AMA Roundup: Here's What You Need to Know About Arc'teryx LEAF and Salomon Forces

Our Amer Sports go-to guy joined us at the U.S. Elite headquarters for a short round of AMA (Ask Me Anything). Here's what you missed: 

I know Arct'eryx is a Canadian brand. do they make anything for the Canadian military or law enforcement?

Absolutely. Arcteryx LEAF is currently manufacturing an ensemble for CANSOF. In addition to that many Canadian LE agencies use Arcteryx LEAF for their daily wear as well as specialty callouts.

Why is it none of the combat uniforms have the water resistant zipper pockets that make their climbing pants so useful?

Water Resistance in our Combat Uniforms has not been our priority in design in the past. Weight and durability have been the drivers. Typically when water resistance is needed a Hard Shell layer (or Drypack) is used.

Why is Arc'teryx so expensive?

For lots of reasons, however, 3 main points Design- We have a design staff that is unrivaled in our industry. The focus to detail always outweighs the 'need' to hit a price point. This may result in many hours committed to 'cutting an ounce' off a total weight of a garment or taking the time to explore all options when it comes to 'out of the box' thinking. Performance - Our materials are 'best in class'. As an example, we keep a Gore-Tex staff member on site at our design center in Vancouver to not only keep us abreast of any new technologies but also to make sure that we are using their premium materials to the best of their abilities. Craftsmanship - Our sewers are top notch and our product reflects that. If a certain material doesn't exist that is needed for a project (even in a skunkworks capacity) they create it. If you've ever needed visual proof, just take a digital microscope to one of our jackets or check the 'seam allowance' on the inside of a jacket.

When will we see a Cold WX Hoody without Velcro? 

That is not currently on our radar as a need as more times than not, we get requests for adding velcro not removing it. The Atom LT Jacket or Atom LT hoody would be my suggestion as a mid layer piece without velcro identifiers.

Any plans to do some LEAF in either winter whites or Multicam Alpine?

While this has been in discussion for a few seasons, there is still no plan in the immediate future for an over-white. A few years ago we had a Wraith Jacket and Wraith Pant combo in both an overwhite and a multicam pattern, but they only stayed in line for 2 years as the market did not demand them staying any longer. Any or all of the multicam variants are always options, however, there would need to be significant demand (such as units adopting the colors) for us to warrant ramping up production in one of those colorways.

Why do you not make hunting gear?

LEAF stands for Law Enforcement & Armed Forces. So at this time that is the specific channel we are focussed on. With that being said, I personally know quite a few folks who hunt in their LEAF gear. What exactly would you want different in a hunting gear lineup versus our traditional LEAF gear besides a pattern change?

Will we ever see AR670-1 Compliant Salomon boots?

I can confirm that this is heavily on the radar among the Salomon Forces team. That's unfortunately, all I can say at this time.

Just saw the new Salomon shoes via U.S. Elite's Instagram story. Is it just me or are my eyes just fooling me?

The color you are seeing is Wolf.