Columbia Whirlibird Parka - Women's - 2009 BCS

* color: The white and blue is awesome looking. I managed to keep the white white so far, but it does get dirty if you start rubbing against cars. The good thing is it's waterproof so the stains come off under the snow.

* sizing: It's true to size. I'm 5'2", 105-110lbs, bought an S and I have margin in the jacket.

* warmth: I'm the type of girl who complains it's freezing when it's 50 degrees Fahrenheit, and I was actually warm in this jacket with just a long sleeve thermal underneath, skiing in a windy snow storm. I used to wear a tank top, a long-sleeve thermal, a long sleeve shirt, a wool sweater, and a fleece under my old insulated Columbia convert jacket, just to tell you how much warmth I usually need. So yeah, this jacket is WARM!

* 2 long arm vents at arm pits

* tuck-away ski skirt. It's not in the way if you don't want to use it

* pockets: tons of them.
+ inner shell has 2 "bottom" outer pockets (you know where you expect them to be on a jacket) with zippers
+ outer shell has 2 inner pockets at the chest level: one mesh no-zip goggle pocket and one zip mp3 player pocket with a small hoop to hold your headset.
+ outer shell has 2 "bottom" outer pockets with zippers
pockets complaints (minor)
+ NO pocket at the end of the sleeve (near your hand) to put a scannable pass.
+ Zippers are closed when in upwards position so if you attach your gloves to the zippers it will pull it open.
pockets notes:
+ If you have electronics and plan to put them in the bottom pockets, I would put them in the pockets of the inner jacket. Even though the outer shell is very waterproof, I found my cell phone to be a little damp when left in the outer pocket of the outer shell in very stormy conditions (it was fine in normal conditions). That's probably because you don't get the full effect of the waterproofness if you're using only half of the outer shell to protect it. Also, if you put it in the inner shell, it would be within the snow skirt if you use it. I don't know about the inner chest mp3 player pocket because I haven't tried it.

* attaching your pass:
As said above, no sleeve pocket for the newer scannable passes, and no hook to attach the older metal hook + sticker passes. That's probably my main complaint about this jacket.

I live in New England and was looking for a super warm, versatile jacket (can snowboard in & go out to dinner in). I was choosing between this coat and the Columbia Revibe Parka. I liked everything about this one: the look of it, the style & fit of both shells (indiv & together). The Revibe was that much warmer though and the fabric is more durable. Per the price tags on the coats when they came, the Revibe is a better bang for your buck, but the Whirlibird is also a very worthy investment.
Fits exactly true to size.

This is a great jacket. I am about a size 4 and the length and fit was great. It is pretty warm - with a good base layer (Capilene 3) I don't need a second layer - just both of the jackets. Haven't had the opportunity to wear it in the snow but I have great confidence in this jacket,