Biographical Info
Name: Danny Sedivec
Age: 22
Gender: Male
Height: 6' 0" (1.83 m)
Weight: 165 lbs (75 kg)
Email Address: pezfuerte@yahoo.com
City, State, Country: San Diego, California, USA
Date: January 6, 2005

Backpacking Background: I started backpacking about five years ago taking mainly three to seven day trips. I hike mainly in the southwestern US with the majority of my experience in the California Sierras, as well as a few trips in Arizona and Nevada. Although I push myself during the day, I like to be comfortable in camp but I still try to keep my pack as light as possible. The climate that I hike in is predominately dry, however, on summer trips in the Sierras I often encounter afternoon thunderstorms. During the winter I am an avid skier frequenting areas throughout the California Sierras as well as occasionally snowshoe backpacking in the same areas.

Product Info
Manufacturer: Granite Gear
Product: Aptitude Gloves Men's Medium
Year of Manufacture: 2004
URL: http://www.granitegear.com
MSRP: $49.00 USD
Weight as Measured: 3.7 oz (105 g)

Product Description: The gloves are black with the Granite Gear logo on the back of the hand. The palm and underside of all fingers is made of the Pittards WR100X Digital Armor Tan leather. The gloves' cuffs are fleece, and very soft and warm. The remaining fabric of the gloves is made of three different layers of material. One is Durastretch, the second is Vapex, and the third is a fleece laminate. The combination of the three fabrics is said to be waterproof as well as cut and abrasion resistant. There are two webbing loops on each glove. One that runs across the outside of the middle finger at the second knuckle allows the gloves to be hung with the opening down to keep snow from getting in them when they are not being worn. The other is sewn into the cuff on the bottom of the wrist allowing the gloves to be hung with the opening up.

Field Information:  My testing of these gloves has been done in various locations throughout California, as well as in Ecuador.  I have worn them downhill skiing at Kirkwood Mountain, climbing in Yosemite Valley, and hiking in Ecuador. I have experienced temperatures ranging from 50 F (10 C) to 20 F (-7 C) and conditions from sunny and clear to snowing and windy. I have worn them at elevations ranging from 4000 ft (1219 m) to 17000 ft (5182 m).

Summary: As a whole, the Aptitude gloves met my expectations.  The biggest thing these gloves have going for them is their warmth.  For how lightweight and thin they are, the gloves are surprisingly warm.  I was also amazed at how windproof the gloves were. When riding up a chairlift with an apparent wind of about 15 mph (24 kph) I could barely feel the wind through the gloves. They kept my hands warm and the wind out, which is nice especially since windchill is a big factor when playing outdoors in the cold. I was disappointed that the gloves were not fully waterproof. When skiing I would fall in fresh powder and by the time I had gotten my skis on and gotten back to the chair lift, my hands were feeling the moisture from the fall. This dampness made for a cold ride up the chair, and it took about one to two runs (30 min) for the gloves to dry up again.

Given how warm they are, the gloves also provide good flexibility. They are definitely not as dexterous as thin liner gloves, but they are very close, and substantially warmer. With the Granite Gear Aptitude gloves, I was able to manipulate with ease anything I put my mind to. I could effortlessly zip and unzip my ski jacket. I had no problem unzipping a pocket, removing a folded trail map, and opening it to read. The gloves allow the user to easily grasp and manipulate small things such as a zipper. However, they do significantly reduce the sense of feeling in the fingers, so trying to find and handle something without seeing it is rather difficult. For example, I have a season pass at Kirkwood that is hung around my neck by a lanyard. At the bottom of every lift I would have to unzip my jacket (no problem with the Aptitude gloves on), then pull out my season pass to show the lift attendant. Pulling the season pass out by the lanyard was a shot in the dark if I didn't look down into my jacket to see where the pass was hanging. This fact is not so much a criticism, as it is a fact that this glove, along with many others, severely reduces the ability to feel things with the fingers.  The gloves performed well in the vertical world as well.  They were easy to belay in, and I had no problems opening carabiners, or tying knots in the rope.  The hang loop was also great for threading a carabiner through and clipping to the harness while climbing.

When it comes to fit, the gloves were perfect. I sized the gloves based on Granite Gear's sizing chart, and they fit perfectly. They are quite snug on my hands, and do not slide around or shift, even when aggressively using my poles while downhill skiing. One thing that I found slightly bothersome was the stitching on the inside of the fingers, especially the thumb. At the tip of the fingers, where the material comes together, it is bunched up and sewn together so that it sticks out on the inside of the glove. This is mildly
uncomfortable, and a little annoying because whenever something is grabbed, it feels like there is an extra bunch of fabric between the finger and what is being grabbed. As I know nothing about sewing, I don't know how or if this problem could be fixed, but if it could it would make the gloves a little more appealing to me. The gloves have been very durable to this point, and are in as good condition as when I took them out of the box for the first time, save normal wear and tear.  They have stood up well to the effects of rope burn and have not deteriorated as a result of rappelling in them.  One feature that I really liked about these gloves is the material on the back of the hand, which includes the backs of the fingers and thumb. This material is quite soft, and therefore excellent in wiping my nose. I frequently get a runny nose in cold weather and with this soft material I can wipe many times a day and not worry about getting a rough, red, chaffed nose.

Overall:  I really like the Granite Gear Aptitude gloves. The three things that I like the most about these gloves are their warmth, durability, and the ease with which you can do things while wearing the gloves. My one major concern is with how waterproof the gloves actually are. I was also bothered by the stitching on the inside of the fingers and thumb. Although this did not hamper the gloves’ performance, it was mildly annoying when wearing them.