Preferred clothing?

[Woodserson]

LL Bean has been pretty icognito.

I'm still sore about LL Bean changing their warranty. Haven't purchased anything since out of spite. Any changes in quality, or still good stuff?

Stayed the same on some and gone up a bit maybe on some keystone items like the chamois shirt, which got thin and now is getting thicker again.

People suck. The level of abuse on the old policy was jaw dropping and industrial in nature. Entire families restocking all their children's clothes and gear every year. Professional returners who would scavenge consignment shops, garage sales, and Goodwill and replace and then resell the new items. Crazy making stuff. Impossible economics.

[greatgt]

Merino socks....merino long-johns....leather knickers.....wool sweater of different types.....Wool light hunting jacket....Gaitors of some type....heavy wool and leather combination hat with ear flaps.....Wool scarf....and.....lots of snow....TM

[lowangle al]

As far as how heavy to dress I found that what I wear around the house(thermostat set at 68) is usually about perfect with a light windbeaker over it when temps are in the 20s. If it's windy or temps get below about 15 I'll throw on some light longjohns(cut off at the knees) and a vest. I always have an extra layer in my pack.

[エイダン.シダル]

The key to "softshell" is to select products *without* any internal membrane (like Goretex "windstopper", "infinium", etc) because they just don't breath well enough (for xc purposes).

I couldn't agree more! And they've put membranes in almost everything. I've got an almost thirty year old Schoeller fabric jacket I'm desperate to get a replacement for, before more zippers fail on it. I'm almost ready to get my outer layers in fine woolen twill.

To flesh out my Nordic outfits a bit more, two basic set-ups.

When skiing quickly on tracks:
- synthetic base layers of temperature dependant weight
- merino wool socks of temperature...
- synthetic gloves, neck-warmer, and hat of temperature...
- very breathable softshell pants, and jacket or jersey
- a fleece wind-vest, or down sweater, in my backpack for any stops.

When skiing slowly with my children, or off-piste myself:
- same as above, but warmer, perhaps less breathable
- and I may choose merino base layers, because I find them better for stop/start activity
- spare warmer hat and gloves

The key is the softshells, because trapped perspiration is the enemy. MEC used to make great 'Ferrata' softshells with Schoeller fabric, and Sporthill made great stuff of their own '3SP fabric': no membrane, highly breathable, mostly wind-proof, moderately weather resistant. What's the modern, affordable equivalent?

I swear by Merino wool socks. The only way I've been able to minimize blisters in all sports.

[Sloth Monster]

Hi!
I'm hoping to get into backcountry nordic skiing this winter, weather permitting.
I will use Alpina Alaska NNNBC boots. My question is, how tall socks should I use? I am going to buy smartwool socks and they have several different height sizes.
Thanks!

[fisheater]

@Sloth Monster i have always worn rather thin alpine type ski socks which are far taller than needed. The advantage to this tall sock is my long John’s don’t need to go down into the boot, or maybe just the cuff of the long john.
I started skiing alpine, in alpine skiing your shin in to the cuff of the boot. My comfort required my sock and long john to fit tight and smooth to my shin at the shin/boot interface. Thin socks offer better control in ski boots, no alpine skier would disagree with that statement. Since I am able to fit my leather BC boots and my T-4 in a thin sock, and my feet stay warm, I have continued wearing thin alpine socks.
All that being said, I would start with whatever wool or synthetic socks you have and go from there.

[Montana St Alum]

I rarely wear anything other than a shell for pants. My lower body doesn't seem to get cold as long as I keep my core warm, but on the rare occasion that I need a layer, I've found these to be great:
http://www.skintrack.com/gear-tech/revi ... underwear/

They're 3/4 length, so they don't interfere with high socks/boots. I'm in an area and ski in such a way that there isn't any "rolling terrain", though. When I was skiing backcountry a lot, it was an hour of steep climbing followed by a relatively short time on a ridge, in the cold wind, followed by a fast descent. That got old after a few years, so I'm almost exclusively resort skiing now.

I agree, relatively thin, long socks work the best. Tall, if for no other reason than they are less inclined to fall down your leg. They're also nice if you wear knee guards. For deep snow/backcountry, I never went out without knee guards, as you never really knew what your kneecaps would find!

[spd]

OK, time for new pants and I found this forum. I've always used Gore Tex shell (full zip) over base layer. I go into Adirondacks and Green Mtns. to higher elevations. Day temps generally 0-30°F. Should I stick with Gore Tex (would likely buy Pro this time) or what about soft shell (Mtn Equip Kinesis) plus light hard shell (OR Forray) in my pack for when I'm near summit or bad weather descends. Not sure if the latter is safe if I get caught out in an overnight, etc. (carry emergency gear with me). Thanks in advance for comments.

[jyw5]

for single day in 0-20F, I keep it simple. OR softshell Cirque pants over Polartech fleece pants. Never use hardshell unless doing a multiday tour. over 20F, I go even lighter, the now discontinued OR ascendant pants (polartech alpha + pertex microlight). sometimes, if the snow is deep or very cold, I will also use OR gaiters as well over my leather alfa boots. also use gaiters sometimes if wearing plastic boots as the pant cuffs dont go over the boots. softshell these days repel water just fine unless you get a downpour (but then, why are you skiing in that weather?), also, provides enough wind protection when layered over polartech.

I still wear hardshell jackets when touring as they provide more warmth when worn over other layers and also easy to take off and pack away when not needed.

if going on big trips with friends or if it involves climbing, I wear much higher quality, more expensive and better brands... Mammut, Arcteryx, Kuhl, La Sportiva, Norrona, etc.

P.S. I live in Alaska and the clothing recommendation is for regularly skiing at 2000-4500ft in the front range.

Anything higher than 6000ft and/or in the back range...totally different deal...

[freeheelfreemind]

The guy at 3:08 in The Telemark Moive (1987) is pretty much what I wear today.