The North Face’s Powder Guide ABS Vest is being touted as the first avalanche airbag apparel. To create the vest, the North Face partnered with Germany’s ABS GmbH, which has been making avalanche safety gear since the 1980s and whose athlete roster includes big-mountain skier Lynsey Dyer and big-mountain snowboarder Xavier De Le Rue. The mechanics are the same as in a backpack: compressed nitrogen inflates two high-volume, brightly-colored airbags in the sides of the back of the vest. It’s cut big enough to wear over a normal ski jacket, and there are just enough pockets to stash the rest of your avalanche safety gear (shovel and probe) and a snack, making it ideal for short side-country missions. Available Fall 2012.

designer: Germany’s ABS GmbH
producer: abs gmbh the north face

period: 2012