From May 11 through May 17, Moosejaw will be giving away Two (2) Mountain Hardwear Lightwedge 2 Tents per day. There is no purchase neccessary. This Sweepstakes is open only to legal residents residing in the 50 United States and D.C. For your chance to win, simply visit Moosejaw.com and enter the contest up to 5 times per day.

Recreational Equipment, Inc. (REI), a national retail cooperative providing quality outdoor gear and clothing, announced its 2007 vendor partner awards at the winter Outdoor Retailer trade show. Osprey Packs, Inc., best known for it high-performance outdoor gear, received top honors as REI’s Vendor Partner-of-the-Year.

“REI is honored to work with some of the most innovative companies in the retail industry today,” said Angela Owen, REI’s vice president of merchandising. “It is our pleasure to recognize some of our partners in the outdoor industry who are leading the way.”

The annual awards program, established in 1993, recognizes three key vendors and one overall vendor partner-of-the-year for efforts that have built a strategic and successful relationship with REI. The co-op’s three merchandising divisions – camp/travel, action sports and outdoorwear – nominate companies based on several measures, including financial performance, community and industry involvement and product quality, among others. In addition, REI retail employees vote from the slate of nominees to help determine the winners.

“We’re proud to recognize Osprey as our 2007 Vendor Partner-of-the-Year because of its technical and innovative products, strong sales performance, and company values, including a solid commitment to corporate and social responsibility,” said Owen. “This year REI and Osprey partnered in an exclusive early launch of its ReSource product line, made almost entirely from recycled materials. We have great confidence in Osprey as an excellent business partner, now and into the future.”

This year’s top award recipient, Osprey is based in Cortez, Colo. and has more than 32 years of pack-making experience. From its humble beginnings building custom backpacks and sleeping bags in Santa Cruz, Calif. to its current recognition as an industry leader, its mission is to create innovative high-performance gear that reflects a love of adventure, and a devotion to the outdoors and the environment. For more information, visit ospreypacks.com.

The other 2007 vendor partner award winners are:

• Camp/Travel Division Winner: Big Agnes (Steamboat Springs, Colo.) – Named for a peak in the nearby Mt. Zirkel Wilderness, Big Agnes, Inc. produces award-winning sleeping bags, pads and tents. For more information, visit bigagnes.com.

• Action Sports Division Winner: Electra Bicycle Company, LLC (Vista, Calif.) – Since 1993, Electra has stayed true to its commitment to bring its customers the finest cruiser and comfort bikes in the world. Marrying great designs with the best technology available, Electra creates bicycles that are meant to be enjoyed, ridden and treasured, not just admired. For more information, visit electrabike.com.

• Outdoorwear Division Winner: Mountain Hardwear (Richmond, Calif.) – Established in 1993 by a group of outdoor industry veterans, Mountain Hardwear makes cutting-edge mountaineering and outdoor equipment, apparel and accessories for the most extreme conditions. The company distributes its products through specialty outdoor and sporting goods retailers in the U.S. and more than 40 countries worldwide. For more information, visit mountainhardwear.com.

Other vendor partner award nominees included Arc’Teryx, Black Diamond Equipment, Ltd., CamelBak Products, LLC, Clif Bar, Inc., Hydro-Photon, Inc., Outdoor Research, Patagonia, SmartWool, Thule, Todson and Vasque.

Past recipients of the REI Vendor Partner-of-the-Year Award include Yakima (1993), Black Diamond Equipment (1994, 2006), Vasque (1995, 1996), Bell Sports (1997), Columbia Sportswear (1998), Atlas Snowshoe (1999), Eagle Creek (2000), Cascade Designs (2001), Smith Sport Optics (2002), prAna (2003), Keen Footwear (2004) and Eagle Creek (2005).

Mountain Hardwear raised $5,140 for The Conservation Alliance at its Fall 2007 warehouse sale. The company gave a 10 percent discount and a t-shirt to any customer that made a $20 donation to The Conservation Alliance. The contribution will help the organization in its ongoing efforts to protect wild places where outdoor customers recreate.

The November event was the fourth time Mountain Hardwear has integrated a fundraising promotion into the sale. In total, the three events have raised more than $15,000 for The Conservation Alliance.

“Once again, Mountain Hardwear has found a creative way to support our efforts,” said John Sterling, Executive Director of the Alliance. “By including The Conservation Alliance in the company’s Factory Sale, Mountain Hardwear has not only raised much-needed funds, but also provided valuable visibility for our efforts to protect North America’s last wild places.”

James Bottoms, Mountain Hardwear’s Director of Operations, conceived the fundraising idea in 2006, and colleague Taylor Shoop developed the t-shirt concept.

“We are excited to support The Conservation Alliance through our Factory Sale,” said Bottoms. “It reminds us and our customers that there is more to our business than product.”

Mountain Hardwear is a long-time Conservation Alliance member with a strong commitment to conservation. The company supports the Alliance through its Gives Back program (http://www.mountainhardwear.com/GivesBack.aspx). In addition to contributing annual dues the Alliance’s grant fund, the company has helped promote environmental causes important to them. Mountain Hardwear regularly features information about conservation efforts in catalogs, and encourages employees to be active in these campaigns.

“Mountain Hardwear’s added support comes at an important time for The Conservation Alliance,” added Sterling. “We have some great opportunities to protect our wildlands and rivers, and every extra donation enables us to better seize those opportunities.”

Mountain Hardwear Inc. is pleased to announce the 2008 recipients of the company’s Gives Back Grant program as well as a new youth-centered focus for the program going forward. Now in its third year, the Gives Back grant program continues to grow in both programs and funding and is administered by a board of Mountain Hardwear employees.

“As we mature as a company, Mountain Hardwear recognizes that we need to cultivate an environment where young people will continue to have the opportunity to develop a passion for the outdoors. We are making a commitment as a company to taking a lead in nurturing future generations of outdoor enthusiasts for the benefit of their health and our industry. With that goal in mind, we have made a few adjustments to the Mountain Hardwear Gives Back program,” said Mike Wallenfels, Mountain Hardwear President.

The program will still include four of the original arms: Environmental, Outdoor Community, Recreational, and Employee. “Our intention is to continue to support the organizations that have been our Gives Back partners over the years by encouraging them to develop youth-oriented projects that we can embrace. In addition, we will be looking for new partners who focus on getting youth into the outdoors,” Wallenfels continued.

The new program criteria and the O8 grant recipients are as follows:

Environmental Partners – Programs working to keep wild spaces wild, healthy, and accessible.
American Himalayan Foundation
Conservation Alliance
Center for Snow and Avalanche Studies
Leave No Trace
Rocky Mountain Field Institute
Save The Wild Up

Outdoor Community Partners – Programs that provide opportunities for people, especially young people, to experience the outdoors; also programs that support youth in the destination communities of these outdoor experiences.
Big City Mountaineers
CityWILD
HERA Foundation
Medicines Global
Outdoor Industries Women’s Coalition
Women’s Wilderness Institute
Youth Enrichment Strategies (YES)

Recreation Partners – Programs that support a specific region or aspect of outdoor recreation or preserve a particular outdoor recreation culture. Programs with a youth emphasis will be given preference.
The Access Fund
American Alpine Club
American Hiking Society
American Mountain Guides Association
The Appalachian Trail Conservancy
Continental Divide Trail Alliance
Outdoor Industry Foundation
Pacific Crest Trail Association

Employee Partners – Mountain Hardwear employees may apply for grants to fund a project or for up to 40 hours of paid time off for volunteer work in a Gives Back program or a similar program that meets the above criteria.

In addition, Mountain Hardwear is granting three special one-time grants to honor the company’s athlete Babu Chiri Sherpa who was killed in an accident on Everest in 2001. The grants further education for children in Nepal.
Maya Foundation
Mountain Fund Himalaya House
Taksindu Social Welfare

More information about the Mountain Hardwear Gives Back program can be found at www.mountainhardwear.com/givesback

Use coupon code 847 to get Free 2nd Day Air on all North Face and Mountain Hardwear orders over $89 at Moosejaw.com. Moosejaw carries one of the most extensive selections of these great brands on all the web: backpacks, jackets, tents and more, delivered to your doorstep in just 2 days.

Mountain Hardwear Inc. is pleased to announce the recipients of the company’s 1st Annual Innovation Awards. Employees were nominated by their peers and chosen by the Mountain Hardwear Executive Committee for the following categories:

Product: Awarded for innovation in products, raw materials and support materials that demonstrate our passion to be the #1 authentic outdoor apparel and equipment company.

’07 Winners: Erik Hammerschlag and Chris Hilliard, for their work on Thermic Micro and the award-winning UltraLamina sleeping bags.

Process: Awarded for innovation in any process that demonstrates our commitment to operational and financial integrity, sustainability and company growth.

’07 Winner: Al Tabor, for his work developing CoreData, a company centralized critical content database.

People: Awarded for innovation in the enhancement of service, support and connections with employees, customers, vendors and industry partners.

’07 Winner: Alex Baires, for his work on the Gives Back Board of Directors and his leadership role in several employee Gives Back activities.

Each award recipient received $500 in cash, $250 in MHW Product and a commemorative Mountain Hardwear trophy.

About Mountain Hardwear:

Mountain Hardwear makes cutting-edge mountaineering and outdoor equipment, apparel and accessories for the most extreme conditions. Mountain Hardwear was established in 1993 by a group of outdoor industry veterans and is based in Richmond, Calif. The company distributes its products through specialty outdoor and sporting goods retailers in the United States and over 40 countries worldwide. Mountain Hardwear has won numerous product and customer service awards since its inception, reflecting the company’s commitment and passion toward innovation. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Columbia Sportswear Company. For more information about Mountain Hardwear, visit the company’s Internet home page at mountainhardwear.com.

RockCreek.com has kicked off a two week Mountain Hardwear Sale, with all Mountain Hardwear backpacks, jackets, tents and more at 10 - 25% off.  Shop online today; the sale ends November 15th.