Eoghan
Reviewed: 05 September 2012
Supremely comfortable, light and fast-drying...at a price
Excellent performance, very quick drying, good cut, thoughtful seam positioning, comfortable, looks good, light weight, seems to have good wicking properties. A quality base layer.
Exorbitantly expensive, feels flimsy, can get saturated with sweat
A quality base layer. The cut has been well thought through - just the right amount of Lycra-clinginess, a good neckline, good length overall and good sleeve length. The colouring is good (mine's grey with red seams which looks terrific). The merino is very soft - my previous Icebreaker (still keeping going after 7 years or so) got gnarled and hard after a few washes, but so far the Velocity still retains its softness. Seams have been designed to avoid places where you have a lot of movement - it's good thinking, although in practice I've never had a major problem with irritating seams on other base layer tops.
I use it for walking, running and cycling and it performs equally well for all three. It doesn't snag up with a rucksack on and the arms and neckline stay in position. It's very comfortable to wear. There are mesh panels on high-sweat parts (most of the back) which allow air through (and keep weight down). As with any base layer of course it won't stay dry when you're perspiring, but it does dry VERY quickly when you stop moving. Echo the OM review that if you're pushing very hard is can become saturated with sweat, although the rapid-drying more than makes up for this.
But then there's the price (pushing £60 for a t-shirt?) Yes it's nice, but I'm not convinced that it's worth the extra (I picked mine up in a Snow & Rock sale for £30-odd). It feels slightly flimsy as well (especially the mesh panels) - although with 6 months of wear it's holding up so no complaints.
