Mountain Safety Research

Mountain Safety Research
Mountain Safety Research, Inc.
Type Subsidiary of Cascade Designs
Industry sporting goods and outdoor gear
Founded 1969
Headquarters Seattle, Washington, USA
Key people Larry Penberthy, Founder
Website http://www.msrgear.com/

Mountain Safety Research, or MSR, is an American corporation located in Seattle, Washington, and owned by Cascade Designs. It was founded in 1969 by Larry Penberthy because he was not pleased with the safety and reliability of outdoor equipment.

In 1973 Penberthy developed the MSR Model 9 camp stove, a breakthrough design because of its relatively efficient performance in cold weather.[1] He separated the stove burner from then small fuel tanks, and then pressurized auxiliary fuel bottles as the tank. And then he made a better wind screen. He also invented an ice-axe design that was believed to dig into the ice better and stop a slide. Penberthy also introduced possibly the first metal-shafted ice axes that have now wholly replaced earlier wooden-shaft designs.[2]

Penberthy produced a newsletter and experimented widely on outdoor gear in the Pacific Northwest. He is credited with the Penberthy crampon wrap as a way to prevent wet snow from balling up under crampons. He was instrumental in implementing testing of mountaineering and bicycle helmets. Penberthy also helped to change the manufacturing of climbing ropes in the USA, he tested the windproofing of tents on top of cars on highways as well as the addition of arm-pit vents and face masks integral to jackets.

Today MSR produces camping, hiking and mountaineering equipment such as portable stoves, water filters and tents, specialising in lightweight equipment. MSR has also had a large impact on the snowshoe industry being the first to design and distribute snowshoes made of composite materials. Composite snowshoes are lighter and MSR snowshoes provide the option to add additional length to the back in order to provide more flotation.[clarification needed]

The company was acquired by REI in 1981.[2] In 2000 MSR merged with Edgeworks the manufacturer of Moss, Walrus and Armadillo tents. Shortly afterwards these brands were discontinued and all tents are now branded under the MSR label. In August 2001 MSR was acquired by Cascade Designs.

MSR WindPro portable stove with heat reflector and wind shield
An MSR propane/isobutane fuel canister and Snow Peak Giga Power portable stove in operation

References

  1. ^ "Timeline". MSR corporate website. Archived from the original on January 31, 2008. http://web.archive.org/web/20080131135503/http://www.msrgear.com/about/timeline.asp. Retrieved August 4, 2008. 
  2. ^ a b Mapes, Lynda V. (December 4, 2001). "Inventor, mountaineer Larry Penberthy dies". The Seattle Times. http://community.seattletimes.nwsource.com/archive/?date=20011204&slug=penberthyobit04m. Retrieved August 4, 2008. 

External links


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