The North Face Readies Environmentally-Conscious Trans-Antarctic Capsule
In honor of the first-ever dogsled Antarctic expedition.
The North Face has always been a proponent for environmental initiatives. Such is the case with its latest “Trans-Antarctic” campaign, which comes with a series of hi-tech, eco-friendly garments that nod to the world’s first-ever dogsled Antarctic crossing from 30 years ago.
This campaign is inspired by the momentous 1990 International Trans-Antarctica Expedition led by six brave adventurers who traveled 3,741 miles for 220 days to raise awareness for early signs of climate change in Antarctica and around the world. According to an article by the New York Times following the expedition, “the trip took seven months; the team endured temperatures that dipped to 113 degrees below zero and one storm that lasted 50 days. No one had ever tried a polar crossing of such length; it is unlikely anyone ever will again.” After completing the big journey, each of the six members returned to his home country to lobby for the environmental protocol and Antarctic mining ban, for the Antarctic Treaty, which was being discussed at the time.
Dubbed “THINK SOUTH FOR THE NEXT,” the capsule is made up of a parka, polar fleece jacket and T-shirt, colored in light blue, black and white, out of environmentally sound materials. First up is the Trans Antarctica Parka 70D GORE-TEX® 2L, packing waterproof two-layer GORE-TEX made from recycled waste. Its nylon shell has a water-repellent coating that has been formed without the use of perfluorinated compounds. The jacket also comes with “THE NORTH FACE” and “GORE-TEX” branding placed across the shoulders, while a motif of six flags, from each country of the aforementioned members, has been emblazoned at the back and left shoulder.
The same motif is seen on the black Trans Antarctica Fleece Jacket, which uses a microfleece material constructed from used plastic bottles. It’s lightweight yet retains heat, with functional ventilation to facilitate quick temperature changes. The jacket packs an extended collar, three-zip pockets and accented branding. The last piece in the range is the white tee, printed with a historic photo taken by Will Steger of Japan’s Keizo Funatsu and two other members from the expedition. As a final note to the capsule, each piece includes a patch over the arm referencing the 1990 expedition.
Though no official release dates have been revealed, the capsule is expected to be available in November at goldwin.co.jp, ranging from $60 – $295 USD.
A symposium will be held at the Tokyo International Forum on November 10, 2019, where the documentary Trans-Antarctica Expedition that includes interviews with all six members will be screened in Japan for the first time. Head over to pia.jp for tickets to the symposium, starting at $9 USD for high school students.
Elsewhere, Nike has crafted a skeleton running apparel collection just in time for Halloween.
