Patent sheds light on outdoor headgear

ANCHORAGE -- After three years and eight months, the director of the United States Patent and Trademark office has issued Helmetlight Inc. a patent for the original design of its removable helmet-mounted spotlight, taillight, and brake light known as the Lead Dog Helmet Light.

Helmetlight Inc., based in Anchorage, originally designed the helmet light to increase visibility for snowmobile riding during Alaska's long, dark winters, but snowmobilers and other recreational motorists throughout the United States have taken note of the product. This is largely due to the headlamp's elegant modern design and popularity among experienced Alaskan snowmobilers.

"Nobody has done this before," said Steve Karcz, CEO of Helmetlight. "We're putting the most current technology out there to better uses."

When the headlight is switched on, its lightweight, translucent plastic housing glows, alerting other riders to the sides and back of the user. When the user applies the brakes of his or her vehicle, a separate bulb within the housing glows, providing additional illumination. The Lead Dog is the first helmet light on the market to use this special brake light.

Helmetlight has sponsored the grueling 2,000 mile Tesoro Iron Dog Snowmobile Race for the last three years, and many Iron Dog racers use the Lead Dog lamp. Seven-time Iron Dog winner John Faeo enthusiastically endorses the new light, stating that it "works like a champ at night in Alaska … [providing] that extra lighting that snowmobilers need to be safest when riding in extreme Alaskan conditions at night."

The Lead Dog's design incorporates the newest lightweight polymers and compact wiring, and thus weighs a mere eight ounces, easily attachable to a helmet via a Velcro strap. The lamp is designed to be used in conjunction with a snowmobile, motorcycle, or ATV wiring system, and runs off of the batteries of these vehicles, plugging into the wiring system via a power cord running from the light. However, Karcz mentioned that many headlamp users, including motocross participants, in the Lower 48 require wireless use of the headlamp. For this reason, Helmetlight is currently developing an accompanying battery pack.

The Lead Dog retails for $79.95 plus $5.95 shipping and handling, and is sold all across the United States and overseas. Helmetlight Inc. has grown rapidly in recent years, and now works through distributors not only in Anchorage, but also in Boise, Edmonton, and Sweden. "It's really great," Karcz enthused. "A couple of Anchorage boys have gone national."

Helmetlight hopes to expand its sales base and see the Lead Dog light marketed in other worldwide venues. "I was talking to one of our distributors the other day and he said that we hadn't even scratched the surface of our potential with this product," Karcz said.