New Rab Clothing For 2010

We popped over to see Rab earlier this week and along with their new lightest ever Pertex fabric preview, we also got to have a look at the brand new clothing and sleeping bag ranges for this spring 2010.

We'll cover the sleeping bags separately as the whole range has been redesigned for 2010, but here's a look at what's new for this spring in the clothing line. That means some new, lightweight eVent waterproofs, revised VapourRise Light and a couple of other items.

New Lightweight eVent

Most of Rab's event line is unchanged for this year, so there's the light but reinforced Super Dru alpine shell (440 grammes) and the even lighter, but not reinforced and more minimalist Momentum - 340 grammes with helmet hood and the all-round Drillium with roll-away hood (£375 grammes).

For 2010, there's now a Women's Momentum Jacket - like the men's version, it's a lightweight eVent jacket wth helmet-sized hood, twin Napoleon pockets and water-resistant YKK zips all round.


Rab uses narrow tape on non-critical seams to save weight and at 310 grammes, it's one of the lightest women's alpine shells out there.

The Drillium - below in men's and women's versions - remains basically the same as before, but the fabric now has a discreet matt look to if rather than the shiny, shiny look of the original jacket.


Last but not least, there's the new Demand Pull-On, esentially a stripped-down Momentum with a helmet hood and half-zip and just a single chest pocket. Retailing for £150, the Demand has a claimed weight of just 280 grammes, around 60 grammes less than the jacket.


Other weight saving moves include a hem-cord that only acts on the rear of the jacket and what Rab is calling an Exoskeletal hood system, with the drawcord on the outside of the hood to eliminate the weight of a cord channel - Haglofs uses a similar and effective system on some of its LIM range. One of the lightest, if not the lightest, eVent jackets out there.

Vapour-rise Lite Tweaked

When the Vapour-rise Lite jacket launched this year, it used a lighter, more wind-resistant version of Pertex Equilibrium fabric combined with a Polartec PowerDry liner. We liked it and it got a lot of hammer this winter for running and biking use. It wasn't that much lighter than standard Vapur-rise however, but for this spring, it gets a lighter-weight version of the brushed lining used on standard Vapour-rise.


That means a more significant weight saving of approximately 200 grammes over the full Vapour-rise jacket - think 390 grammes compared to 610 grammes. On top of that, there's a new Women's Vapour-rise Lite jacket - belwo - so lasses get a look in too. Price for both versions is £100.



New Alpine Pull-On

We like the look of this, it's a simple, hooded pull-over made from Pertex Equilibrium fabric. Equilibrium is what's used for the outer shell of Vapour-rise and it's a denier-gradient fabric that uses the structure of the material to wick moisture, so while it's not entirely windproof, it wicks brilliantly and is also very, very breathable.


Effectively it's a very lightweight soft shell at a claimed 260 grammes, arguably one of the lightest soft shells on the market. Or in Rab's words: 'Arguably the world's lightest fully-featured soft-shell pull-on'. The hood is helmet compatible and, like the Demand, uses Rab's new Exoskeletal hood adjuster.

It also has a deep venting YKK chest zip , adjustable hem, elasticated cuffs and two large, YKK-zipped mesh-lined, A-line pockets. Plus it's cut long for increased protection. Looks like it should be a cracking all-round, lightweight top. Price is £70.

Cirrus Pull-On - New Quantum Windshell

Also new in pull-on format is the Cirrus, a simple windproof top made from the current lightest Pertex fabric, Quantum and weighing in at a claimed 75 grammes. That's around 25 grammes less than a Montane Featherlight Smock and The North Face Hydrogen jacket... Price is £50 and it feels light... choice of colour too.



Dihedral Pants - £60

Last but not least, Rab's legwear tends to get overlooked, but the Dihedral Pants are neat-looking, tough, stretchy all-rounders made from Polyamide with a diamond crotch for mobility, articulated knees, zipped hand pockets and three leg-length options, 30", 32" and 34". Should be good for all-round walking, trekking, climbing and scrambling.



All available from Rab stockists right about now or very shortly.

More details at www.rab.uk.com