Mountain Hardwear Absolute Zero Down Suit - Men's - 2006 BCS

Take a look at Everest photos, or maybe some behind the scenes shots of the Planet Earth crew during their arctic filming. Notice a big puffy guy with a boom sporting that nut logo? How about an athlete at base camp getting ready to attempt one of the great peaks. This suit has long been known in the industry for its incredibly warmth, waterproof / breathable / windproof design. I got lucky and had the chance to demo it on Mt. Hood in Oregon. I lasted all of 20 minutes before I was too warm in sub freezing conditions. Excellent technical climbing suit.

Getting back as promised after a field test. I have worn this suit several times in the northeast as a ski race official. Standing in place for six to seven hours at a time. Outside temp. -5 to 5 F, much lower wind chill factors, and driving snow. I have been toasty all day long. Plenty of room to wear my ski pants and shell underneath, including all the base layers. Pant cuff is too slim to cover ski or climbing boots fully zipped. The water bottle pockets are a little too small but adequate. The hood is large enough to wear a helmet underneath, but the velcro closure at the face is sloppy at best and hard to operate. Already I have had several zipper snags in all areas and the pulls are small and will require adding rope pulls to allow operation with gloves or mitts. One snag caused a tear in the fabric I am not happy with at the front. This would not be my choice for expedition climbing due to it's awkwardness of use. Overall a warm haven with a few design flaws.

This suit is as close to excellent as one can get. The only snag is that the "trouserpart" feels a little too tight compared to the "jacketpart", but maybe it;s my lower measurements that;s a bit out of the ordinary. It;s very ease to get on and off and the suspenders are just right if you want to get the upper part off to let some fresh air in. And it;s definitely warm, no use for extra thick layers underneath. Although it seems rather puffy, it does;nt feel that in any sense. It;s very light in weight. I haven;t tried it on in freezing cold but the temperatures were well below 0 degrees centigrades and it was snowing rather heavy. The collar is just high enough to hide nearly all your face behind it and the hood also fits nicely when tighly strapped. All in all a gear that suits me admirably. I just hope it is;nt as easy to get a tear in the fabric as is the case with a Patagonia Down Jacket I just bought. Time will show. "Shop til you drop". Trygve.

Just received my new suit. Sizing is comparable to other MH clothing. Although the inseam is listed by manufacturer as 31" for size large, I found the inseam fit to be perfect for me at 6'4", thin build, 200lbs, with a 34" inseam. The internal suspenders are velcro adjustable and appear to be a good addition to the design. I am pleased with the fit considering what this garment is intended for. It is a lot like my MH winter sleeping bag with arms and legs. Roomy hood with four adjustment pulls. Comes with a stuff sack (same as for a sleeping bag) but should have a mesh storage bag as well.

I'm not climbing Denali, but was looking for something to battle sub-zero temps with high winds as an alpine ski official, when standard gear just doesn't cut it standing around for hours at a time. I'm sure I'll take some ribbing before enjoying the last laugh. The performance test is yet to come, will report back after field use. NOV 2008