Brits Doing It For Themselves... Scoop

It seems to be Brit week here on OM. You can read about Terra Nova's mad-light new tent elsewhere on the site, but they're not the only British manufacturing company doing interesting things...

What if we told you that there's a small UK clothing company which is manufacturing in the UK using Gore's top-end fabrics, selling at competitive prices and - gawd help us - taking on the big boys for quality?

Well, it's true. Freestyle are a Plymouth-based outfit with a background in mountain biking clothing who are moving gently into the outdoors market as well. The Gore-Tex connection is interesting, not least because WL Gore are incredibly stringent when it comes to granting licences to use their fabrics: Gore have regular inspections and strict quality control regulations.

A 450-gramme XCR Top...

So what sort of stuff are we talking about? First off, a little bird tells us that Freestyle has a 450-gramme Gore-Tex XCR Smock in the pipeline - see picture. That's around 100 grammes lighter than the excellent Berghaus Slipstream, but it still comes with water-resistant pocket zips, side vents with water-resistant zips, adjustable cuffs and hems, a drawcord neck and fleece collar.

There's no hood, which may limit it's appeal for outdoors use, but it shows what the company is capable of. Testing is still going on and there's no release date as yet, but this is a genuine scoop with no-one else outside of Freestyle knowing about it. Until now that is...

Gore Windstopper Softshell

Available right now is Freestyle's take on Gore Windstopper Softshell with at least one model aimed squarely at the outdoor market. We've been using the Freestyle Altitude for the last few months and we're very impressed.

It's a hooded soft shell top with a water-resistant main zip, venting chest pockets also with water-resistant zips, Lycra cuffs, single-pull adjustable hem drawcord, seamless shoulders and a nice cut too. The hood, by the way, is adjustable and roomy.

The fabric is something called Windstopper Royal Race, which Freestyle chose after on the hill testing in the Alps. It's a lighter fabric than most of the Windstopper Softshell we've seen, with a diamond-cut internal lining. Like all Windstopper it's totally windproof, highly water resistant and decently breathable too.

We like the fabric a lot, it's got more stretch than most of the WS soft shell we've seen, the lining is comfortable against the skin and the jacket's become a bit of a favourite at OM Towers. Full test in the pipeline, though we should mention that in our experience, Windstopper works best in cold, dry, alpine conditions.

As a bonus, the Altitude is priced at £129. That's certainly not cheap, but it's a lot less than any comparable Windstopper Softshell jacket we've seen from other manufacturers.

It's an ongoing story, so watch this space. In the mean time, check out the Freestyle web site for more information on their entire range of clothing.