Patagonia Six Chuter Jacket

This jacket is loaded with features that make it perfect for a full season on the slopes. If you spend a lot of time on piste, riding up and down lifts on big mountains where weather will change from one side of the hill to the other it's nice to have lots of pockets to store all your: hats, goggles, masque, tissue, antifog cloth, sunglasses, wallet, cell phone, ipod, etc. and the 6-Chuter has them! Compared to my Arc'teryx Sidewinder, the 6-Chuter has lots of great storage options and I'm very grateful that the internal pockets are large enough to hold a lot of stuff without the time and constraint of a pack.

Out here in the wet Northwest, we need, no, we demand total waterproofing and Patagonia's H2nO highly breathable and stretch 3-ply material does not disappoint. It's d'bomb. Just for giggles I wore my jacket inside, zipped up tight for ~4 hours without any sweaty buildup! later that evening I went for a night ride on my vmax to test for wind and rain (I'm talkin' Seattle folks) penetration at 65mph, with air temp ~40, awesome. Unflappable, unstoppable and with 5.9 oz material it's almost bulletproof. Did I mention that the hood has so many adjustments it fits perfectly with a helmet on or off?

I have yet to test this jacket on the slopes, but local mountains are getting dumped on as I write this. Luckily I'll be on Mt. Hood at the end of November to test my shell on the hardpan. Unlike my Sidewinder I feel like I can squeeze in all my goodies without the need for a pack. I love Arc'teryx, but for quality and durability Patagonia is up with them at a better value.

I know this is just an overview and there are a ton of other features that I did not mention. Between my girlfriend and I, we've accumilated about eight hardshells over the last three years: Northface, Eider, HH, Arc'teryx (sidewinder, theta), MEC, REI, and the 6-Chuter is the best deal going for heavy duty cold and wet protection. Plus Patagonia gives 1% back to the planet...better than nothing.

The litmus test for me is when I ask myself: "How do I feel about the product after I've dropped this much coin?" and I can honestly say that I have no regrets what so ever. This shell will last me for a decade easy.

Update...okay, I've skied, snowboarded and camped in this shell. It rocks, it's rock solid! I just can't get over how comfortable it is! Definetely a 3-season shell.