Mountain Hardwear Adaro Jacket
August 25, 2008
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You’ll probably notice that most of my posts this summer involve testing waterproof gear, or discussing the waterproofness of gear, or complaining that gear isn’t waterproof enough. That’s because we’ve gotten more rain this year than any other year, ever! I think we’ve gotten more rain this year than all the rain in the rest of the world combined. I mean, seriously, it’s rained a LOT this year.
So what better to do in the rain but go on a nice long kayak trip? It’s not often that one can say that a kayak trip keeps them dryer than staying on land. While packing, I decided to bring along every single item of warm clothing I have, and wrap it all in every single item of waterproof clothing that I have. Good thing you don’t have to pack light on a kayak trip. Anyway, I hadn’t even taken the tags off the Adaro yet, but I decided to bring it along as my Trip Jacket, mostly because the sample was a size too big for me and I knew that I’d be able to fit all my warm layers underneath it. Well, it turns out that it was the best packing choice I possibly could have made. The Adaro is, quite simply, incredible. Totally, absolutely, persistently waterproof, and nicely breathable as well. Maybe it’s breathable because the main zipper is inexplicably normal (not heat-taped like all the other ones), but whatever, it worked.
Since the sizing was a little off, it’s hard to comment on fit, but I can safely say that the Adaro doesn’t have really streamlined cut. Good for layering, I guess, but I think mostly it’s to accommodate the pit zips. Some people love pit zips; I’m not one of those people. I prefer the slimmer cut that comes with zipless pits, but if they’re a plus for you, you’ll like the Adaro even more.
This shell does not come cheap, but I am fairly sure that it’s worth the cost. Truly a marvel of bad-weather engineering, you really can’t go wrong with this piece as your outerwear staple.
La Sportiva Sandstone GTX-XCR
August 25, 2008
La Sportiva was really asking for it when they posted an adline for these shoes reading “Built For Abuse!” I just have no choice but to abuse the hell out of them, clearly.
At first I tried to come up with some riff on abuse for this post, but I really couldn’t get it right without inevitably offending someone, somewhere, so let’s all just accept that I’m not going to make any off color abuse jokes. Accept it you must, because I limited my mistreatment of these shoes to the standard muddy, slippery trails; sharp chossy rocks; long, punishing hikes, and various other means by which to establish just how “built for abuse” they are. And I have to admit, they seem to be fairly abuse-worthy, as I couldn’t even crack the waterproofing until I’d been wearing them several times a week all spring and summer. They held out through weeks of mud holes and it seemed that they were a match for my abuse skills. Had I not worn them in a serious downpour while stomping through chest-high wet grass for three and a half hours, I think they’d still be shedding the elements. That particular trip really was tatamount to dunking the shoes in a river, so the fact that they lost their waterproofing at that point really isn’t a black mark against them.
The Sandstone XKC/YR/Magnum, PI (whatever, I haven’t cracked the code yet) low hikers feature a tread pattern that Sportiva calls Impact Brake System (note the unfortunate acronym); intended to make descending a little easier on the joints. As you may have noticed, I’m not too techy, so I didn’t bother trying to figure out how it works – but work, it does. The Sandstones won’t slip for anything, and I really do notice a difference while descending. They feel really solid and trustworthy; not too shabby for something I’ve been abusing for months. Speaking of long-term abuse, my aging joints have of late been objecting to steep descents, so every little bit helps.
Before I tried the Sandstones, I was never big on “low” hiking shoes. It was either running shoes or hiking boots for me. Hiking SHOES? What is that about? But these, I love. I love them so much I have barely even worn the hiking boots Sportiva sent me to test. Er, sorry, Sportiva, I’m a little behind. I’ll get to the boots soon, I’m sure, just wait until I’m done thoroughly abusing the shoes first. It’s not my fault you make shoes that just won’t give up!
