Yema Bipole Duopoly : Are you tough enough for this $569 French explorer?

Status
Not open for further replies.

roadwarrior

Grand Tyme Master
Founding Member
Joined
Jul 17, 2014
Messages
64,649
Yema «Bipôle Duopoly»

  • Large, 48mm solid titanium case. 60 grams.
  • French FE7020 quartz movement.
  • 362 silver oxide watch battery
  • Waterproof to 300 ft (100 m) with screw-down crown
  • Sidereal solar sighting anti-magnetic compass.
  • See-through sapphire crystal faces: anti-glare, anti-fog, anti-scratch.
  • Reversible front (North pole) & back (South pole) faces; unlike the northern hemisphere, in the southern the sun makes its 360° transit from right to left).
  • Limited quantity produced: 1500 units made, at an original retail price of US$1500.
yema_north_pole_grey.jpg
Will Steger: Yema Bipole Duopoly

yema_bipole_credit-sattler.jpg


https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/winterproof-polar-explorers-watches-they-wore-and-are-wearing

At the same time Messner and Fuchs were trekking across Antarctica, another Minnesotan, Will Steger, was leading a momentous expedition to cross the same continent, but using dogsleds and taking a much longer route. The 1989-90 "International Trans-Antarctic Expedition" was ambitious for a number of reasons, not just the conditions and distance. Steger assembled a thoroughly international team, with representatives of France, Japan, the U.K., Russia and China, in addition to himself, which brought with it its own issues of language and cultural barriers.

Though Steger had used Rolex watches for past expeditions (he was only the fourth person in history to reach both Poles), for the 1989 expedition, he used a quirky watch made especially for him by the French brand, Yema. The watch, called the Bipole Duopoly had a 48mm titanium case, long velcro Kevlar strap, and quartz movement. But its most useful and distinctive feature was an anti-magnetic sidereal solar compass and reversible dial that allowed navigation for both the North Pole and South Pole. It’s incredibly rare, and not the prettiest watch in the world, but without question the most purpose-built one in this list.

https://www.sattlers.org/mickey/tech/horology/wristwatch/yema-bipole.html

Wrist Game or Crying Shame: Yema Bipole Duopoly
Are you tough enough for this $569 French explorer?

BY MICHAEL STOCKTON
SEPTEMBER 18, 2019
5 MIN READ

https://www.fratellowatches.com/wrist-game-or-crying-shame-yema-bipole-duopoly/


Screenshot-2019-09-09-19.50.57.jpg


Are you a tough son of a gun? If so, you’ll want to stick around to take a look at the Yema Bipole Duopoly. But first, let’s discuss last week’s entrant, the Panerai Luminor 1950 Fiddy. Like a song that’s still suffering from having been played way too much on the radio – I still find Bryan Adams’ “Everything I Do” tough to suffer through – it seems you guys still haven’t hopped back onto the early 2000’s Panerai train. And while I’d call you lot a crying shame, it turns out that a Fiddy for just under a stack and a half of high society was the real crying shame as it was defeated in a 56% to 44% loss. Well, folks, in my opinion, I think that’s your loss, but I’m only one vote – and yes I do vote!

If you follow me at all here on Fratello, then you know that I like to lob the odd shot at hipsters and their ways. That’s kind of funny, my wife says, because she thinks I sometimes cross the hipster line myself. The horror! Well, I hope I won’t offend any of you bearded bunch today as I walk through today’s watch, the Yema Bipole Duopoly. This one is for the outdoorsmen.

s-l1600.jpg

Now, today’s Yema Bipole Duopoly should appeal to a certain kind of person that currently inhabits either the bigger cities or expensive mountainous areas of my fair country, the United States. That person is one who prefers all manners of gas-hungry SUV from the 80’s and 90’s. Names such as the Montero, Trooper, 4Runner, Grand Wagoneer, and many others come to mind, but let’s talk specifically about late 80’s and early 90’s Range Rovers. While early Land Rovers and their Range Rover counterparts are charming in a “she thinks my tractor’s sexy” sort of way, the late 80’s and early to mid-90’s Range models were a thinly veiled attempt by the British to exact revenge on the United States for its defeat way back in 1776. Case in point: to counterbalance the off-road prowess of these vehicles, these mighty beasts also possessed the opposite ability to strand their owners with confounding electronics. Aesthetically, these trucks looked great, but did your neighbor really require brush guards while fording the freshly paved streets of Naperville? But somehow, despite their foibles, these vehicles survived and overdoing it is back in focus again. Yes, these neo-vintage rugged rides have staked their claim as the helm du jour for the burgeoning crowd of 30 and 40-somethings who aim to get back in touch with nature via glamping trips.
 
[FONT=georgia, serif]Impressive! That's for sure.:dance2:​​​​​​​ Thanks Mike.:hat:[/FONT]
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom