A whole collection of insulated products from jackets to base layers, body warmers to a nice pair of pants are all available at the Finisterre store.

In their short history, their lightweight, synthetic down insulated jackets have sold like nothing else. Finally the new styles and colours are here, just in time for that winter weather due in for the end of the week.

Men’s Sastruga | Bombproof Protection – A serious piece of kit built for those harsh, unforgiving, icy environments. This lightweight insulated jacket provides exceptional warmth and has a well sculpted hood.

Women’s Pipistral | Elegant Warmth – All weather protection and stylish comfort, this 3/4 length jacket has an attractively shaped hood with cosy elasticated cuffs and can pack away as a travel pillow.

Men’s Bise | Maximum Warmth, Minimum Weight – An incredibly versatile body warmer, ideal as featherweight pack-away for ease in the city or a quick go-to when caught out on the mountain.

Get on down and keep your knackers warm at Finisterre.com

The team at Finisterre recently travelled all the way up from their HQ on a Cornish cliff top to Savile Row where 30 of the Bowmont flock were playing a key role in the Campaign For Wool Week, endorsed by Prince Charles. The aim of the event was to highlight new opportunities which exist in the British wool market, which has, until now, been in deep decline. The whole street was covered in turf, allowing the sheep to graze, and the Bowmonts were the stars of the show.

Bowmonts are not only extremely rare, they are also the only British breed which produces wool which compares favourably to the finest Merino wool. If only there were more of it, Bowmont wool could be used to make warm and unbelievably soft, breathable and cosy garments for everyone from skiers and surfers to cyclists and triathletes.

Finisterre has been supporting Lesley Prior, a farmer in Devon, and her Bowmont flock for three years. When they first heard about the rare breed, there were only 30 sheep in Lesley’s flock, today there are more than 80, and next year Finisterre will be making the very first products made from the highly prized wool.

Up until now, Finisterre has little choice but to import Merino wool all the way from Australia – which is something that the environmentally friendly brand is keen to avoid. ‘To make the best and most comfortable outdoor kit we need very fine wool,‘ explains Finisterre’s founder, Tom Kay, ‘and up until now no British sheep have produced anything that can compete with Merino wool. Three years ago we heard about the Bowmont and we’ve been working with Lesley ever since to help her build the numbers up. Next year there will be enough wool for us to use which is extremely exciting. Having a home grown alternative to Merino would be awesome!’

At 17.5 microns thick, Bowmont wool is extraordinarily fine – finer even than most Merino and yet it is also surprisingly strong. In fact, many competitors in the World Spinning Championships, who compete to spin the longest possible piece of yarn, approach Lesley and plead with her to let them have some of her precious wool. ‘The Bowmonts will allow us to minimise the impact our products make on the environment as well as supporting British industry,’ says Kay. ‘

Tom Podkolinski from Finisterre, Bowmont Farmer Lesley Prior and Tom Kay from Finisterre

Finisterre’s first ambassador, Carlos Burle was one of the worlds top twenty four riders invited to the exclusive event responsible for writing history, as paddle in surfing was pushed to the next level.

Burle – no stranger to big wave events, advanced to the semi final stages of the competition in challenging conditions and went on to win his semi final round – giving a standout performance as the swell peaked forming some of the biggest waves seen over the weekend. Burle was ranked in the final amongst, Chris Bertish, Shane Desmond, Anthony Tashnick, Dave Wassel and Kenny “Skindog” Collins. With the finalists suffering some horrific wipe-outs and serious hold downs, the conditions pushed the pack to the limit. It ended up being a dramatic finish with Chris Bertish, a self sponsored, humble surfer, and renowned Dungeons regular, eventually emerging as the winner scoring some incredible waves.

Tom Kay, Finisterre’s founder couldn’t believe that both Bertish and Burle were side by side in the final, having both spent time in Cornwall where they had given a talk to a sell out symposium hosted by Finisterre. Tom Kay explained “Chris and Carlos met four years ago when Carlos was staying in Cornwall with us. Chris Bertish was spending some time just up the road and they both gave a talk at one of our events. It’s been so exciting sitting in our little tin shed watching these two together once again four years later in some of the heaviest waves seen“. Ernest Capbert added, “We’re so stoked for Chris Bertish, and so happy to see Burle carrying on charging this winter – we’re deeply proud of both of them.”

At its core is an honorable mission to offer young people with bleak futures and troubled pasts a cheap and alternative activity to engage positively with each other by cutting across ethnic and socio-economic rifts. Sophie Friedel, a professional mountain boarder and a friend of Finisterre who did work experience with the brand, has been grafting hard with the Skateistan team in Kabul to pass on her love of skate to the youth of the war torn country.

Sophie has been updating the Finisterre team on progress; “The Skate Park is going great – we finally managed to get control of the flow of students and the regular classes set ups. Sometimes lots of kids turn up and things are pretty crowded and other days, like after a terrible day we had last week on Monday, people were scared and stayed at home. But life goes on and things are quickly returning back to normal. Class is always well attended but we have a waiting list of 200 kids.”

The classes that are always taught by both a foreign and a local teacher are divided between equal time in class and outside instruction in the newly created skate park. Classes focus on teamwork, peace building, safety, learning new languages, and more. The band of committed instructors who have their motorcycles piled high with skateboards, helmets and kneepads are standing defiant by offering some hope and escape from years of fighting and poverty.

Via sketchy satellite phones and email, the Finisterre team has been leasing with Sophie to offer their support back in the U.K. Tom Podkalinski, Finisterre’s design director remarked; “After Sophie finished her work experience at Finisterre she decided, that she was going to push her love for skate and work with children. Before we knew it she had jumped on a plane and she’s now in Kabul, bringing kids education and teaching them some skills on a skateboard – she’s a great inspiration and we’re supporting her all the way. We wanted to show our support, so sent some of our merino base layers, and we’re working on plans for future support. It’s the least we could do.”

Find out more and donate here.

According to the WHO (World Health Organization), once you become a parent you lower your life risks, in other words – you gear down. It seems according to Carlos Burle – you gear up. As Tom Kay, Finisterre’s founder described, “he’s not stopping, he continues to push the big wave world every year – Just a little over a month after his sons birth, he’s just scored one of the biggest barrels of his life. We knew this season was going to be a good one for Carlos in the Islands and he’s out of the gates with a pace”.

The barrel he grabbed at Pe’ahi was extraordinary – see the video below. Some industry pundits have suggested this is one of the biggest slots the North Shore has ever seen and with it follows once again – a XXL Big Wave Award Nomination.

“We speak to Carlos often, we never ask anything of him, we’re just happy to have him close and then he pulls things like this out of the bag – so super stoked”, remarked Ernest Capbet, Finisterre’s Marketing Director.

‘We were pretty green back then, we didn’t know Carlos, nor did he know us – we both left it is all to intuition and chance”, remarks Ernest Capbert. Five years later, Finisterre and Carlos have one of the most unique and personal relationships between athlete and brand.

The seasoned big rider is more than competent paddling in to the world’s most extreme waves, and towing in when conditions max out. With countless seasons under the belt in Hawaii – the proving ground of the world’s best, and competition wins at Mavericks and Todos Santos, Carlos Burles surfing has proved to be a force to be reckoned with. However Burle has moved past the typical competition spectacle, instead working on the deeper ambition of surfing his way through some of the world’s most challenging waves and passing on to others his knowledge of the ocean and a deep respect for the environment. An ambition and mission Finisterre is proud to be part of.

The last few years have seen a great relationship go from strength to strength, as Carlos and Finisterre pushed a cold water frontiers trip to the rugged West Coast of Ireland, where the team put together the Finisterre’s documentary ‘Beef or Salmon’. Since this promising beginning, the guys in St.Agnes have been left in disbelief when the photos, videos and news heads down the wires to Cornwall.

“Carlos continuously keeps us on our toes; we live through his experiences, the good and bad ones. Sometimes they just leave us speechless”, said Marketing Director Ernest Capbert. The specific incidents in question, have involved Carlos going over the falls on a Jet Ski during a tow in session with long time tow partner Maya Gabriela and some sustained injuries from heavy wipeouts at Mavericks.

But from knockdown to comeback, horrific wipe-out to once in a decade waves – Carlos is still pushing boundaries and has cemented his place in surfing history as one of the most respected big wave riders of the generation. A core achievement for a non Hawaiian from a humble background in Brazil. With the start of a fresh season in Hawaii, Carlos is excited to be back. “I love this place. I’ve been coming here 24 years straight, since my first season on the Islands in 1986/87. This year with the el-nino back on the weather pattern, expectation for big swells is extremely high”.

Add this to the up and coming Maverick contest and an invitation to the Eddie Aikau. Finisterre is following closely on what Burle will pull out of the bag next. “It was Carlos’ birthday this past weekend, simply wanted to wish the guy the happiest belated birthday, he’s been an inspiration and close friend to us all here at Finisterre”, said Finisterre’s founder, Tom Kay.

In its third year – This classic insulation piece has been one of Finisterre’s most popular garments and has been hailed as a ‘design classic’ amongst industry experts, athletes and customers alike. This year’s Etobicoke builds on the functional design of the original, with some added extras and in great new colours.

The original Etobicoke succeeded in providing minimum weight, with maximum warmth. Finisterre’s two designers have worked hard to make this years Etobicoke warmer than ever before with warmth to weight ratio three times higher than any other jacket in the Finisterre range. Advances in recycled fibre technology have allowed for a lighter shell fabric, which still maintains the key strength the Etobicoke is famed for. Lined pockets, and a re-enforced collar are featured again this year along side an advanced elasticised waste. As an added bonus, it folds into a pillow and packs easily into the spare space in your bag or glove compartment.

This year Finisterre has had a number of great product testers pushing their garments to the limit, so you can be assured that your Finsiterre garment is expedition tested in some of the harshest conditions. The Etobicoke has seen action across the world, and has become a staple for a number of key athletes and explorers. Recently James Bowthorpe smashed the round the world cycle record by three weeks with the Etobicoke in his bags, and ambassador Ian Battrick has been breaking out the Etobicoke after some very cold sessions in the artic circle.

Tom Kay, Finisterre founder stated that, “customers have hailed the Etobicoke as the ‘perfect jacket’, it’s lightweight, warm and has every feature you might need whether you’ve been caught out on the mountain or on the street cycling to work.”

The jacket comes in two great new colours, Raven Black and Olympian Blue for Men and Jasmine Green and Raven Black for Women. Get one now at www.finisterreuk.com

Bowthorpe circumnavigated the world, covering 18,062 miles in 175 days, averaging around 103 miles per day. The 31 year old from South London cycled into Hyde Park, where he left off five and half months before, receiving a hero’s welcome. The aim of the trip was to raise £1.8 million pounds for research into Parkinson’s disease, an issue close to James’s heart.

James explains his reasoning behind the trip and his interest in research into Parkinson’s disease. “It has gotten by on a shoestring budget for several years. I decided last year that I wanted to help by taking on the hardest challenge I could find. The world record for fastest circumnavigation of the globe had just been broken, with many saying the new record was ‘unbreakable’. I decided that this would be the thing to do to raise 1.8million GBP”

Finisterre travelled to London to welcome back James and celebrate along with his friends and family. Finisterre was approached by James in the beginning of the year and the small crew of six were stoked to get him on board the exclusive Product Tester Program. They provided James with a selection of gear, including their superfine merino base layers and the classic Etobicoke, which in turn helped him cycle through some of harshest terrain the world has to offer, including jungle, deserts and mountains. It wasn’t just the physical environment that Bowthorpe had to face; he was nearly kidnapped in Iran after being followed by three cars during the ‘worst half hour of his life’ and suffered a terrible bout of food poisoning in India, which left him laid up for days.
Ernie Capbert, Marketing director was overwhelmed to hear James made the record. “To think that a company of six was able to support and aid what is now a world record, is something I never imagined, Our main focus now is to help James raise funds for Parkinson’s Disease Research”. Debbie Luffman, Product designer at Finisterre who travelled up to meet James alongside the rest of the Finisterre team remarked, “We’re honoured that James rode round the world in our product, we knew from the start when we first spoke to James, this was a very special challenge, it was great to help in a small way.”
Finisterre is looking forward to hearing what James will get up to next, and fully back his aim to raise more money towards researching Parkinson Disease. Check out his website, and donate money towards his great cause below.

http://www.globecycle.org
http://www.justgiving.com/globecycle/

Trevelyan Garland, a.k.a. Trev, is part of this generation and hot on the heels of Skinner and Co. Early in 2009, Finisterre tipped Garland as one of the most, “underrated, young talents within the competitive long boarding scene” and soon got him on side, with his quiet determination and humility. “It felt great to finally get the title, it’s taken a lot of time and effort getting to the comps and trying to stay ahead. Now I am looking forward to the Autumn and hopefully some good swells back in Cornwall.”

Finisterre’s founder Tom Kay, speaks highly of Trevelyan. “We like his attitude, Trevelyan and his brother Charlie, have always been passionate about surfing and fishing. Following in his Dad’s footsteps everyone’s always recognised him as a great surfer on the way to good things. Here at Finisterre, we congratulate Trev on his win, and back him all the way.” Ernest Capbert, Finisterre’s marketing director praises his non aggressive competitive attitude. “His style is quiet and humble, he shows up to comps, straps on his gear, waits patiently, paddles out, get the highest scores in the heat, collects his winnings and walks off quietly in the distance”. It seems that the future of British Longboarding is in safe hands.