Why You Should Spend a Few Ounces of Pack Weight on Rainwear Ventilation Features

[Einstein X]

In May of this year (2024) I was adventure racing in Croatia, doing the full five day expedition race of AR Croatia where with favourable forecasts at the start of the race I had taken my Montane lightweight rain jacket. The weather in Croatia apparently is very changeable because on the fourth on the 100 km MTB stage we got caught by a big thunderstorm that really made me regret to not have taken my Rab jacket. The Rab jacket being heavier, but also much more able to keep me relatively comfortable in such conditions.
In the Montane jacket I got quite soaked, wet and miserable, which I guess is part of the joy of adventure racing. Afterward I contacted Montane about the fact that on the shoulders the jacket was delaminating, which was quite disappointing because this was actually a replacement jacket that they had given me after the first jacket started delaminating, and their reply was that I had not properly maintained the jacket. The jacket had hung in my wardrobe for about two years, not being used except for two or three times, but according to Montane the reason that it delaminated was because I had not washed it often enough. I call bullshit, but according to Montane even a jacket that hangs unused for months requires to be regularly washed for it not to delaminate, claiming that the delaminating came from the build up of my sweat in the jacket that caused the glue to dissolve within the laminate.

[Josh J]

@einsteinX

what rab jacket do you have?

separate note and feel free to PM since this question is a bit off topic, but where do you adventure race and were are you located?

[Hanz B]

I’ve had an Arc 40d beta LT, I have an OutDry Ex (8oz), and montane minimus 777 (5.3oz), a gortex pro rush (18 oz) and the 13d Arc Norvan (non-shakes now 5oz). The OutDry just seems to perform better than anything else in terms of protection and moisture management once things wet out. Having said that I picked up the beta SL because I’ve read bad things about the OutDry in sustained backpacking. I’ve never had sustained rain over 24 hours outside of Denali (in which my 2.5 layer failed and I was wearing an emergency poncho) so maybe I’m actually not prepared for 6 days of rain with any of my jackets hence the purchase (yes not carrying the rush on a backpacking trip). Obviously the science suggests OutDry doesn’t breath well and there’s tons of variables. Still, this perplexes me as to why this jacket give me better comfort then my highly breathable 3l fabrics.

[Bill Budney]

OutDry just seems to perform better than anything else in terms of protection and moisture management… Obviously the science suggests otherwise and there’s tons of variables. Still, this perplexes me.

The science supports your observation, Hanz. Membrane on the outside is more effective than any known DWR because it can never wet out. Outdry is my choice for heavy or prolonged rain, too.

There are tradeoffs, however. Membranes are delicate, so either they need to be thick and heavier (like current Outdry offerings) or they will be prone to abrasions and punctures (ShakeDry). If you want your rain jacket to endure bushwhacking, as Ryan points out, then a face fabric may be necessary.

Your lightweight Outdry is a nice balance. As far as I know, Columbia isn’t currently making anything that light (although they don’t consistently list weights so it is hard to know for certain). Take good care of it. :)

 

[Hanz B]

Yes mine is 4 years old. But excited to consider my beta SL as one of 3 options: 777 / OutDry / Beta SL. These three should cover all of my adventures … until Ryan writes another convincing article lol.

[Paul M]

Excellent article Ryan. The balance of mission objective / conditions should always be a consideration when selecting gear for the trip.

[Author]

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