Things We Love: The Matador Team’s 5 Favorite Pieces of Travel Gear This Month
Hitting the slopes is best done in style.
In January, Matador editors traveled from the high peaks of British Columbia to the trails of California, and to cities across North America and Europe. This is the gear the team loved the most this month, including a new supplement to aid in sleeping at high altitudes, a jacket for frigid weather and another for milder temps, and because outdoors editor Suzie Dundas is already deep in the coming summer’s mountain bike season (mentally, at least), a hip bike jersey.
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Fjallraven’s Kiruna Padded Parka
Photo: Amazon
During my 15 years of living in British Columbia, Canada, I tested many winter coats in a desperate search for the perfect combination of warmth, practicality, and style. And, let me tell you, it’s not an easy task to find one coat that’s suitable for the variations of temperature and weather during the long winter, and that also works for a wide range of activities. While I’m not a skier or snowboarder, and therefore don’t need a ski jacket, I enjoy spending time outdoors during the cold season, whether that’s a simple hike in the snow or a snowshoeing adventure. I’m also a little vain and like to look stylish when I meet friends for a cup of coffee or go for a meal at a restaurant with my partner. After much searching, I can confidently say that I found the one jacket that works for my lifestyle: Fjallraven’s Kiruna Padded Parka.
Fjallraven managed to create a warm winter coat that is wind resistant, water resistant, and figure flattering, a feat that many other outdoors brands have yet to achieve. Thanks to light but effective padding and an adjustable waist at the back, the coat is not bulky and very feminine. The parka is also long enough to keep your thighs and rear warm, but not long enough to make it challenging to move with ease. But if, like me, the length of the coast gets in the way of you putting your boots on without difficulty, the two-way zipper in the front helps.
There are many things I love about this jacket, including the fact that it is mostly made of recyclable materials, and that the multiple pockets are all secured with either zippers, buttons, or both to keep your belongings safe, but my favorite feature has to be the color. I opted for the terracotta brown model, and it’s the perfect shade to match my red hair. Fjallraven offers the Kiruna Padded Parka in eight different colors, all of which are subdued and elegant, including a lovely shade of yellow that they call “acorn”, and two shades of pink and purple. – Morgane Croissant, deputy editor
Price: $349.95
ALTISNOOZE Sleep Aid for High Altitude
Photo: Amazon
I live at elevation in Colorado, and the bulk of traveling I do is to mountainous destinations around the globe. I have for many years struggled with sleep, at home and especially on the road. I’ve tried pills, supplements, joints, all kinds of stuff in an attempt to put my mind at ease and settle into bed. While melatonin gummies have been the most effective, I worry about the side effects of using them too often in terms of ruining my ability to sleep without them. On a recent snowboard excursion to the Powder Highway of British Columbia, I brought along ALTISNOOZE, a new formula free of melatonin that is designed specifically for falling asleep at elevations above 9,000 feet. It’s made to aid hydration and contains ample electrolytes for recovery after a day in the hills, and I fell asleep in about 20 minutes each of the three nights I used it.
ALTISNOOZE is similar to Emergen-C in that you empty a packet into a small glass of water, stir, and drink. The taste is labeled as “berry” and that’s not inaccurate, though I couldn’t pinpoint exactly what berry it tasted like – but it was slightly fruity. The formula includes magnesium to relax the muscles along with Cordyceps and Holy Basil to assist in deep sleep and fight altitude sickness. I felt no residual effect in the mornings, which had always been the one thing I didn’t like about melatonin gummies. A cup of coffee and I was ready to hit the hill. – Tim Wenger, transactional content editor
Price: $51.99 for a pack of 10 packets
Black Crows ski touring “capsule” and new film
Photo courtesy Black Crows
If you’ve been in a lift line or on a skin track over the past three years, you’ve likely seen an increased presence of Black Crows skis. The French ski brand has blown up in the United States recently for two reasons. First, because it crafts high-performance resort and touring skis that can actually survive more than a few seasons of heavy use. Second, because the brand is freakin’ hip. Its gear looks as good as it performs, typically featuring artsy, minimalist graphics that are distinct but don’t scream “I’m a douche!” To celebrate the launch of its latest “Ghost Resorts” film chronicling the history of the nearly-forgotten Super Saint-Bernard ski area in Switzerland, the brand launched on February 4 a new backcountry touring capsule that includes a touring pack, poles, skins, Navis Freebird skis, and ATK bindings.
Impressively, the most innovative inclusion here is the Dorsa pack. It’s 27 liters and opens duffel-style at the top, like a backpacking pack, so you fit all your touring gear in there alongside outer layers and lunch and actually be able to access it without ripping a zipper off or having to unpack everything you brought. There’s a zipped pouch in front for beacon, shovel, and probe, and because of the amount of space, you could easily take this pack on a hut trip with food for two to three days and not have to worry about leaving something important at home.
For a bit of extra stoke, check out the new Ghost Resorts film, which chronicles the story of an abandoned Swiss ski resort.
Buy the Capsule (or watch the film)
Buy the Dorsa 27 pack separately
The North Face Dragline Jacket
Photo: Suzie Dundas
Most people who live in ski towns, such as myself, have a decent amount of ski jackets. That means it takes a lot to get me excited about new gear – but the Dragline Jacket from The North Face blew me away. With a loose fit and cut that hits the sweet spot between “boxy” and “tight,” plus an awesome purple-and-black design, it’s just plain cool looking. But it’s also practical as hell. When I underestimated the temperatures while skiing last week and had to switch gloves, I was able to fit the giant leather mittens I switched out of into the huge front pockets. And that was when I was already carrying sunglasses, a beanie, a phone, and a snack bar. There are also two giant inside pockets, two zippered chest pockets, and a removable goggle wipe (smart).
Obviously, none of those features matter on a jacket if it doesn’t keep you dry and warm above all else. Fortunately, the Dragline does. I wore it to ski in Tahoe in the same wind that was so strong it started the fires in LA. I was getting blown nearly backwards when trying to go downhill in whipping winds – but reader, believe me when I say I literally didn’t get cold. At all. And I’m one of those people who is always cold.
Unfortunately, strong winds also caused icy and windblown conditions, and I’m willing to admit I caught an edge a few times on some icy traverses. Despite some slides on icy slopes (and the strong wind actively blowing snow into my face), there was absolutely no moisture permeability through the Dragline Jacket. I also wore it recently in unseasonably heavy, extended rain showers, and stayed dry, even with water dripping off the hood. Better still, it’s made with recycled (and recyclable) materials.
I could go on and on, but if you’re in the market for a ski shell you get super excited about, I’d take a peek at the Dragline Jacket first thing. — Suzie Dundas, outdoors editor
Price:
Photo: Suzie Dundas As much as I love winter sports, I’m truly obsessed with mountain biking. I mountain biked more than 1,000 miles this past year (really, check my Strava) and climbed nearly 200,000 feet on my bikes. And considering I mostly wear sweatpants when I’m working from home, I’d say the majority of my time outside the house is spent wearing mountain bike clothing.
I bought a DHarCO Mountain bike Gravity Jersey on a whim in Whistler last year and it’s the best spur-of-the-moment decision I’ve made in a long time. Aside from being a perfect cut for biking (with a dropped back hem, high crew neck, and slightly tapered cuffs), it’s also extremely useful in a variety of temperatures and conditions. I’ve worn it alone on rainy days biking in British Columbia where the temps never got above 55, and rocked it fairly comfortably home in Tahoe when I needed the protection of a long sleeve but had to contend with 80-degree-plus temps.
I now have three of these, all in super fun patterns and colors. DHarCO makes just as much gear for women as it does for men and despite how much I’ve worn all my jerseys (often days in a row without washing, let’s be real), they’re as bright, warm, and rip-free as possible. Note that both the men’s and women’s sizes run pretty small by US sizing standards, so I’d definitely say size up. — Suzie Dundas, outdoors editor Price: $44
DHarCO Mountain Bike Gravity Jersey
