Arc’teryx to put Recco locating tech in Gore-Tex Pro jackets
As of this autumn, outdoor brand Arc’teryx is equipping all of its Gore-Tex Pro jackets with Recco reflector technology, which is designed to make the wearer easier to locate in emergency situations.
Recco is a small directional radar reflector that can be sewn into clothing or molded into footwear. According to Canadian ice climber Will Gadd, the technology has been used for year with ski gear as a “last-ditch safety effort”.
Now the technology has evolved and he praises efforts to make the reflector more of a staple in outerwear.
“I had the opportunity to see it in person in Canmore, and it was genuinely amazing,” Mr Gadd wrote in an essay published on the Arc’teryx website. “It’s a much more powerful detector unit that hangs below a helicopter and can ‘ping’ Recco strips while flying at speed safely above the terrain. A square kilometer piece of terrain can be searched in minutes. An entire alpine face, or the terrain below it, could be searched with minimal risk to the SAR team.”
Mr Gadd began his essay saying that a year or so ago he asked the Arc'teryx designers he worked with to put more Recco into all clothing, particularly alpine gear. “The reason was simple,” he said. “I want my mountain friends to be found when they go missing, and for those searching for them to endure less risk.”
