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BASE LAYER | | |
Baselayer is a general term for thermal underwear which, as the name implies, is underclothing designed for cold conditions. Typically such clothing is made of artificial fabrics which are quick to dry and quick to wick away moisture (ie sweat) from your skin. Traditionally such clothing soon acquires a distinct whiff of its own (!), but modern wool underwear has just about conquered this problem. Nearly all major outdoor manufacturers have a range of baselayer clothing comprising at the very least, Long Sleeved Zip Top, Long Sleeved Crew Top and Tights/Long Johns.
Baselayer clothing is not just thermal underwear, it is also important as an outer (in fact only) layer in alpine glacier travel where it is too hot to wear anything more. Here it is essential to have long sleeved garments than will ward off the intense sun of high mountain areas. | |
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Patagonia : | | |
Patagonia now make four Capilene fabrics for different levels of exertion and temperatures; it is still a moisture-wicking polyester fabric that keeps you warm even when wet and dries quickly, but now Capilene polyester is also at least 50% recycled (made with more than 50% recycled polyester, derived in roughly equal measures from plastic bottles and fabric scraps), and features Gladiodor* (how do they think of them!) natural odour control. All these garments are machine washable.C1 is the silkiest and can be worn alone or as a baselayer. C2 is a great weight for aerobic use in mild to cool conditions. C3 is a versatile, do it all baselayer for active use in cool to cold conditions. C4 is the warmest Capilene fabric. It features an inside-facing grid pattern that disperses moisture, aids in compressibility and retains warmth in cold conditions. * Most companies use heavy-metal (silver) ions to kill the bacteria that causes unpleasant pongs in their clothing, but heavy metals are a major groundwater pollutant which are not safe for human ingestion. Also bacteria can build resistance to silver. These risks were unacceptable to Patagonia, so they have developed a safe, non-polluting alternative which they call Gladiodor. This is a natural odour control which comprises naturally derived amino acid chains which kills odour-causing bacteria. It is non-polluting and safe for humans. It is also durable. | |
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Icebreaker : | | |
Take a step backwards in time! Icebreaker's thermal underwear is made of 100% pure Merino wool. However it performs very well, as well as any other themal underwear we have ever tried and better than many, and has the added benefit of not going smelly - even after a week's hard use alpine ski-touring my bodyfit longsleeve it hardly needed washing. Moreover it is a natural product with no "treatments" and breathes and wicks extremely well. Click on any of the Icebreaker links for more information. Many other colours are available, and it may be possible to order them though don't hold your | |
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