Gear review

A little gear review to tide you over until the water drops.

If there is one piece of gear I am unquestionably qualifiedto review its raincoats.  Iregularly find myself outside in inch-an-hour deluges and my rain gear oftengets soaked every day for weeks in a row.

Here are a few things I have learned; when it rains a wholebunch, and you are out in it all day, you get wet.  Maybe in a breathable dry suit you would stand a chance butfor the most part, some parts of you are going to start to get soggy sooner orlater.  Obviously the goal islater.

You can buy a crazy expensive wading jacket and some of themactually work pretty well.  Thatsaid, if it really starts coming down don’t be too surprised when your $400.00breathable rain jacket suddenly “inhales”

As a rule if the jacket feels heavy and stiff, it will keepyou dry longer.  If it feels lightand comfortable it will probably fail sooner.

Here is an easy alternative.  Buy a jacket that works for you, has the right number andstyle of pockets, fits the way you like and doesn’t cost so much that you can’tafford to book a trip with me. Then, for those really rainy days pull a rubber coat on over it, here isthe one I recommend.

Grundens 763 hooded pullover

Now you should maybe do a little research before you buybecause it can be hard to find out exactly what you are getting, some sitesseem to list this as the 763, others the 762.  I don’t know if there is a difference.  I have owned one for three winters nowand here is what I can tell you.

Grunden says:

“The Sund 763 Waterproof Fleece Hooded, Lined Pullover Shirtfeatures a new fabric technology. It’s a laminated combination of 100%stretchy, waterproof polyurethane and a knitted polyester fleece. This is theultimate fleece pullover for those who are out in the weather. The polyurethaneoutside resists dirt, oil and other stains while staying soft, flexible andwaterproof. The polyester fleece lining moves moisture away from the body,staying warm and comfortable, even if wet.”

Thats me with my best “Blue Steel”   Gus as always with “Magnum”

On the plus side it’s the only jacket that I have ever seenthat is actually weather proof .

It is comfortable for a rubber jacket and it is pretty tough.  I think it runs about $125.00

There are a couple potential downers; Grunden claims thisjacket has a fleece lining but it’s so thin it’s hardly worth a damn. It has nousable pockets, the neoprene sleeves are a little loose on me, which lets insome water, but also makes it possible to pull the thing off at the end of acold day.

Remember, I am not giving this a “best jacket ever”rating.  I am however ready to sayit’s the best crazy heavy rain jacket I have ever owned.  If you are going to stay out no matterwhat, you might want one.

Jim Kerr

Rain Coast Guides