Vested Interests

Ready for another Gorefomercial?

Sure you are.

Anyone who has read this blog knows that I have a propensity for wearing upper body garments that are sans manche.  Pardon my French. Without sleeves.

There are times when I understand sleeves... like when it's cold enough to wear ones long enough that they go all the way down to your wrist parts.  When it's hot though, they make no sense.  Unzip your jersey a little and let the breeze hit your chest and flow out your pits.  Hotter?  Unzip all the way and enjoy the unfettered glory of channeling your inner Voeckler.

He's got that angry look on his face because the (F)UCI makes him cover his shoulders like some kinda... roadie?

Anyhoo...

As much as I love my Gore-Tex jackets and their ability to keep my skin dry, I can't wear a long sleeved jacket while mountain biking (especially if racing) unless the temps are starting to drop down around the upper 40°s or lower.  It's just too much coverage for me.

But how about a vest to keep my core warm.  Now we're talking.  I've been know to don a vest and rock it when it's getting to the point where others are clamoring for their full-on jackets.  Like the 2013 Big Frog (people were dropping out with hypothermia) or the 2013 PMBAR for example.

photo cred: Brado

That was a fun Spring, wasn't it?

photo cred: Eric Wever

Anyways, most of the vests that I have owned had mesh in the back.  I get why, but not for me.  I realize the vest is not really considered "rain gear," what with the lack of coverage of the arm parts and extraneous sleeveage.  Whatever.

What I wanted was a minimalist layer, windproof, water resistant, packable as can be, one pocket for some essentials... and please tell me that it stuffs into that one pocket.

What I got was this:

The Oxygen WS AS Light Vest

One pocket in the front that can hold my phone or what have you, taped seams (on the shoulders and back), and stuffs in its own pocket... of course.

Old vest rolled tight, new vest stuffed and folded in half.

Speaking of pockets, I don't want any additional back pockets on my vest.  That just adds to its size when packed down, and if I'm wearing a vest, there's a chance that it's gonna come off later and need to be stowed away, so anything I had in the pockets would also have to go... somewhere?

The best thing about this vest would be its packable size.  Most of my other vests have taken up an entire jersey pocket, and some have even taken up the pocket with some of the vest still sticking out.  Not this guy.

Old vest taking up all of left pocket (and then some), new vest in right pocket with room for mebbe half a modest burrito.

Mebbe you're looking for something else in a vest.  Me?  I just want the least amount of fabric and bells and whistles and just some protection for my core against the elements.  This does that and thusly is buenos.

Up next, our regularly scheduled program.