by Mike Carey, November 02, 2009
New products come along from time to time that truly show how far technology has advanced in a particular field. This summer I got to try out several clothing products from Columbia Sportswear, and find out about some of the latest innovations in outdoor wear. We anglers in the Pacific Northwest know all too well that if you aren’t dressed right, you aren’t going to be able to fish long enough to wait for that all important bite or lunker bass that’s just under the next lily pad. So in a very real sense, your clothing gear will determine in part your success on the water. And not just success, but safety too are also important considerations with what to wear. Being out in the elements all day can lead to hypothermia in the winter and heatstroke or severe sunburns in the summer. Late August is a great time to test out clothes because of the extremes that it is possible to experience – cold mornings requiring multiple layers of clothing, and by afternoon stripped down to a t-shirt. So it was a good opportunity to take the Columbia gear “for a spin”.
6AM, its cold, and an effort to get out of my sleeping bag. I reach for a pair of pants, Omni-shade “PFG” Performance Fishing Gear. The first thing I notice is these pants are incredibly light, yet warm. They are 100% nylon and feature the Omni-Shade technology, offering a UPF50 rating. The pants have lots of nice cargo-sized pockets and zipped, mesh back pockets. More important for the day ahead, which is going to start cold but warm up, they have zip-off legs, meaning I don’t have to bring shorts, I can just zip the legs off when I get too warm. Another nice feature, which I discovered later, is they dry very quickly.
OK, I’ve got my pants, now for a shirt. Again I grab from the PFG line, this time a long-sleeve shirt of the same Omni-Shade material, very light weight but surprisingly comfortable and warm. Columbia calls this their “Blood ‘N Guts” shirt because it has a special fabric treatment designed to repel stains – and it works, as we found out that evening at a product demonstration. Imagine a camp full of anglers and outdoor writers invited to smear every imaginable stain-causing gunk on a Columbia sales rep’s shirt – we did a good job of it. Tom, the Columbia rep, was good natured about it. The next day after rinsing off – no stains! Very cool indeed! Columbia calls this technology Omni-Shield and it works well. Other features of this shirt include UPF30 rating, flip-up sun protector collar, full venting, front zip security pocket, and a rod holder! The rod holder is an ingenious Velcro loop that you can secure your rod to allowing your hands to be free to tie on that trophy catching lure you plan on using. Again, this is a very cool and innovative feature for a shirt.
Next layer please, it’s still cold! I grabbed a light weight fleece, the “Titanium”, half-zip, which I was certain, would be totally inadequate for keeping warm. Wrong. The second this went on I felt much warmer and was almost ready to venture out. This fleece is light and has a great feel to it. It will be my “go to” fleece from now on. Just one more item was needed, a coat. Again from the PFG series, I put on an Omni-Tech waterproof and breathable American Angler jacket. Once more the attention to details and features were truly impressive. Zipped pockets, mesh, breathable, waterproof. The perfect final layer! I was ready to venture out of the tent and face the elements.
Our trip this day was angling for bass on the Columbia River. The day started cold but as the sun came up I soon found myself peeling off layers, as I expected. One thing I really liked about the Columbia Sportswear gear was that it is very light and compacts into a small space. What would have taken up LOT’S of space to get the same warmth effect this time fit into a small carry bag – and it did a better job keeping me warm, felt more comfortable (as in not bulky) and looked really good.
I mentioned at the start of this article that safety is an important factor for anglers. Besides the issue of hypothermia, we anglers get a lot of sun. As a nurse, I know and have seen firsthand the devastation of skin cancer. So it’s great to find a product that not only is functional and looks good, but also provides an essential barrier against the sun’s rays. Omni-Shade is Columbia’s sun blocking technology.
From Columbia’s web site:
“Omni-Shade blocks Ultraviolet A and Ultraviolet B rays (UVA and UVB), helps to prevent sun burn and long-term skin damage through tight weave construction, UV reflectors, and UV absorbing technology. Unlike SPF (Sun Protection Factor), which is a measure of sunburn reduction from sunblock, and does not indicate any protection from UVB rays. UVB rays are much more harmful than UVA, and are present even on cloudy days. Omni-Shade provides protection from both UVB and UVA rays. Like sunblock, Omni-Shade is given a numeric value to indicate its level of sun protection. Unlike sun block, Omni-Shade does not wear off. Your safety increases as the Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF) increases, and several levels of Omni-Shade protection are available: UPF 15, UPF 30, UPF 40 and UPF 50+. It's like sunscreen, but you don't have to reapply.”
Like I said, being a nurse makes me really appreciate when a company is using technology to design products that will help keep me healthier and fishing longer. I ended up wearing my long sleeve shirt all day, even when it got warm. The shirt was that comfortable and light weight!
One last piece of gear for me to mention are hats. I’m fair skinned and burn really easy, and my ears, neck, and forehead have always been an issue. So when I saw we had been given a hat with a neck protector on it I was sure to bring that along with me on the water. You guessed it, part of the PFG series and featuring Omni-Shade technology, the hat is white which as you may know reflects the sun’s rays off it. I wore this hat comfortably all day and had zero sun burn issues. And it really helped me stay cool in the afternoon sun.
It’s easy as anglers to focus on our gear as being rods, reels, lures, boats, etc, etc. We often leave clothing as an afterthought. I’ll admit to that right here. I’ll tell you what though, as I get older I appreciate more and more that fishing is not just the gear you use, it’s also the gear that keeps you out there that one extra hour. Do yourself a favor and check out Columbia’s web site, Columbia.com. They’ve got the gear to keep you on the water and comfortable as you wait for the next lunker to give your line a tug!
