Speed Hiking Jacket/Pants

[Nina178]

Hi at all,

I've just started with speed hiking and I'm looking for the right clothes. Do you have any experience with speed hiking and can you recommend me jackets/pants that are perfectly made for this use?

Thank you very much!!

 

[toejam]

I wear running shorts when I want to hike fast. I have a light goretex rain jacket for the rare occasions it rains in California. 

Find a local meetup group or hiking club and see what they say.

[Nina178]

Hi toejam,

thank you for your reply. Can you tell me the concrete brand/model of your jacket or what was good/bad about it? There are so many jackets on the market that claim "breathable" and I just don't know which one to choose or on which details I should pay attention.

[toejam]

It's a Patagonia Super Cell. I think it's a good combination of light and durable, with pit zips and real Gore Tex. There's a good discussion of rain jackets in the "Let's Talk About Hardshells" thread - http://www.trailgroove.com/forums/topic/1419-lets-talk-about-hardshells/  Be sure to check the Rain Jacket Reviews link.

I think with rain jackets you should try a bunch of them on and wait for a good deal. Retail price can be crazy.

When hiking fast the key is lightweight layers you can change on the fly but don't have a lot of weight or bulk. I'm guessing you may be female, and ladies seem to have a lot of options with lightweight but warm synthetic layers (or maybe I'm just not willing to wear tights). That's why I suggest finding a meetup group or hiking club to see what works for people in your area. Here's a photo album of a hike that started on a chilly morning and went through 26 miles of rough and brushy trail in 10 hours. I wasn't wearing running shorts - those are for wide trails in good weather. You can see the kind of clothes people wore and how they adjusted the layers.

https://picasaweb.google.com/toejamhikes/EastHurricaneDeckLoop?authuser=0&authkey=Gv1sRgCOT3lePfjOySEQ&feat=directlink