🚀 go-pugleaf

In rec.backcountry Surfer! <surfer@127.0.0.1> wrote:
> In message <1hgz5bw.1eih2ol1uj2egnN%you@figureitout.com>, Clyde 
> <you@figureitout.com> writes
> <snip>
>>
>>Nah, it just proves that BBC is gullible. It takes more than two days of
>>testing in mild conditions by one person to really test the performance
>>of a clothing system. Not even a question of longevity. Having started
>>out in the era of wool, cotton, leather, and wood climbng kit there's no
>>doubt modern gear is better if you compare high-end to high-end.

> Himalayan conditions are completely different to the UK - very, very dry 
> - so clothes that work really well here may well not work well there, 
> and vice versa. Ventile is an example - it's a cracking material for 
> keeping out wind, but in a UK downpour Goretex is preferable.

I had a ventile mountain coat which I wore happily in many UK
downpours. I used to keep it showerproof by not washing with detergent
and spraying on some showerproofing stuff about once a year. When I
had completely worn it threadbare I replaced it with what was alleged
to be a more modern and much superior goretex mountain coat (which was
also well over twice the price). It was crap compared to the ventile,
the biggest problem being internal condensation due to sweat making me
far wetter than the rain which got through the shower-proofed ventile
ever did.

I never have found anything again quite as good in all respects as
that cheap old ventile coat, although I haven't gone so far as to try
modern coats which cost hundreds of pounds. I'm impressed by the
Buffalo and Montane stuff I've tried and read about, and suspect it
might well be possible to better my old ventile with that kind of
technology.

IMHO goretex is the mountain coat equivalent of Micros**t software, a
triumph of superb marketing over rubbish performance.

-- 
Chris Malcolm cam@infirmatics.ed.ac.uk +44 (0)131 651 3445 DoD #205
IPAB,  Informatics,  JCMB, King's Buildings, Edinburgh, EH9 3JZ, UK
[http://www.dai.ed.ac.uk/homes/cam/]