I'm lucky enough to have both of the Chouinard catalogs (which were then produced by "The Great Pacific Ironworks"). I acquired the catalogs when I was living in Boulder Colorado in the early 1970's. They really are a work of art.
It's interesting how much the business model of Chouinard has changed. Looking at these catalogs, it's obvious that they were completely oriented to a clean climbing and free climbing ethic and the gear to be used. Most of the catalog pages are replete with the hardware needed to for the climbing practices pioneered by Yvon Chouinard and others like Royal Robbins. Very little of the catalog is dedicated to clothing items, and those are purpose designed for the climber. Today, Patagonia (which is the successor company to Chouinard) is largely an outdoor fashion apparel outfit. This description, from one of the catalogs, demonstrates adequately the change in ethos (the description is for their cord knickers): "Knickers used to be baggy, and used to serve their purpose by covering the legs yet allowing maximum freedom of movement. But the fashion-freak skier got hold of the idea and knickers have since become high-water pants useful only for bar hopping." Jim Cloud Tucson, AZ On Jan 9, 6:38 am, EricP <ericpl...@aol.com> wrote: > "They Don't Make Catalogs Like This Anymore" from RR 38. (I'm a > catalog buff and like nice printing. Made me really want one of those > Chouinard catalogs.) > > There have been a lot of great articles over the years. Even though > am a recent convert, do happen to have all the back issues. Really > hope they can continue in the future. And with a touch more > frequency. > > Eric Platt > St. Paul, MN > > On Jan 9, 6:19 am, Angus <angusle...@sbcglobal.net> wrote: > > > > > > > > > I loved, and still love, the "Trans-Atlantic Clubroom" (or a name > > reasonably close to that) > > > Angus > > > On Jan 7, 8:42 pm, "colin p. cummings" <colinthehip...@gmail.com> > > wrote: > > > > To all who read them, what has been the most interesting article > > > you've read in a Riv Reader? > > > > I haven't read many, but I was very into an article about a > > > typographer that originally appeared in the New Yorker...can't > > > remember which Reader, or the chap's name, but it was intriguing and > > > fun. I love that sort of esoteric reporting alongside an article > > > about wrapping twine. > > > > Colin Cummings > > > Amarillo, TX- Hide quoted text - > > > - Show quoted text - -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
