Long Term Report

VersaLayer Ability Softshell Jacket
Long Term Report
October 1, 2006

Biographical Information

Product Information

Field Conditions

Field Test

Summary

VersaLayer System

Biographical Information
Name	Jennifer Pope
Age	25
Gender	Female
Height	5 ft 7 in (1.7 m)
Weight	140 lb (64 kg)
Email address	Jennifer dot Pope at gmail dot com
Location	Los Angeles, CA
Backpacking Background Intermediate. I've been a car-camper as long as I can remember and started backpacking in Northern California when I was 16. I've been backpacking for a little over a year after a hiatus during college. I backpack in the Sierras as well as other National Forests and Parks in the Los Angeles vicinity. I also spend time in the California deserts and the mountains and coast of Northern California. I'm a tent camper leaning towards lightweight; but I'm also a fan of gadgets and I like being comfortable. I also frequently day hike close to home and while car camping.

Product Information (back to top)
Manufacturer	VersaLayer
Manufacturer URL	http://www.versalayer.com/
Year of Manufacture	2006
Claimed Weight	28.0 oz (794 g)
Actual Weight	29.0 oz (822 g)
MSRP	$349.95 US
Outer Material	2-way stretch woven nylon with an 80 wash DWR coating
Insulation Material	CoreWarmth Poly Fiber-Fill
Lining Material	Poly Microfleece / Tricot Mesh
Purpose	"The Ability is designed for high output alpine activity."

For a more detailed product description please see my Initial Report. For details on the first two months of the test period please review my Field Report.

Field Conditions (back to top)

Unfortunately the last two months have been warm. Pretty much all my attempts to wear the jacket have been foiled by an extraordinarily warm summer. I was able to wear the jacket on one occasion. I wore the jacket on a sailing trip from San Diego to Catalina Island and back. The trip is approximately 13 hours each way but I only spent about 7 or 8 hours total on the top deck wearing the jacket. It was overcast but didn't rain and the temperature was approximately 60 F (15 C). Since we were sailing there was constant, gusty wind.

Due to somewhat limited experience with the jacket over the test period I plan to add an addendum to this report after I've had more cold weather experience.

Field Test (back to top)

Unfortunately I haven't had a chance to use this jacket very often over the last two months. On the sailing trip I wore it on I did notice that it blocked the wind very well. It was quite windy and I never felt chilled. Even my husband, who's constantly hot and likes to be cold, wore his shell fully zipped. For parts of the trip I unzipped the jacket because I was warm enough without it completely zipped. So far I've been wearing the jacket with just a baselayer and it's worked well.

Under the conditions I've been under I've really liked how the VersaLayer system works. The hot and cold cords are pretty easy to operate and since they're labeled they're pretty idiot-proof. Sometimes it's hard to tell if the system is fully deployed or fully constricted. I can usually confirm this by tugging on the cords with short pulls until it's clear that they can't be pulled any further (and the opposite cords are pretty short). I like the added flexibility of having this system.

The sleeves of this jacket are not lined as thickly as the main body of jacket. So far this hasn't been a problem for me. I haven't experience cold arms at any time while wearing the jacket. I also haven't experienced very low temperatures yet. I hope to be able to address this in an addendum in a few more months time.

I really like the fit of the jacket. In other jackets I've felt constrained by their bulkiness but this jacket has a very slim fit which I like. One of the downfalls of a unisex jacket is that it might not fit both sexes perfectly. The only area where I've noticed this is in the fit around my hips. It's a little snug here but not too snug to zip. Fortunately the jacket also unzips from the bottom of the main zipper so I can allow myself a little extra room if I happen to be wearing bulkier pants. This was not a problem for me over the test period.

Over the four-month test period I haven't been able to wear the jacket until any real physical activity other than setting up camp and cooking (although after a long day hiking that sure feels strenuous). Again, I hope to be able to add something about this as an addendum in a few months time.

Summary (back to top)

The jacket hasn't been ideal for the warm weather I've experienced over the test period. I've enjoyed wearing the jacket even though it's been somewhat limited. I've found the VersaLayer system to be useful in providing me different warmth options. The jacket is well made and seems to contain high quality materials. I'll definitely continue to wear the jacket after the test period, especially as the weather cools.

I want to thank BackpackGearTest.org and VersaLayer for giving me the opportunity to test this item.

Read more reviews of Versalayer gear
Read more gear reviews by Jennifer Pope

Reviews > Clothing > Jackets > Versalayer Ability Softshell > Jennifer Pope > Long Term Report

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