Day 2 of the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market 2010 has been as much about the stories many of the companies have of supporting our global communities as it is about exciting new gear.  Here a few great stories I came across during my day on the show floor:

GoLite

GoLite is one of those companies that incorporate a sustainability and responsibility into products that perform.  Reducing the footprint while producing the highest quality and best performing products has something that GoLite has excelled.  Their Commitment to using Tier 1 recycled fabrics throughout their lines of equipment and apparel have earned them recognition from Backpacker Magazine as green company of the year.

Thorlo

My meeting with Thorlo socks today revealed one of the most genuine, downhome companies I have come across.  Their commitment to making high quality socks that will allow people an enhanced experience in whatever sport they are participating in is inspiring.  Their goal is to help educate people to create a correctly fitting sock and boot system that will work for hikers, and have an expanded line of socks to helpcreate this functional system.

Here is a fun video from their site that explains their philosophy:

Thorlos Heart And Soul : An American Brand from Thorlos Videos on Vimeo.

In addition Thorlo is donating 6,000 pairs of socks to go along with the Soles 4 Souls relief effort to Haiti.

Outdoor Parents Outdoor Kids

I had the opportunity to stop by and have Eugene Buchanan, who wrote a new book titled Outdoor Parents Outdoor Kids; A Guide to Getting Your Kids Active in the Great Outdoors.  As anyone who has been on Outside San Diego before will know,  I am passionate about getting my children and others to experience the outdoors.  This book looks like a great guide for those looking for help in getting their kids enjoying outdoor activities.  A quick peruse of the book led me to chapters on bicycling, snowsports, camping and others.  Eugene Buchanan the creator of paddlinglife.net,  and a former Editor-in-Chief of Paddler magazine has the writing chops to put out an entertaining book, and has experience bringing his kids out for the last 10.  If you are looking for a guide to get outside with your little one,  this may be the book for you.  A portion of the sales of this book benefit the Outdoor Foundation.