The Author Cranking Through Some Winter Miles in That New Jacket. Photo: Dr. B. Maschal Private Collection.
For the past 15 years or so, I have been using a Nike waffle fleece lined neoprene zip-up for cold weather running. It has been an awesome jacket. After a few thousand trips through the washing machine, it is starting to come apart at the seams. I have been creeping the Nike website like a fiend, looking for a new one since it first started to fall apart last Autumn.
Obama had just been elected when they discontinued my favorite Nike jacket, and I just wasn’t seeing something else on the Nike site that I loved. Cue the Moosejaw winter sale. As skeptical as I am about “sales,” there was some other gear that I was getting for B, regardless. There may or may not have been an actual discount based on normal retail price, but hey man, I saw this jacket and it seemed to be exactly what I was looking for. I hadn’t really heard of Salewa though. After some in-depth research (Googled it for a few mins), I quickly learned about the brand’s European roots and mountaineering heritage. Seems I was late to the game on this one. Plus, I mean, It was on sale. So I pulled the trigger.
Verdict: I have been really happy with the jacket. It is a solid piece from the 25-45 degree range. Below 25, I’ll throw on a third layer between the jacket and my base layer. Over 50 degrees it is too warm, but ties nicely around the waist (on those days when you just need a little extra heat for the warm up miles). Plus, I really like the way it fits and looks. The sleeves are long enough to cover the gap between my wrist and glove. The collar zips all of the way up. It has side pockets (which my Nike piece does not). It is fitting, but loose enough to add a layer underneath when necessary. The blaze orange zippers are a nice detail for road running in the Catskills.
Selfie on the Porch in the Catskills
If you made it this far down, maybe you will enjoy this nerdy detail about the top photo. It was taken over the Presidents’ Day weekend on Saturday. The weather was super sunny, but did not get above freezing. Coach B provided hydration support for me on a long run around Pepacton Reservoir, and I brought the camera so that she could get some shots of me wearing this jacket (that I could use for this post). She got some okay ones, but the light was really weird (part shade, part blown out), so none of them were her best work. On the way back, I suggested that we stage a photo in our neighborhood. The spot that I had in mind is on a route that I run all of the time, cresting a hill where our local ski resort is fully visible in the background. When we arrived, I gave B some very light art direction and setup the camera for her. She got what I consider an incredible series in one take! You can tell it is staged, because there is no way I would be wearing heavy tights like that with no gloves. But man, what a photo!! She nailed it. One more below for good measure.
The Run After the Run, Kodak Courage, Etc.. Photo: Dr. B. Maschal Private Collection.