SALT LAKE CITY, UT (October 23, 2020) — Black Diamond Equipment, a global innovator in climbing, skiing, running, and hiking equipment and apparel was awarded an inaugural REI Co-op Editors’ Choice Award for its full featured waterproof headlamp, the Spot 350. The REI Co-op Editors’ Choice Awards honored Black Diamond’s Spot 350, along with seven other recipients, as top-performing products in a set of rigorous field tests conducted by REI staff, and member-testers.

“Receiving this award for one of Black Diamond’s most popular products, the Spot 350 headlamp, from one of our strongest partners, REI, validates the effort our team has invested in refining Black Diamond’s lighting program over the past 20 years,” said Brendan Perkins, Black Diamond Equipment’s mountain hardgoods category director. “We are proud to collaborate with REI, which has a storied tradition of bringing the best products to outdoor enthusiasts, and continuing to help people find great experiences outdoors, time after time.”

The new Black Diamond Spot 350, now brighter for Fall 2020, features a compact design, intuitive two button user interface, and a multi-faceted optical lens design that provides a powerful 350 lumens of light, making it the perfect light for pre-work dawn patrols, after dark trail runs and for time spent around camp as well.

“Our testers believed there was no better headlamp for backcountry pursuits,” commented one editor from the REI Co-op editorial team. “Brightness, burn time and weight all come together in a nicely priced package.”

New in 2020, the REI Co-op Editors’ Choice Awards were created by the same editorial team behind Expert Advice, Co-op Journal and Uncommon Path. This program leverages a rigorous field-test that evaluates products in a head-to-head round-robin test conducted by REI staff and member-testers. Through their feedback and category-specific methodology—which always includes sustainability attributes—REI’s editors award the REI Co-op Editors’ Choice distinction to the top-performing gear and apparel it carries in its stores. This includes both new seasonal products and time-honored equipment that REI has been recommending for years.

Find the full list of REI Co-op Editors’ Choice selections at REI.com/editors-choice.