Fifteen innovative outdoor products have been selected by the editors of Backpacker magazine as 2006 recipients of the 13th annual Backpacker Editors' Choice Awards, the most prestigious honor in the outdoor product industry.
The Backpacker Editors' Choice Awards, bestowed annually since 1993, honor the products that Backpacker editors have chosen as the best of the year based on months of trail testing by teams of highly experienced hikers and climbers. This year's honorees, which were ultimately determined after a final six-day test trip in southern Utah's Glen Canyon, also include two Backpacker Editors' Choice Gold Awards for time-tested favorites, as well as one Backpacker Editors' Choice Green Award for eco-friendly breakthroughs.

According to the magazine, The 15 products that made this year's list each stood out for redefining its product category through outstanding design, materials and/or performance. With no set categories for individual awards and no set number of recipients, the products and the testing process drive the award categories.

The Backpacker Editors Choice Award winners for 2006 are: 


ARC'TERYX Naos 55 pack              Mountain Hardwear torch jacket
Brunton MY-Ti folding spork         MSR Mutha Hubba tent
GoLite Xirtam jacket                Petzl Tikka XP headlamp
Jetboil GCS cooking system          Sea to Summit Ultra-Sil dry sacks
L.L. Bean Bigelow mountain pack     The North Face Diad jacket
Marmot Aeolos 2P dome tent          Timberland Cadion waterproof 
                                    mid GTX XCR boots

The Backpacker Editors' Choice Gold Award winners were The North Face Cat's Meow sleeping bag and Tabasco, while the Backpacker Editors' Choice Green Award went to the Patagonia Common Threads Recycling Program.

“This year's Editors' Choice Award winners have emerged out of the most rigorous testing process in our space,” said Editor-In-Chief Jonathan Dorn. “Our test team looked at more than 50 new products this year, and spent hundreds of days evaluating the gear on trails from Alaska to the Alps. What sets the award winners apart are great innovation, value, and dependability.”

“We go to great lengths in testing for one simple reason: we want our readers to enjoy their time outdoors. When they pick up the magazine, they know they can count on our awards and product reviews–we're out there suffering so they don't have to.”

Each year, retail buyers use these awards as a must-buy shopping list, knowing that their customers will be asking for these same products in the spring.

Since their inception in 1993, the Backpacker Editors' Choice Awards have come to be regarded as one of the most sought-after awards for outdoor equipment and apparel.