The PS stands for Power Stretch which is a material from Polartec. The fabric is brushed on the inside with a smooth outer surface and it stretches (obviously.) The medium is a close fit on me and tips the scales at 397g. The fleece features longer arms with thumb loops, flat lock seams, a drop-tail, Lycra bound hems, and a hood (another obvious.) The pockets are placed high but not high enough for the bottom of the pockets to be cut off by a rucksack hip belt or climbing harness. All the hems are a good fit for me, including the hood which moves with my head when in use. The fabric also has a smidgen of wind resistance, better than some materials, but not much it has to be said.
I’ve been wearing as street wear since purchased and if I’m honest with myself I’m not 100% sure where it will fit in my kit selections. Whether or not it gets used on a trip remains to be see but at least with this on around town I stand apart from the SuperDry JPN crowd, which is priceless.
Likes: fit, feel of fabric, hood.
Dislikes: weight, pocket clearance.
Stock photo supplied by Rab.
4 comments:
I used to be a big fan of Power Stretch in cooler situations but found them too warm for moving and not warm enough in camp. I switched to a Rab Baseline hoody with it's Power Dry HE fabric (197g/m²) which is far quicker to dry, but found it still too warm as an active mid-layer. Traditional synthetic or down is far better when not moving.
I saw that Rab does a hood-less version (the AL Pull-On) in a lighter version (132g/m²) of the Power Dry HE fabric, but I love a hood on this kind of layer.
I then discovered Patagonia does a Capilene 4 Hoody in the lighter weight fabric (stated as 129g/m²) and I have one on the way to try.
I used my Baseline Hoody on the 2013 TGOC as a mid-layer and was just warm hiking, but that was due to the shell jacket having lots of vents I expect, and letting out all the heat. I think I run a bit colder than Joe does. Baseline is still one of my go-to items and I simply cannot fault it.
My best pic for a fleece mid-layer in summer is the Montane Oryx as its lighter and works well when moving. Like Joe I agree down is far better when not moving. Keep us updated Joe on the Patagonia Hoody and how it performs.
I think I've discovered that the PS fabric is too warm for some situations and certainly isn't warm enough for sitting around camp in others!
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