GearFlogger

Chrome Shins knickers

I remember backpacking across Thailand for a month. The first thing I did was buy a cheap pair of knickers because they're the national pant or something. The style is so practical for hot weather that by the end of the trip they were all I wore. It's great to see so many companies making 3/4 pants for outdoor use these days.

Climbers and pedal-pushers will rejoice at Shins, the offering from Chrome, San Francisco-based maker of bike-messenger-inspired and used clothing and bags. Shins are made from Tweave Durastretch, a wonderful 9% Spandex soft shell material optimized for stretch and durability. What that means is that I've been living in them for the last month. Tweave is a lightweight material, and it just doesn't seem to abrade. Yet for a tough-guy fabric it feels like soft-shell silk.

Chrome knows what they're doing with the stuff. Shins have top-notch fit and finish, with zip fly, belt loops, two open hand pockets and two zippered thigh pockets. The cargo pockets are flap-over-zipper design and when not stuffed with all your nasty crap they lie perfectly flat. The length on the calves is perfect for bikers and climbers, giving great airflow and easily clearing pedals. Throw on some flip-flops and you're ready for Patong, baby!

$99.00 (on sale from $160.00) at Chrome

Outdoor Research Gorilla Balaclava

One of the best things about mountaineering is being able to wear a balaclava without getting pulled over by the police or kicked in the head by Chuck Norris. When it's time to get your inner ninja on pull on a Gorilla 'clava from Outdoor Research.

The Gorilla goes normal clavas one better with a collection of features: it's Windstopper, it has a nose shield that directs your nasty booger spray away from your shades, a fine mesh covers your mouth, and the face shield is removable via velcro straps on either side.

The Gorilla fits very close because it's not a pull-over; instead it has Velcro on the side to open the face up for putting on and taking off. It's cut lower in front to cover your chin, and higher in back so you'll want a high collar to cover the gappage; if you've got a hood you're all set. The inside is supersoft fleece. All in all, very nice and suitable for extreme conditions where you want no square inch of skin uncovered. Be aware: like all Windstopper headwear it muffles sound a little, and when you rip off the Velcro closure it's pretty loud inside.

$49.95 at Backcountry

Westcomb Bravo men's jacket

Westcomb is a Canadian company that is committed to quality textiles with high stitch counts sewn exclusively by detail-obsessed porn stars. Their Bravo men's jacket is the first piece to come our way and it easily lives up to high expectations. Plus it smells nice.

The Bravo is a 17oz minimalist jacket: two zippered hand pockets, an inner zippered chest pocket with headphone port, a laminated ski pass/credit card sized forearm pocket and drawcords at waist and neck (does anyone actually use neck drawcords? I always cut mine off...). That's about it.

So what sets the Bravo apart? It's all in the details. The fit and finish are immaculate, with a tailored feel. There's a full length rubberish zipper flap. The body material is Polartec Thermal Pro, which feels like a very technical version of your favorite sweatshirt material: warm and soft and able to move with you. The face of the fabric changes from soft shell smooth to terrycloth-ish, a really nice combination that makes this piece able to switch effortlessly from backcountry to business casual. We'd like to see an external zippered chest pocket added, but any way you look at it the Bravo is polished.

$76.97 (on sale from $139.95) at Backcountry

Arc’Teryx Gamma SV Hoody women’s jacket

Arc'Teryx makes a mean soft shell, no doubt. They pay extra attention to details like stitch counts and anatomically correct articulation to ensure that fit and finish are at the head of the pack. The Gamma SV Hoody is their built-for-speed yet tough-as-nails alpine alternative.

The svelte 20oz Gamma is made from two different weights of soft shell material: Polartec Power Shield High Loft (ooh, so plush... stroke the monkey!) on the torso and shoulders for warmth and lighter-weight, less-bulky Polartec Power Shield everywhere else. The whole garment has a beautiful hand and cut, and the four-way stretch means it moves with a purpose.

Arc'Teryx made some bold design choices that end up working very well. The nonremovable (check out the hoodless Gamma AR if that's your bag) drop-away hood is helmet compatible, with a reinforced brim and a nifty hidden adjustment cord. There are two external zippered handwarmer pockets and an internal zippered small chest pocket. The hem is adjustable but the cuffs are not, and there are no pit zips, which doesn't much matter because the thinner material there vents perfectly well. The Gamma SV definitely puts the soft in soft shell.

$349.95 at Backcountry

REI One Jacket

Neo may be The One, but he's still a wanker. A computer geek wakes up one day and he's a superhero? Thank god he didn't have to work for it or anything. For those of us who do have to work for a living but need the occasional superpowers of breathability and weatherproofness, REI hooks us up with the One jacket.

I still have the original flavor of the One jacket in basic black from about six years back, and I've always appreciated its ability to go from business casual to backcountry competition without a hitch. The understated fashion plus high performance continues in the latest iteration, now featuring beefy Schoeller soft shell material for serious wind and water resistance. It sure doesn't hurt that the fit and finish are still top-notch without breaking the bank.

The One is set up in true minimalist fashion, with just what you need: high garrote-proof collar with soft brushed liner and chin guard, full-length zipper flap, drawcord hem and rip-and-stick cuffs. Pockets include one zippered exterior chest pocket with internal headphone port, two traditional low rear-opening zippered handwarmer pockets and an open large pocket on the inside low right. At the time this review was posted the online specs incorrectly list a zippered inner pocket that doesn't exist. The original also had the open inner pocket on both sides, but there's just the one on the new One. It's still the classiest, best-performing and most reasonably priced dual-purpose jacket out there.

$189.00 at REI

Patagonia Ascensionist Jacket

Patagonia has really got the backcountry crowd dialed in. If your idea of a good time involves grinding up the steeps and/or winding down the vert, Patagonia has you covered in the material of your choice.Random thought: I remember when Patagonia was a Southern California startup, and I've always wondered: is there a company in South America called SoCal? 

But that's not important right now. What's important is their new Ascensionist jacket, which is a technical showpiece. For starters it's light at 19 ounces, thanks to stitchless seams and a minimalist design. It's alpinist-friendly with a 3-way adjustable roll-back helmet-compatible hood and an athletic cut with the arms and adjustable hem cut slightly long, great for those of us who spend a lot of time reaching up. Rip and stick cuffs, zippered hand pockets with mesh backing double as vents and a small inner zipped security pocket round out the features.

Performance is absolutely top shelf: breathability is superb, weather resistance hard care and the whole piece just feels moves with you. If you do manage to get this piece wet, never fear as the dry time is warp speed fast. The only minor quibble with this stellar jacket is that the hand pockets are not above the harness line as advertised; moving them about four inches would do the trick. An alternative would be to include a two-way zipper so the jacket could be worn over the harness. That aside, it's hard not to love this jacket, especially given the rockingly reasonable price.

$225.00 at REI

Patagonia Alpine Guide Pants

Patagonia does their own thing with their soft shell material; mostly they mix in a little spandex to make those of us who came of age in the 1980s feel right at home. But there's nothing old-fashioned about the way the material moves: it's tough yet supple, and highly weather resistant yet breathable.

The rest is up to the design, and in the Alpine Guide pants the execution is top-notch. The Guide pants have evolved over the years into different versions, and if you don't need crampon guards or suspenders the 21oz Alpine will do you right. The back half of the waistband is elastic, the two-way zippered fly is harness friendly and there are a plethora of pockets: two deep hand warmers that double as vents, two welded thighs and single back, all zippered.

Patagonia puts more thought into their cuff design than some manufacturers do with the entire pant. The gussets lie perfectly flat inside until called into action by unzipping the 10 inch zipper and releasing the outer snap. Snap again to the inside and you're good to go around big winter boots. But wait, that's not all: you also get an elastic gripper strip around half the cuff and two tie-down loops. All this and smooth like buttah too. Nicely done.

$150.00 at Backcountry

REI OXT Endeavor shorts

Whenever I see the word "endeavor" I think of Chief Dan George in The Outlaw Josey Wales ("Dying ain't much of a living, boy"), who travels to Washington where he is told to "endeavor to persevere." He comments, "We thought about it for a long time, and when we had thought about it long enough, we declared war on the Union."

REI's OXT Endeavor shorts may not inspire you to guerilla warfare, but if they do, hey, follow your heart. In the meantime you can get some serious climbing in with these trunks. The polyester/spandex material bestows 4-way stretch upon the wearer, and they wick and breathe very well, like a light soft shell. Flexibility is further improved by a gusseted crotch. And really, if you haven't had your crotch gusseted you haven't lived.

There's even a chalk bag loop on the back. The inseam is 11in, just right between baggy and aussie. There are two hand pockets with small velcro tabs and a zippered security pocket on the lower left that can hold a small wallet or cell phone. There's a zipper fly with button closure and an integrated belt. The feel overall is soft and flexible, but these babies are tough too, and it's hard to beat the price. The look is classic enought you could bring them on travel for both sport and city use. I got these a few weeks ago and they quickly became my go-to shorts for, well, just about everything.

$34.83 (on sale from $40.00) at REI

Mountain Hardwear Offwidth women's jacket

Attention, men behaving badly (yes, this means you): this item has a get-out-of-the-doghouse rating of five out of five. It's a svelte, 18oz soft shell with just a bit of stretch, and it comes in a SheFlogger-friendly style that is equally at home at a Nordic half-marathon or a Nordstrom half-yearly.

Make no mistake, the Offwidth is first and foremost a backcountry performance soft shell constructed from Mountain Hardwear's latest concoction, TufSstretch: 58% nylon, 31% polyester and 11% elastane, which is an extract made from ground-up elves. The zip handwarmer pockets are placed high to accomodate a harness, and there's a shoulder pocket as well with a nicely concealed zipper. The tailored fit not only looks nice but layers efficiently. Underarm gussets allow flexibility on the pitch, and the Velcro wrist tabs and collar and hem drawcords keep the nasties out.

On the move this shell breathes wonderfully, which along with its streetsmart good looks make it suitable for a very wide range of conditions. It was not easy to pry this one off the SheFlogger long enough to write a review, yet despite almost daily use it still looks off-the-rack new. All this for less than the cost of a written apology, dinner and flowers. A very minor quibble: the hand pockets are not sewn to the shell on the inside, so don't try to store items between the pocket and the shell like you might in some jackets.

$99.00 at Mountain Gear

Mountain Hardwear Transition Tight

Mountain Hardwear's Transition tight is the new lederhosen. Now don't be frightened; like you I'm always suspicious that tights will make me look more superhoser than superhero, but the Transition has a slightly relaxed fit that works great for cross country skiing, biking, running or any other high-output cool-weather endeavor.

Made of Gore Windstopper soft shell material with a DWR finish the whole enchilada is only 8oz. The flat seams are welded and taped, the waist rides under a pack no problem and the general articulated fit and finish are high quality as befits the premium price point. These are very comfortable pants, and warmer than you would expect given their featherweight class.

Be warned: there are no pockets, so if the Transition will be your go-to pant and you need stowage make sure your jacket has it. If you try these and like them check out the Transition hooded jacket that has a couple of small pockets. The pair of these will outfit you for a wide range of conditions when you need to go faster and lighter.

$109.95 at Backcountry