal. I will definitely be keeping my eyes out for this.
With the way the weater’s been here in Chi-town lately, I’m thinking I need a body gaiter!
Hmmm…I think a body gaiter is a great idea! 🙂
Heather, totally dug following you guys at #omniten and glad that the reviews of the trip are starting to cycle out starting with you. Can’t wait to see what kind of backcountry trouble you guys got up to. And as others have said, they need to release those neck gaiters stat!
Holy jeez, that video got me pumped! Great recap… what an adventure!
Could you feel the “bumps” when they activated?
Nope, not at all! The material is actually super soft and a lot more comfy than a regular tech tee or a wick-away shirt. I’ve literally never purchased a shirt quite like it!
Allan is going to be really interested to hear the engineering behind this so I’ll have to share this with him!
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