Authentic recreations of 8 regiments of the 10th Mountain Division whose “Climb To Glory” set the stage for the eventual surrender of German forces in the mountains of Italy during WWII. Crossed-ski icons on helmets were worn in combination with the correlating regiment patch on the uniform.
Recreated from era-specific hat pins, the crossed-ski icons led the way, sitting front and center on the helmet. On the back, the follow-me stripe serves as a visual cue of who the leaders are in battle.
Taking aesthetic cues from historical signage found at Camp Hale, Colorado to create iconic, rivalry-specific retail graphics.
The Pando Commando graphic, found on the official Camp Hale handbook, is by far my favorite military logo. It was exciting to be able to discover an element from history and re-introduce it on-field via base layer and cleats.
The “weasel” tracked vehicle, was a snow-beast driven by 10th Mountain soldiers during WWII. It had some iconic graphics in it’s own right, adding an era-specific camo, a custom number set and alphabet to the design toolbox.
This look is driven by the Pando Commando mark, however, the internal footbed had a hickory wood graphic to represent the skis worn by the soldiers of the 10th Mountain Division in WWII. Army West Point athletes were well equipped for the game day weather.
I created a limited edition SF AF1 “Pando” design to further tell the story at retail. Only 250 pairs were ever produced.
The final look was a clean olive and white design that would prove to live up to its original intention of disappearing from view in winter conditions.
Authentic patches and graphics were strategically influenced by the original uniform innovations of the 10th Mountain Division.
My weather machine worked, and victory was inevitable! Some of the best memes about winter camouflage were created in response to this design.
Photo Credit: Patrick Tewey Photography
Custom display box presented to Phil Knight paying homage to the service of Bill Bowerman in the 86th Infantry Division of the 10th Mountain (WWII).