Genius or lunacy? New for review are Paramo's overlayering, insulated sleeves...
Just
in for review
is one of the most innovative or, if you prefer, most bizarre bits of
kit we've seen for ages in the interesting shape of the
new
for autumn 2009 Paramo Torres Sleeves.
Faintly bizarre - the
Sleeves alone.
Sit down and concentrate. The Torres Sleeves are simply that, a pull-on
set of sleeves filled with Paramo's Nikwax Insulator synthetic
insulation - not unlike Primaloft - that are designed to be pulled on
over whatever you happen to be wearing at the time and add additional
warmth to your outfit. There's a minimal yoke connecting the two.
The thinking is that you lose a surprising amount of heat from your
pipe-like arms, something that gilet use tends to back up, so covering
them will add instant warmth, plus the design of the over-size sleeves
means they go on quick and easy and come off the same way. Plus they're
cut to be unrestrictive for active use. And because the insulation is
synthetic, you can happily throw them on over wet outer layers without
fretting.
And layered over a new
Quito Jacket - we have one of those too...
You can use them over a pack, without removing it and pull them on
easily in confined spaces like belay ledges. Climbers will also be
interested to learn that they're claimed to preserve manual dexterity.
Okay, we'll fess up, they do look faintly ridiculous and have echos of
the sleeve/yoke part of the Paramo Third Element jacket, but they're
definitely an interesting idea and at 210 grammes, they're not going to
weigh you down too badly.
Do they work? You'll have to watch this space for now, we'll give them
a whirl just as soon as we can. Interestingly, although Paramo is
focussing on the use of the Sleeves with their waterproof shells as a
sort of minimalist belay jacket substitute, we actually think they
might work really well with the Torres Gilet and other insulated vests
by effectively upgrading them to full insulated jacket level.
It's not a cheap option - a Torres Gilet is £75 and the
Sleeves retail for £55, so the combo would set you back
£130 while a full Torres Smock is just £100 -
however you could argue that it all makes for a more versatile
combination giving the option of full coverage when stopped, but a
cooler gilet option on the move.
Full review once we've plucked up the courage to be seen out in the
Torres Sleeves. More Paramo information at
www.paramo.co.uk
though at the time of writing, the Sleeves haven't made it onto the
site...
