The North Face

Ventrix Hooded Jacket - Men's

My favorite "gettin after it" insulation

Familiarity:

I've put it through the wringer

Size Bought:

L

Height:

5' 8"

Weight:

165

The North Face Ventrix jacket was one of the original breathable puffy insulation layers, and it's still one of the best. The TNF Ventrix competes directly with the Patagonia Nano-Air and the Arc'teryx Atom LT, and it's competitive with both despite costing slightly less. It may even breathe BETTER. This is my "gettin' after it" layer. It's warm for a 60g syn puffy layer, but is best paired with a removable shell. What makes the Ventrix so amazing is how well it breathes, and how fast it moves sweat away from you, but is somehow still at least somewhat water resistant. I've had mine for a few years, I've put it through the ringer, and I LOVE it. It's my go to "gonna work" layer, and it's also my go-to ski mid-insulation layer. I usually wear a baselayer, this, then a shell. Is this the warmest jacket ever? No. It's not supposed to be. Is it windproof or wind resistant? No. It's not supposed to be. Air and moisture are SUPPOSED to move through it freely, and they do. I have never found a better warm layer for instances when you know you're gonna sweat. Unfortunately, this awesome design, while being the strongest argument FOR this jacket, is also this jacket's biggest weakness. You need to have a shell accessible with this one. It breathes so well that, with anything more than breezy conditions, the wind can suck the warmth away. So you're gonna need to pair it with a shell. Pair this with a FutureLight shell, or other Air Permeable shell, and no insulation+hardshell combination will allow you to dump sweat faster. My biggest gripe is that TNF seems to discontinue all my favorite items. First the longer version of the Wander short (my favorite short). Is all the best stuff "for a limited time only"? Please don't discontinue this!

Another "Best" Product Discontinued

[This review was collected as part of a promotion.] The North Face Ventrix jacket was one of the original breathable puffy insulation layers, and it's still one of the best. It blows my mind that TNF would discontinue this, but it looks like that's the way this is going. The TNF Ventrix competes directly with the Patagonia Nano-Air and the Arc'teryx Atom LT, and it's competitive with both at a slightly lower price point. It may even breathe BETTER. This is my "gettin' after it" layer. It's warm for a 60g syn puffy layer, but is best paired with a removable shell. What makes the Ventrix so amazing is how well it breathes, and how fast it moves sweat away from you, but is somehow still at least somewhat water resistant. I've had mine for a few years, I've put it through the ringer, and I LOVE it. It's my go to "gonna work" layer, and it's also my go-to ski mid-insulation layer. I usually wear a baselayer, this, then a shell. Is this the warmest jacket ever? No. It's not supposed to be. Is it windproof or wind resistant? No. It's not supposed to be. Air and moisture are SUPPOSED to move through it freely, and they do. I have never found a better warm layer for instances when you know you're gonna sweat. Unfortunately, this awesome design, while being the strongest argument FOR this jacket, is also this jacket's biggest weakness. You need to have a shell accessible with this one. It breathes so well that, with anything more than breezy conditions, the wind can suck the warmth away. So you're gonna need to pair it with a shell. Pair this with a FutureLight shell, or other Air Permeable shell, and no insulation+hardshell combination will allow you to dump sweat faster. My biggest gripe is that TNF seems to discontinue all my favorite items. First the longer version of the Wander short (my favorite short), and now this? Is all the best stuff "for a limited time only"?