Let’s Step Outside Ô

Volume 1

Why am I still freezing my butt off?

It seems like a silly question to some people. Especially to those who just spent $300, $400, $500 or more on the latest techno-jargon jacket because they may never admit to still being cold. But to those brave souls who refuse to lie just because they spent a lot of money the question really borders on outrage. So we are really glad you were brave enough to ask.

The truth is harder to swallow than it is to tell. Here’s the truth: The number one cause of body heat loss is the act of water evaporating from the surface of your skin. There you go. That was easy. A simple single sentence and you have everything you needed to know. Now, what to do with all that knowledge?

Well, it would be awfully easy to BS you into thinking that you’ll only be comfortable if you buy our products, made from our exclusive Omnithermâ and Omniliteâ; lined with OmnishieldÔ . I’m going to spare you the platitudes that come from some advertising company’s handbook like “better,” “faster,” “it wicks,” “waterproof/breathable,” “it breathes.” If it all were true you wouldn’t still be cold.

OK, OK, OK, OK- so how do you stay warm? Well, first you stay dry, right? Wasn’t that easy? Well it would be if you didn’t sweat. If you didn’t sweat then all that crap about waterproof/breathable would actually be true. Come on! Have you ever been next to a 200 pound man on a Stairmaster? He can’t stay dry in a heated or unheated, thermostatically controlled or freezing gym with the TV on while wearing gym shorts and a t-shirt. You don’t really think he’s going to stay dry walking uphill in Alaska, do you? I don’t care how many “pit-zips” the jacket has he’s going to be wet as a fish in twenty minutes of walking. In two hours of walking he’ll be drenched. Then what’s going to happen? Well, he’s going to try to sit down to glass for four hours on a windy ridge AND HE’S GOING TO FREEZE HIS BUTT OFF.

So staying dry isn’t it? Well, yes it is “it” but (and read this twice). YOU CAN’T STAY DRY; not even in a “dry sauna.” This is a simple truth about water: If there is enough water you’re going to get wet. See, the Grand Canyon was waterproof once- it’s made of rock. So get the idea “waterproof” out of your head and we’ll continue after a short story.

I met a professional commercial fisherman at the Sullivan Arena sports show in Anchorage a few years ago and he shared something interesting. He said that there were two kinds of rain gear in Alaska, but neither worked. I pressed him and he said that after all the things he’s tried, rubber, PVC, waterproof/ breathable, etc. over all the years and all the conditions on his ship the bottom line is with enough water: You’re wet. The only question, he went on to say, for him was whether he was wet comfortable or wet and in trouble. His clothes made all the difference. He’s still a King of the Mountain customer.

What the geniuses at the ad agency don’t tell you (because they don’t know and won’t learn it walking from the parking garage to the elevator) is: Lofted insulation and petro-fiber (all synthetic) insulation work only if they never get wet. If you were a goose or a duck it would be simply a matter of protecting that insulation by putting a waterproof shell over it. (Geese and ducks don’t sweat- are you still with me here?) For years and years they have shouted. IT WICKS, as if these synthetics are actually DOING something. At best what synthetics DO is absolutely nothing. Petro-fibers best attribute is that they ignore water: They don’t get wet.

What this means is that since your body is almost 100° F these fabrics ignore water and allow it to be pushed as vapor away from your skin. (SEE RULE #1) This is important!!! What happens to all the heat that is in that 100° F vapor? Well now- they tell you and are very proud to tell you that it’s wicked away or that it has been totally breathed out of the new miracle waterproof/breathable membrane. That’s great as long as you keep on producing more heat such as when you are continuing to climb. But what happens when you stop climbing? ALL THAT HEAT IS NOW GONE BECAUSE THERE IS NO WAY TO HEAT PETRO-FIBER OR LOFT INSULATION WITHOUT GETTING IT SOPPING WET FROM SWEAT!

See you EITHER increase the loft and therefore the envelope around your body OR you keep on generating body heat at a rapid vapor exchange pace, BUT YOU NEVER GET TO STORE THE HEAT in petro-fibers or loft because the heat is in the vapor and to stay dry the vapor has to go outside the garment. Fortunately about 3 million years ago we began to work on a solution. At King of the Mountain, Inc we began perfecting it 23 years ago. OmnithermÒ is now a legend. Put simply: IT WORKS. EVERYTIME.

Are you listening now? If you are ready to get dressed, let’s begin- from the SKIN out. I hear you in the back, “Can’t I just buy another coat?” Do the Search and Rescue crews a favor and pick another sport. You’re not smart enough to out- smart dumb animals anyway.

If the truth will ever set you free and the truth is: The number one cause of body heat loss is the act of water evaporating from the surface of your skin. Then the act of getting water OFF the surface of your skin will speed the warming process immediately. So to get the water OFF the skin we first put on a HYDROPHOBIC layer. Hydro= water and Phobic= reject so what kind of materials are hydrophobic? Those are wool; polyester and polypropylene.

Forget all of the brand labels for a moment (Capilene, Thermax, Polarfleece, etc., etc., etc.) Each of these synthetics have specific, arguable performance differences, but in the end mostly they are all IMPORTANTLY hydrophobic petrofibers. Wool also has a few brand labels (Ulfrotte/Klar, Smart Wool, Intelligent wool) but again in the end mostly they are also all hydrophobic, but with a couple of HUGE UNARGUABLE differences!

To begin with, wool is self-extinguishing flame retardancy, which you may want to consider important since it’s right next to your skin. And more importantly wool absorbs water and radiates the heat in the water back to you DRY! But doesn’t it itch? IT USED TO ITCH BUT IT DOESN’T ANYMORE.