Mallory Reimagined, Climbing Back in Time

Mallory Reimagined

CLIMBING BACK IN TIME

In collaboration with Crockett & Jones, The Turner Twins revive a century-old mystery, taking Mallory and Irvine’s 1924 Everest expedition kit to the Himalayas for a pioneering scientific expedition

Recreating History

THE CHALLENGE

This October, professional adventurers Hugo and Ross Turner, better known as the Turner twins, will begin a pioneering expedition to the Himalayas to research one of mountaineering’s greatest mysteries: George Mallory and Sandy Irvine’s fateful 1924 Everest attempt. The expedition will see the Turner twins scale Mera Peak (6,476m), Nepal’s highest trekking mountain, as a controlled, high-altitude testing ground for a once-in-a-century expedition.

The endeavour will see one brother equipped with meticulously-designed replica clothing and footwear from the Everest expedition in 1924, including hand-stitched woollen garments and, for the first time ever, custom-made replicas of Mallory’s iconic boots. Recreated in forensic detail by British shoemaker, Crockett & Jones, the boots even feature a custom upper, supposed to have been added by Mallory himself to create additional waterproofing. The other twin wears state-of-the-art high-altitude gear, creating a striking visual representation of just how much has changed in the century since the climb.

EVEREST IN DARK BROWN WATERPROOF SIDES

Royal Geographical Society

The success of the replica relied on the details, specifically the sourcing of materials: metalwork, felts and high-functioning leathers were going to be crucial.

THE RESEARCH BEGINS

The making of the boots was a serious undertaking and unlike anything Crockett & Jones had produced since making boots for Ernest Shackleton’s 1914 Endurance expedition. In a project of passion, following Jonathan Jones’s boyhood obsession with early Everest exploration, a team of highly-skilled bootmakers set to work, recreating a type of boot that was once part of the company’s DNA.

Research began after visiting London’s Royal Geographical Society to closely inspect Mallory’s one remaining original boot. After being preserved in permafrost for 80 years on Everest, it remains in remarkable condition.

The boot left us speechless, and it was something of a dream to see it firsthand as a bootmaker myself for more than 40 years. There is no doubt in my mind that no one could have made such an accurate replica without the multiple inspections we were permitted of the original boot. Remarkable.

Jonathan Jones, Managing Director, Crockett & Jones

Crockett & Jones

NORTHAMPTON

This one-of-a-kind commission reflects Crockett & Jones’s dedication to preserving craftsmanship while exploring the limits of historical performance gear. Blending legacy with innovation, the project celebrates British exploration and shoemaking at their finest.

Closing Room

FITTING

The success of the replica relied on the details, specifically the sourcing of materials: metalwork, felts and high-functioning leathers were going to be crucial. There was a degree of uncertainty surrounding the Alpine clinkers and Tricounis, but by working closely with local suppliers and engineers, Crockett & Jones was able to reproduce the hardware by hand.

Lasting Room

bed lasting

Once all the materials were sourced, the next challenge was to accurately design and create new patterns around bespoke lasts that were made to fit Hugo’s feet, plus three pairs of woollen socks. Yurt felt, the main insulation, sits between the outer leather and the lining leather. This was also sourced in the UK, from Lancashire.

Welting

VELDTSCHOEN

It quickly became apparent that the biggest challenge by far was lasting and welting such a wide boot and thick sole – the substance coming from a 10mm midsole of pressed wool, once again sourced from the UK.

Alpine

CLEATS & cLINKERS

After fitting the bespoke Alpine clinkers, cleats and Tricounis, the resulting boots were impressively accurate and surprisingly lightweight. They were finally ready to be put to the test in Mallory’s own proving ground – Mount Snowdon in North Wales.

Final

STAGES

Following two years of research, development and production, next month, Hugo and Ross will set off to ascend Mera Peak while being closely monitored by researchers to examine the effects of historical equipment on thermal performance, endurance and decision-making under extreme environmental stress.

New Style

THE EVEREST

The Mallory boot would, of course, be totally impractical for 99.9% of Crockett & Jones customers. Once all of the details were finalised for the expedition boot, we set about creating a consumer-friendly version, and in a nod of appreciation to Mallory and his team, we have named this style Everest.

Everest is made using the same waterproof side leather, a half-bellows tongue, and a waterproof feather-line membrane to minimise the chances of water permeating through the welt area. As with the replica Mallory boot, Crockett & Jones has used a combination of materials to highlight the original design, featuring new Dark Brown Waterproof Side leather and Green Rough-Out Suede.

A final touch to irrevocably link the two boots is the inclusion of Yurt felt that sits between the outer leather and the tongue lining, visualised by a window for all to see this unique material. Everest sits on the English-made Commando Cleated Rubber sole. A sole used during both World Wars.

Everest

Dark Brown Waterproof Sides

Yurt Felt Tongue Lining
Storm Welt & Waterproof Lining
Commando Rubber Sole

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