Mountain Hardwear
Men's Epic Jacket
Features:
- Loads of useful pockets
- Laminated waterproof seams
- Huge zippered vents
Reviewed by Garuch
Overall rating out of 10: 9.2
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Once again Mountain Hardwear has come up with a very well thought out, nicely assembled piece of outdoor clothing. This weekend I gave this rain jacket the acid test. We were up in Connecticut covering a mountain bike race and bicycle regatta. The event was a success in spite of the torrential rain. Can you spell monsoon? Flood? Do you know Noah and do you have his cell?
This jacket simply did not leak! With the hood up, if I looked down at the camera, water would literally pour down around the hood and over the small bill built into the hood. But no water ever got inside against my skin. From the hem of the jacket down, of course,
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I was drenched, but my torso and core were gloriously immune to the elements. I have used this jacket as a windbreaker before and it works wonderfully in that capacity, as well. But, there are two drawbacks that I feel are significant, but quite possibly - unavoidable. This garment does not wick. Period. Sweat and body moisture will condense inside the jacket. Additionally, this shell could contribute to hypothermia, as there is no insulating layer between the body and the shell, as it absorbs body heat and radiates it into space. So then the shell can be considered cold.
However, knowing the shell's limitations, it does stop the rain and wind magnificently. As I stated in the intro, all of the pockets and the vents are perfectly placed and very ample. Pretty much all of the pockets are lined with mesh fabric so that every pocket is a vent, and every vent can also double as a pocket. At the event I was carrying camera and recording equipment but I was never without a pocket or pouch in which to store them easily. The equipment stayed surprisingly dry as well. Even when left in slightly open zippered pockets as the closures are designed to shed water and do so quite effectively.
If you want to stay dry in impossible conditions and if you are dressed in warm base layers, this jacket will stop most of the inclement unpleasentness. It's a nice jacket for what it does. And it is stuffable.
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