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Winter in the Air, and Polartec® Anti-Stink Testing

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Polartec Power Dry T-shirt.

Stepped out the door this morning and crisp autumn air hit me in the face, winter just around the corner. Exciting! Our web stats show that quite a few people are checking our backcountry ski binding FAQs and mounting instructions, so I’ll continue to organize that content so it’s easier to access. The plan is you’ll be able to find things on WildSnow.com by three methods: the left side menu bar may have an obvious link, check there first, or try the search box to the right, or check the Articles and Tips menus (again, by using the main menu bar to left).

Department of BO: One reason I can smell winter instead of something else is that web been using odor control fabrics since Mountain Hardware first came out with their excellent anti-stink products. Most recent test was a T-shirt made from a Polartec odor control fabric that’s in the test phase — it’s the fabric used in the blue T you might have noticed Louie wearing in many of our blog photos. Here is the beta from Backbone Media, who gave us the shirt for testing:

“This is a new odor resistant Polartec® Power Dry fabric using silver ion technology to neutralize odor causing bacteria. Silver has been a well known natural anti-microbial for centuries which is why many medical instruments today are still made with silver. The silver is integrated in the fibers before the fabric is knit – so it is a permanent part of the shirt – it’s not a treatment so it will never wash out (unlike many chemical based anti-microbial applications which break down quickly). Polartec® offers silkweight, featherweight and midweight styles of this fabric. In addition to the silver fibers, all Polartec® Power Dry fabrics wick and dry very quickly thanks to a bi-component or denier gradient design – this means there are fewer larger fibers on the inner surface of the fabric and many more smaller fibers on the outer surface. As a result water is pushed to the greater surface area on the outside – the fabric mechanically pulls moisture away from your body (in fact, if you wore the shirt inside out, it wouldn’t work).”

Test results: The teenage BO test gets an A- (not quite a good as other anti-odor fabrics we’ve used, but it works), and the shirt also wicks very comfortably and works for a wide temperature range. Downside was the fabric tended to snag a bit on things, but the snags didn’t run and were easily cleaned off with an electric razor sideburn trimmer. We’ll be looking for products made Power Dry, and highly recommend it!

Posted by Lou on September 1, 2005 | Filed Under Misc Gear Reviews 

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Welcome to Louis (Lou) Dawson's backcountry skiing information and opinion website. Lou's passion for the past forty years has been alpinism, climbing, mountaineering and skiing -- along with all manner of outdoor recreation. He has authored numerous books and articles about backcountry skiing and is well known as the first person to ski down all 54 of Colorado's 14,000-foot peaks, otherwise known as the Fourteeners! Books and free back country information here, and tons of Randonnee rando telemark info.

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Backcountry skiing is a dangerous sport. You may be killed or severely injured if you do any form of randone, randonnee and randonnée skiing. The information on this website is intended only as general information. While the authors and editors of the information on this website make every effort to present useful information, due to human error the information, text and images contained within this website may be inaccurate, false, or out-of-date. By using, reading or viewing the information provided on this website, you agree to absolve the owners of Wild Snow as well as content contributors of any liability for injuries or losses incurred while using such information. Furthermore, you agree to use any of this website's information, maps, photos, or binding mounting instructions or templates at your own risk, and waive Wild Snow its owners and contributors of any liability for use of said items for backcountry skiing or any other use.