An Introduction to the Outdoor Research Insight Lab (#ORInsightLab)

At the end of March, I received a mysterious tweet about participating in a gear testing project with Outdoor Research.  I'm a long-time admirer of the company, the apparel they produce (still love the Women's Transfer Jacket two years later) and the projects and people they support. Intrigued by the tweet, I followed up, listed the activities I'm participating in most regularly these days (backpacking, hiking, some running and CrossFit), and waited. Then, lo and behold, a box full of Outdoor Research apparel and stickers arrived last week and marked the official start of my participation in the Outdoor Research Insight Lab!


So, what is #ORInsightLab? The idea is to gather a group of what the #ORInsightLab manager calls "influential folks...who are diverse athletes and dynamic social story-tellers" to help share performance insights about products from three specific categories. But it's more than a gear testing project.

"The #ORInsightLab will be an all new community hub on where testers can share feedback with other users and even engage in discourse with designers from OR. The idea is to provide a forum that will help elevate the products and inspire people to take adventures and live boldly."  

- The #ORInsightLab manager

Earlier this week, I wrote a post about how I test gear and structure reviews on Adventure-Inspired. One of the things I mentioned was how awesome it is to get the chance to share honest feedback with the hope of ultimately making a company's product better. I'm excited that a company like Outdoor Research is interested in hearing what (dare I say "normal") users of their gear and apparel have to say. And beyond just sharing our opinions, we'll have a chance to engage with the people that design the gear and apparel. We'll have access to the style guide, product highlights and all sorts of information we'll be able to share with readers.

In the coming weeks, I'll receive more information about the products I'm testing as I put them through the ringer. For the initial testing period, I'm trying out the Women's Torque Tee, Expressa Skort, Offline Capris and Redline Jacket (pictured left to right above). They're all pieces I can see myself using on a regular basis and I can't wait to see how everything performs.

To following along with all of us involved in the #ORInsightLab program, keep tabs on the #ORInsightLab hashtag on Twitter and Instagram. I'll be sharing updates here, on Twitter and on Instagram regularly. And be sure to follow along with other folks involved:

@mtnmamatales  @runwicked  @davidwherry  

@rockgrrl  @ginabegin @JustAColoradoGal  

@jrmontag  @lukasavige  @lstefurak @valinreallife

@mikepetrucci  @TheCampyMom

@Torilesikar @neonrunnerkat