User Review: Wild Things Epic Halfzip Windshirt

The Wild Things Epic Halfzip Windshirt is a great choice for fast and light high output adventures in cool to moderately cold conditions. In my Upstate SC location it gets heavy use throughout the cooler 6 months of the year. I use it hiking, backpacking, running, and mountain biking in temperatures below 50 and anything short of continuous rain. As the weather gets colder I just add layers underneath.

The Epic fabric offers a bit more weather protection than typical windshirts. It is also a bit heavier. These qualities make it more durable (proven during plenty of crashes and underbrush scrapes) but also not the best choice for warmer temps or gram counting weenies.

The fit is very slim - enough so that you have to put your arms into the sleeves before pulling the shirt body over your head. Airflow is controlled by a long half zipper and elastic wrist closures. There are no velcro closures or drawcords, but I haven't missed them. Continuing the fast and light theme, the shirt has no pockets (that usually get blocked by hip belts anyway).

One of the biggest advantages of Epic is that its water resistance never washes out, and is actually refreshed when the garment is washed (in a dye & perfume free detergent) and then dried in a clothes drier on low heat. DO NOT use fabric softener or dryer sheets. This shirt can be trashed and washed regularly without having to hassle with DWR retreatment. It dries very quickly too.

Niggles? Let's see. Epic fabric is highly water resistant until it gets fouled by smoke or sweat, after which water doesn't bead up as readily. As a result of this, I often backpack with a light hardshell or poncho if rain is likely. The shirt body is quite trim, but the upper sleeves have enough extra fabric to flutter annoyingly at high speeds when road riding.