What gear do you take to climb a mountain?

[Andy in Sig]

I think I read somewhere that the firm realised that goretex was very cheap to produce and they had the choice between offering it at mass market prices or pricing it at the exclusive end of the scale. They went for the latter and allegedly one executive resigned in disgust.

 

[Globalti]

Yes but if they had sold it cheap nobody would have thought it was any good. Remember the story of how Suntour blew their chances by selling a top end groupset too cheap?

 

[Andy in Sig]

Yeh but you'd look daft trying to keep the rain off using an assortment of cogs and crankarms.

 

[Crackle]

I've also never bothered with Goretex. Expensive, heavy and IME a fabric for people who move so slowly they aren't going to break sweat.

Much sense is spoken here. It's basically a con. There are circumstances where it works but any breathable fabric will work in the same conditions. In summer a pertex top and non-cotton wear that feels warm when wet is perfect for the UK. In winter when you're getting battered, a nice tough outer shell feels snug but I don't expect to stay dry, just comfortable and warm.

 

[psmiffy]

I am sorry but I am one of those poor ignorant gullible people who thinks Gore Tex works - I have a range of waterproof tops from cheap and nasty to Goretex - I know which one I want to be wearing when it is deluging at the top of an Alp or in western Norway

 

[Globalti]

Me too. I learned to ski in the rain in Scotland many years ago. A friend lent me some ski gloves that had vinyl palms and Goretex backs and the difference was remarkable; my palms were sopping with rain and sweat while the backs of my hands remained dry and warm. I couldn't have arranged a more convincing demonstration.

 

[Crackle]

I'm not saying it doesn't work, I have a Gore cycling top now. It does work, not as well as they'd have you believe and once it's had some good wear, the performance goes down considerably and it becomes very important to keep it coated so it doesn't wet out but any other breathable will work at similar levels once used. Longevity is also an issue. I've sent two Goretex shells back because they failed within the warranty. I don't buy Goretex anymore for walking shell jackets but I think the thinner lighter jackets you need for cycling are still better in Goretex due to lightness and pack size and probably have a similar longevity to anything else that thin.

Edit: And it's not good enough to warrant the premium it attracts compared to say Lowe's ceramic technology.

 

[Zoiders]

People who sneer at taking kit in a daysac make me laugh, it really is pompous and self serving twaddle of the highest order, you should never assume you will be "OK" to survive a night on the hills. If you can't carry a bit of kit all day then you have no business on the hills in the first place - it's just weakness hiding behind smugness to laugh at taking kit.

Natural selection will thin them out of the herd soon enough.

 

[gavintc]

take nothing. i mean, you wouldn't want mountain rescue to be out of a job would you?

This was my thought as well, after all the rescue guys sit around all day just waiting for something to happen. You sir, if you continued hill walking, are a rescue in the waiting. You clearly have never seen weather change rapidly when you are on a mountain from sun to snow in 2 hours.

 

[Zoiders]

This was my thought as well, after all the rescue guys sit around all day just waiting for something to happen. You sir, if you continued hill walking, are a coroners inquest in the waiting. You clearly have never seen weather change rapidly when you are on a mountain from sun to snow in 2 hours.

FTFY.

 

[Moodyman]

I spin in the granny gear