Finally – The La Fayette received the recognition from the Spanish specialized climbing magazine DESNIVEL. The La Fayette was the first differential cut bag from Valandre using pre-cut, but circular baffles. We used circular baffles to make it easy and basically test, if it was possible to develop and produce such a technology. Once knowing that it was possible, we developed the anatomical baffle system in a “full gas high tech style”, presented in the Shocking Blue.
The La Fayette was and is a bag intended to be used under extreme conditions: The colder the better, but in warm conditions not the right choice: It’s a super light non compromising design: Comfort – forget about it – this one kilo bag has to be as effective as possible.
So in reality, once it’s f…… cold, the cold also comes from the ground, so in order to protect the vital parts (heart and lungs), you have to sleep (read rest) laying on your side. So the La Fayette is a “center half size zipped bag”. The zipper length is calculated to allow to just enter the bag that is in connection with the “guillotine styled draft collar”. Once the collar closed it is very difficult to get a heat loss from the neck, so the heat stays in the bag.
To minimize the heat circulation, and to concentrate it to the vital upper breast part, a draw cord is placed at the waist.
And finally, as you get up on your side, and take protection in a fetus position, your knees put pressure on the front of the bag, with the risk of the down to shift away. To solve this 3 smaller side closed compartments are installed in the bag, eliminating the risk of down shift.
The La Fayette is a super sharp non compromising climbing and expedition bag. A kind of Lotus SUPER 7 without shock absorbers.
Actually the spirit of Valandre.
At the end of a hard day, all of us needs to chill out, get some rest, food, drink, and then get the necessary good night sleep, vital for next day’s performance.
Quality sleep is key, in high altitude climbing but also to any outdoor adventure. Our high-end expedition oriented sleeping bags: Shocking Blue, Odin and Thor, offers not only insulation but also a five star hotel comfort. This is due to the use of anatomical shaped and precut baffles connecting the inside liner bag and the outside shell fabric in a perfect differential cut.
Our famous duck down sleeping bags the SWING’s offers an excellent price/quality/insulation offer due to the use of a selected high-end duck down 90/10, and a technically simplified compartment system. In the SWING’s you get what you need, at a low price.
The complete backwards design principle.
In the beginning of 2016, we decided to mix the high tech anatomical baffle technology (Differential cut), with our high end duck down creating the first technical top of the line and state of the art duck down bag. The idea is to make high tech construction available to a broader part of the outdoor market, a kind of socializing high tech!
On the outdoor market, sleeping bags the majority of bags uses an outside color to appeal to the consumers, as if OUTDOOR and Climbers select their sleeping bag due to a “funky color”, and then use a black or gray inside color.
What is important in a Sleeping bag is the Down quality/Baffle system things that are on the inside, so why not reverse the color game and come out with a unified line with a 450g, 650g and an 850g filling.
In addition, simply use a “North Korean bunker gray” on the outside, and then use the color effect on the inside liner? 850g is Orange, 650 is Purple and the 450 is Sky blue.
A true design process is never ending, so we still have some minor technical modifications to make. The Chill Outs are expected to go into production in October, and be available in November.
First photos of the Chill out 850 in the prototype version 04, 850g of high-end duck down and total weight 1395g.
(Photos)
The Chill Outs 450, 650 and 850 will be presented at the OUTDOOR trade show in Friedrichshafen and at the OR in SLC in the P 04 version.
In the line of technical goose down sleeping bags, the Shocking Blue stands out in its own category. Nick named “Saint hot as hell” in the USA, this bag has always surprised its users, as it offers a performance that a bag in its category normally would not offer. Field test confirm that the bag can resist –25C (limit of comfort) with 781g of down and 1380g total weight.
So just for fun we just “SUPER SIZED”a Shocking Blue with a 30% increase in baffle height, from 7,5cm to 10cm, and hence the down load from 781g to 1041g. The total weight passes from 1380g to 1680g And, that is a BIG Bag!
Enough is not enough, so we rolled another one and “MAXIMIZED” a Shocking Blue with 60%. Baffle height from7,5cm to 12cm, and down load from 781g to 1249g and hence a total weight of 1951g.
The two bags will be presented at the OUTDOOR trade show in Friedrichshafen and later at the Outdoor Retailer show in Salt Lake City, and are due to replace the expedition bags Odin and Thor.
So to be well-prepared for the shows, Valandré will conduct a field test at the Mountain Festival with tent maker SlingFin from USA, putting 3 Odin NEO and 3 Thor NEO into field test on the massif and in altitude. 3 two men tents from SlingFin will be available for the test.
The object of the test is to get confirmation that the bags can resist –30C (Odin NEO) and –40C (Thor NEO). Naturally we do not expect these kind of temperatures in June in Chamonix, but testers will get a pretty good idea about the performance that they are expected to report back to us.
Review Shocking Blue Down Sleeping Bag
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Reviewed by pillowthread :
Well, here’s a review telling you how I took my size long Valandre Shocking Blue, a 3lb bag EN comfort rated at 16F, to a verified -15F, and slept as soundly as I ever have. At first, you’ll pass it off as experimenter bias, telling yourself that anyone who even considers—let alone owns—an $800 sleeping bag is going to think highly of it to begin with. You’ll say my thermometer had to be off. You’ll tell yourself that, with the clothing I wore, and the fact that I slept on two pads, on snow, inside a double wall tent, you could have done the same in your Antelope or Snowbunting. I mean, they have around the same 30 ounces of high-quality down, right? Right? Well, I’m not so sure you could.
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Shocking Blue | Valandre | Down Sleeping bags
Shocking Blue | Down Sleeping bags | Description :
Valandre Shocking Blue 800 Sleeping Bag (Fall 2010) The Valandre Shocking Blue Sleeping Bag is electric. No, it’s not an electric sleeping bag – the Valandre Shocking Blue bag is better than an electric blanket. This subzero Valandre sleeping bag was named for its technology and innovative design. 91 custom cut fabric panels layer the Valandre Shocking Blue from your head to your toes, making sure that not even your forehead feels cold on a frigid night. Valandre loads up the down in the foot compartments to keep your footsies toasty. The Valandre Tubular Bell construction will keep you warm in the roughest condidtions out there. Totally tubular. FEATURES of the Shocking Blue 800 Sleeping Bag by Valandre Cut of the hood keeps a constant level of insulation over all sides of the head, even on the forehead Draft collar seals the bodies heat into the bag with its revolutionary closure system that comfortably hugs the neck Valandre’s Tubular Bell construction allows the inner and outer fabric to maximize the fat French grey goose down 91 custom cut fabric panels and baffles Down is expanded by your body heat and inflates the compartment and the bag will begin to lift off of your body Foot section presents a trapezoidal form allowing the feet to naturally fall away from each other Increased down load in the foot compartments make even the coldest night more bearable
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