Reviews > Rain Gear > Jackets and Pants > Outdoor Research Zealot Jacket > Kathryn Doiron > Long Term Report

Outdoor Research Zealot Jacket - Long Term Report

Product Information:

The Zealot jacket is a lightweight rain shell that has a Napoleon slash pocket on the left hand side, a beaked hood, bungee cord at the bottom, elasticized cuffs, water resistant zippers, and a bungee cord system for the hood. The bungee cord system for the hood allows me to tighten the hood around my face while also pulling the sides to keep my vision unimpeded. On the inside of the jacket, I can see that the seams have been seam sealed. The zippers are stiff from the water resistant coating.

On my last few hikes, the weather has been taking a nose dive. I was glad for the extra space in the jacket as I was able to wear two base layers, and a thermal layer and still have room to move. I was wearing rain pants as well and realized that I was missing the fact that the jacket has no pockets. As my rain pants did not have pockets, I was left with no place to put things. In general, I either have a large object, like a camera, to store in a pocket or power bar wrappers.

The jacket is very light. I found it did a good job of keeping me dry in the rain with a little heat buildup. I did not notice any accumulation of moisture or perspiration on the inside of the jacket. I have taken it out several times in the rain on hikes and have not noticed any build up of perspiration or dampness. The jacket is dubbed as breathable and under the conditions I have been testing it, it did seem to be able to deal with the level of perspiration I was generating. I did notice that when I got a good pace going, and the heart pounding, I noticed I felt very warm with a base layer t-shirt and light weight long sleeve shirt. I ended up peeling the long sleeved shirt and was much more comfortable with the t-shirt and jacket. The temperature was about 59 - 68 F (15 - 20 C) with an on and off light rain. I do not carry a pack cover, simply because I have yet to go out and buy one. As such, when I hike in a light rain or drizzle, I don't bother covering the pack, but in a heavier rain fall, I tend to toss my jacket over the pack and wear the hood to keep my face and head dry. With this jacket, I liked being able to reverse zip the jacket to the top. This allowed the hood to stay closed around my face, yet have the rest of the jacket drape loosely across my pack. I either loosely tie the arms together or stuff them under the pack to keep them from flapping around.

Having rain pants on with the jacket makes a very nice total system for me. In cooler to cold weather, I typically wear thermal underwear under my rain gear and that keeps me warm. I also have the option of hiking in shorts and t-shirt to stay cool without getting soaked, meaning I carry less clothing. The lack of a pocket was a strike against the jacket in everyday wear but on the trail I almost never missed it. Something I would like to see done, is to be able to store the jacket in the Napoleon slash pocket and have a zipper pull on the inside to easily zip up the bundle. I did use the slash pocket in this manner once, but it was a tight fit and hard to zip up as the pull ended up on the inside of the bundle. The resulting bundle was a little bulky but conveniently packaged. Lately, I find myself simply balling up the jacket and rather roughly shoving it into the bottom of my day pack. When I remove the jacket for use, it comes out very wrinkled but after a few minutes, the wrinkles relax. The jacket has shown no signs of wear from this form of abuse. Other than one little white spot on the left sleeve (acquired on the first trip through the washer), the jacket has survived many trips through the washer. I do notice that the jacket does smell after I hike so it always gets a wash after a trip. I hang it to dry as I do not trust the dryer. I did not notice any shrinkage from washing the jacket.

My initial problems with the hood toggle have mostly been dealt with. I have found a setting that allows some air flow, with good hood coverage and without jeopardizing my side vision. This setting does leave the hood a little loose and the wind can push the hood back but it cannot push it off completely when I have the zipper up completely. I just leave the jacket set at that setting so I don't have to fight with it too much. It is not a perfect setting and there probably isn't a perfect setting but this setting works for me in a variety of conditions and then I can micro adjust as needed. I still find that too much tightening opens up the sides too much exposing more of my face but with a looser setting, the wind can push the hood back and expose my face. When I do have to tighten the hood down, I try to tug the sides of the hood out to better distribute the elastic bungee around my face for a better fit. It does help a little.

Field Conditions:

I have taken the Zealot jacket with me on a several long weekend hikes. I have had at least 4 major trips with this jacket. All trips included three days and two nights in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Total elevation gain was 1400 ft (426.7 m). There were light intermittent showers the first day, temperature that night dipped to about 40 F (4.5 C). The next day was sunny and clear with temperatures peaking around 68 F (20 C). The second night dropped to between 45 and 50 F (7-10 C). The last day was clear and sunny with temperatures pushing 77 F (25 C). Conditions for both trips were about the same in temperature and precipitation, or lack thereof.

Conditions were much cooler on my last few trips due to elevation and a depression moving through the area. Total elevation gain was about 2300 ft (700 m). Temperatures on one trip where in the 60 - 70 F (15.5 - 21 C) range and dropped down to about 50 F (10 C) at night. There was no rain on this trip. The last trip, again to the same area had temperatures reaching a high of 60 F (15.5 C) and a low of 35 F (1.6 C) on both nights. There was some rain the last morning we packed up.

On the few Sunday day trips I was able to go on at a local park, my elevation gain is minimal but I did manage to get in a good rain hike. Temperatures were around 52 F (11 C). The rain was not hard but was more than a drizzle. Rainfall was mostly constant over the course of the hour long hike. For my commute into work, I am really only above ground for about 10-15 minutes and in the subway tunnels for about 45 minutes sitting in the subway car. I have seen some rain, but mostly cloudy or sunny conditions. A few days have been driving rain.

Pros:

- Very lightweight and packable

- Machine washable with no shrinkage

- Under above conditions, it does appear to be breathable

- No side pockets

- Hood can be difficult to maintain face coverage

Reviews > Rain Gear > Jackets and Pants > Outdoor Research Zealot Jacket > Kathryn Doiron > Long Term Report