skiing apparel reviews

The Arc’teryx Cerium Hoody.

Review: Arc’teryx Cerium Hoody

by

Hybrid Insulated Jacket
Arc’teryx Cerium Hoody
$400, 12 oz./340g (men’s medium)
Sizes: men’s XS-XXXL, women’s XXS-XXL
rei.com

Who expected the overnight temp would drop nearly to freezing and the wind would blow 30 mph through our campsite on our first morning in southern Arizona’s Aravaipa Canyon… in April? Well, I didn’t when I reserved that permit months earlier—but we all did when we saw the forecast immediately before the trip. So I packed my new Cerium Hoody and it proved the perfect antidote to unseasonably cold mornings.

Read on

Ibex Wool Aire Vest

Review: Ibex Wool Aire Vest

by

Insulated Vest
Ibex Wool Aire Vest
$235, 7.5 oz./213g (men’s medium)
Sizes: men’s S-XXL, women’s XS-XL
ibex.com

How useful—and valuable—is your insulation layer? Consider this: I wore the Ibex Wool Aire Vest as my only outer layer over the same two base layers (a lightweight, wicking long-sleeve and a warm fleece hoody) on days of vigorous Nordic skiing in radically different conditions in Idaho’s Boise Mountains: from sunny, calm, and mid-30s Fahrenheit to cloudy and below freezing with strong winds that made it feel much colder. And I did not overheat in the first circumstance or get cold in the second. I also stayed comfortable wearing it as my sole middle layer under a winter shell in temps from around freezing to the mid-teens, with a low overcast and frigid wind, on days of snowshoeing and backcountry skiing downhill, and as my outer layer when skinning uphill (without wind).

That degree of versatility speaks volumes about the value of any layer, especially insulation.

Read on

Outdoor Research Helium AscentShell Jacket.

Review: Outdoor Research Helium AscentShell Jacket

by

All-Season Shell Jacket
Outdoor Research Helium AscentShell Jacket
$449, 11.5 oz./326g (men’s medium)
Sizes: men’s S-XXL, women’s XS-XL
rei.com

Heading to Iceland for a couple weeks of hiking—including trekking hut to hut, when we’d be committed to hitting the trail every day, no matter the weather in a place where it’s rarely good—I knew I’d basically be living in my rain shell, so I wanted it to feel good and to work. I wore OR’s Helium AscentShell Jacket for several hours every day for a week trekking Iceland’s Laugavegur Trail and Fimmvörðuháls Trail, through cool temps with wind and rain on most days, and on several dayhikes along Iceland’s Ring Road, with similar weather, including hard, wind-driven rain at times. And this lightweight shell rose to the challenge of some of the most difficult conditions that most hikers, backpackers, and climbers ever face.

Read on

Black Diamond Dawn Patrol Hybrid Pants.

Review: Black Diamond Dawn Patrol Hybrid Pants

by

Ski Touring Pants
Black Diamond Dawn Patrol Hybrid Pants
$325, 19.5 oz./553g (men’s small)
Sizes: men’s S-XL, women’s XS-XL
blackdiamondequipment.com

We all know the challenge of finding pants that keep you dry, warm, and comfortable when ski touring or riding in the backcountry: You need them to release heat and moisture when you sweat hard going uphill and repel snow and wind when moving through exposed terrain in stormy weather or charging hard downhill. On days of ski touring in Utah’s Wasatch Range that displayed all of winter’s multiple personalities—from temperatures in the teens with dumping snow and the wind blowing hard to warm March sunshine with the temps in the 20s, BD’s Dawn Patrol Hybrid Pants demonstrated why they’ve remained enduringly popular among backcountry users.

Read on

Beyond Clothing Dasche L3 Jacket with hood up.

Review: Beyond Clothing Dasche L3 Jacket

by

Breathable Insulated Jacket
Beyond Clothing Dasche L3 Jacket
$190, 14 oz./397g (men’s medium regular)
Sizes: men’s XS-3XL
beyondclothing.com

Over several cold days of ski touring from Utah’s Wasatch Range to Idaho’s Boise Mountains, with temps in the single digits and teens Fahrenheit, snow falling, and a cold wind chill at times, the Dasche L3 Jacket rarely left my body, whether serving as a middle layer skiing downhill or an outer layer skiing uphill—a testament to its breathability and versatility. The fact that it comes in under a pound and under 200 bucks should make a variety of winter adventurers sit up and take notice.

Read on