BD Alpine Start Hoody vs Rab Boreas

I’ve used both of them for some time now and the Alpine Start is now one of my most used/favorite pieces.

To answer your questions:

Durability: BD
Breathability: Boreas

Etc: The BD is much more air permeable than a trad windshirt, but offers excellent wind protection as a tradeoff to being less “breathable” than the Boreas. Think of the BD as an outer layer (read: highly functional windshirt) while the Boreas is more of a mid layer. The Alpine Start also retains less moisture than the Boreas and is quicker to dry out. I’m not sure what use you are intending these for, but I grab the BD nine times out of ten now. If the RAB is seeing use, its often as a sun shirt in the summertime with warmer temps on snow/glaciers. Hope this helps.

I don’t see how anything significantly more breathable than the alpine start can be considered a wind blocking layer and worth carrying. Such fabrics are best suited as shell material for slightly wind resistant active midlayers that would be combined with a wind blocking shell when needed.

Hows the water resistance on the Alpine Start hold up? Could it be used as a rain jacket in light rain?

I’ve eyed it for a while as an item that might fulfill both light rain jacket and wind shirt.

@justin_baker Not sure if you are referring to my post but regardless, you just described the Boreas. The Alpine Start is mostly wind blocking, while the Boreas is not.

@neist The Alpine Start does not work as a rain jacket. It will keep you about as dry as any other LW soft-shell or windshirt before wetting out. It is fine for intermittent spray, but not much more.

Thanks to all. I got my answer here.

Check out Chenault’s blog entries on the BD Alpine Start Hoody. Here’s a link to the last one in a series:

https://bedrockandparadox.com/2016/04/01/bd-alpine-start-hoody-the-final-word

Men’s Alpine Start Hoody (M, L, XL) at REI Outlet. May be Gen 2? $94.00. $75.00 with 20% off. Friends and Family sale this weekend? Women’s too.

Don’t forget to use Active Junky, too. Save you a few more dollars.

Love my Alpine Start. If I’m going off trail, I don’t leave home without it.

What Nick said.  I also think the Boreas still doesn’t have a DWR treatment.  The most recent version of the Boreas has slightly lighter fabric, which should improve dry time, and a sleeker fit.

Other than cost and hood fit I can’t think of a reason to get a Boreas over the Alpine Start.  The BD does almost everything better, usually much much better.

Never tried the Boreas, but I will say the Alpine Start is one of my favorite jackets. It weighs almost nothing, and stuffs into the corner of your pack with almost no real weight penalty.

I have no complaints about breathability overall and wind resistance. I can’t ever say I felt vulnerable to gusts, or felt any wind cutting through any fleece jackets or t-shirts.

The BD start is also surprisingly weather resistant. The last time I had it out it ate about 3 hours of blizzard snow at 9500ft, and wet spring rain at around 6000ft, before finally wetting out.