Who’s EVER torn a windshirt, and how?

My patagonia dragonfly (predecessor to the houdini) got relegated to my car (I keep some emergency clothing in my trunk) after 4 years of use. Honestly, I could still be using it… but I needed something for my emergency kit, and I got a deal ($35) on the houdini which breaths better.

I had tears two places. One was around my wrist from wear and tear I think. The second place was some slices on the back, about where my pack hits me…. but it doesn't look like it was worn down by friction. To be honest, I don't know what happened.

–Mark

I've used an older model windshirt, made of "microfiber" for about 10 years now. I'm not sure what thickness the fabric is, but after folding & rolling it fits into 3"x6"x1.25" sack and can be squished 35% smaller with medium-tight pressure. The material breaths really well, but wets out after about 20 minutes of medium rain or 35 minutes of light rain. So my guess is it's similar to the more modern fabrics…

It has no rips, or worn through spots – and in addition to backpacking I also use it for bushwacking while orienteering. Most of the orienteering folks use the lightest weight nylon windbreaker & nylon track pants they can find, so they can bushwack through briar patches etc. In general, they are holding up several years before they get any noticeable rips. (I never see duck tape patches on anyone).

My Montane got snagged when I took it on a business trip and stuffed it into my briefcase. It got caught in the zipper before I realized it. There is a ~1×1" rough patch, but it still works well and no hole thru it.

My comment on button down shirts was an attempt to describe a fully coordinated UL clothing set. I wear button down shirts a lot for day hiking or where I don't need the optimal performance. The Ex Officio Airstrip Lite and REI Sahara models are my favorites.

As to tearing windshirts, I'm sure it can be done. Crawling under/over fallen trees on the trail and past broken branches would be my first concern. It is a simple matter of paying attention.

The stuff you go through in Oz would have US hikers screaming :)

My Marmot Driclime got about a quarter-inch scrape in it when I scraped it along a crack while doing did an arm jam on some really rough rock. But that was rock climbing, and doing a pretty abusive move at that. That jacket has gotten put through hell over the years and is still perfectly usable, even if it is fairly heavy.

I have torn an approximately 2 inch long hole in a Wild Things epic windshirt while bushwacking through heavy scrub along a river in Argentina. This is the only rip that occurred after significant use in this manner, so I am not that surprised that it happened. I think that the ultralight windshirts are definitely more prone to tearing than nylon button-up type long sleeve shirts. That being said, I have mostly stopped using a windshirt these days in favor of my Integral Designs Event Rainjacket, which I always bring anyways. Although I used to be nervous about tearing this jacket up, I have found the fabric to be sruprisingly durable after 3 years of using the jacket hiking and fishing.

Seth

I tore an old wind shirt when I was rock climbing. I don't know if it got caught in gear or on the rock. It tore at a right angle along the ripstop pattern and was about 2"x2".
On another wind shirt I have been wearing for 8 years, the cuffs apart just from normal wear. Most of the windshirts I've used have been very old and not as lightweight fabric. They have held up very well, mostly the seams start unraveling and falling apart before the fabric gets ripped. I just bought a Houdini shirt this year so we'll see about the durability of the lighter windshirt materials.

So at this stage we have no horror stories of shredding ANY wind shirt. The worst we have is a 2" X 2" angled tear, which sounds like a snag which has ripped when full on bushwhacking, and a few smaller tears when climbing.

As Dale says, his post was in the context of a clothing system, which got me thinking that there probably should be a place for a windshirt (Houdini or Litespeed) in my kit. If it's an extra, I wouldn't take it, but it's looking like I may be able to replace the shirt. If I can pick one up cheap enough, I'll try it out and see if I can destroy it. I'll let you know how I go.

Rod