OFF TO SIBERIA

The Austrian sleeping bag and cold gear specialist CARINTHIA and the Russian tourist agent Baikal Trekking have agreed on a cooperation. It is not a sponsoring, but rather a true cooperation in the area of development of sleeping bags for extreme temperatures. And here Anrej Sagustin, head of Baikal Trekking, is the right man for the job. He lives on Baikal Lake and during the whole year is outdoors in Serbia. He possesses an unbelievable amount of experience in cold tours and due to his job spends many evenings in a tent or under the open skies. Even in temperatures well below zero – ideal for a high-end manufacturer such as CARINTHIA.

Several years ago the norm EN 13537 for sleeping bags was introduced, which should help end-users to choose the correct sleeping bag for their purposes. This norm is not without its detractors, as it does not take into consideration whether a sleeper moves a lot during sleep nor how much moisture he emits in the form or sweat or through breathing. “The colder it is, the more unrealistic the values become,” according to Miguel Ferreira, head of Sales and Marketing at CARINTHIA. “When we had our sleeping bag ECC 1200 Expedition tested last year, an extreme range of 65.2°C was measured. According to the law, we may use this figure, but we ourselves know that this is not so in practice. From our cooperation with Anrej Sagusin, who has been undertaking serious winter tours for years, we expect to get very useful practical feedback. “It is also about how much moisture from sweat can be absorbed by a sleeping bag and how quickly it dries out again.”

Anrej Sagusin live with his family in Bolschaja Retschka on the efflux of the Baikal lake, the Angara. He lived in Germany for two years, and studied and speaks almost perfect German. With his company Baikal Trekking he works as an incoming agent for diverse internation travel agents, but also organises his own tours and expeditions. In German he become known as a partner for the Trans-Baikal-Bike-Expedition.