Arc’Teryx sidewinder Shell

I found an Arc’Teryx Sidewinder shell a few years on the discount rack at the local Mountain Gear store. Discount in this case meant it was probably a discontinued model at the end of the season. It was around 50% off and I had my eye on one of these for a while, so I grabbed it and headed to checkout.

It is a Gore-Tex XCR based hard shell. The current model is Gore-Tex Pro. Remember, mine is a few years old. The Sidewinder name comes from the asymmetrical zipper that shifts to the side before it reaches the chin. While I didn’t really have any issues with jackets rubbing my chin wrong in the past, the zipper on this completely avoids my neck and chin, eliminating any possibility of an issue. The model I have does have a hood that rolls into a zippered compartment. Not a huge fan of this, but it does work.

There is a small pocket with a window on the left arm, I assume for a ski pass. Works well for my SAR ID card. A Recco reflector is on the right arm, about the same level as the pocket is on the left. Early this fall, I discovered my daily use jacket had seen better days, so I got ready to find myself a new softshell, but still haven’t found the right one. So all winter, I’ve been wearing this hard shell. And it has been fantastic! The pit zips keep the air moving if I’m moving a lot and it is easy to layer under, so keeping warm enough has not been an issue. I’d love to get my hands on the current model, since it looks like there are a couple more inside pockets, but I’m not giving this one up any time soon.

Leave A Comment, Written on March 7th, 2012 , Uncategorized
Dragonwear Nomex Fleece ANSI Cat2 Jacket

I was fortunate enough to pick one of these up a few years ago in a bargain bin at the Washington State Search and Rescue Conference. I’ve been using wildland fire fighting equipment from True North for quite a number of years. I will have to do a post in the near future about their packs and some of their accessories that make SAR work much easier in some respects.

Back to this jacket though. True North developed a Nomex fleece product and started producing jackets, undergarments, and other products to better serve the needs of wildland firefighters. As a SAR responder, I recognized the need to have a good quality, fire resistant jacket to wear when searching from the air, or being transported in a helicopter. Most of my technical jackets and pants don’t fit the bill.

I’ve been pretty good at avoiding cotton for some time, but most of the SAR clothes I have would make me a burning, melting mess in a fire. That’s where this jacket comes in to play. It can keep me warm and safe in the air. Haven’t had a chance to try out the undergarments, but hope to in the near future.

Leave A Comment, Written on December 28th, 2011 , Uncategorized Tags: ,
Esbit Stove

Esbit Stove and fuel

Esbit stoves have been around for years and come in a couple different configurations. They even make a titanium version. I picked up this stove in a small package for under $10 at the local Army surplus store. If you have a military surplus store near you and you haven’t checked it out, you really should. They have some strange stuff, some cool stuff, and definitely a few things that could belong in a search and rescue pack.
An Esbit stove is a very simple small box box that could store a bit of chemical fuel when closed, and supports a small pot or metal cup when open. I should mention here, that the chemical fuels burn very hot and emit a flame that you may not be able to see, especially in daylight. Keep this in mind, for safety.
There are a small variety of chemical fuels you can use with the stove. it comes with the white fuel you see in the photo. You can also find trioxane and hexamine in the military surplus stores. All of these fuels should be stored in airtight containers, as some lose their effectiveness when exposed to air. To use them, place it in the center of the stove. You can use a match, lighter, or metal match to light it. Since the flame is hard to see with some of these, after applying an ignition source, hold your hand several inches above the stove to see if you can feel the heat. If so, place your already filled cup or pot on the stove. For maximum efficiency, pack along some heavy aluminum foil and wrap this around the stove and pot, effectively making a chimney to keep the heat directed at the pot.

The Esbit stove won’t break any records for boiling water. In fact, you may need to use more than one tablet of fuel to sufficiently heat the water. That said, it takes up very little space (including the fuel), and is a very cost effective option. For these two reasons, I carry an Esbit in my pack*.

* I do have several stoves, including a MSR Whisperlite, and the Soto OD-1R. What I carry depends on the situation.

1 Comment, Written on October 22nd, 2011 , Uncategorized Tags: ,
First post from my phone

So I just loaded up the WordPress app from the Android store, entered the info for this site, and am posting my first mobile entry. All in less than 5 minutes! Sweet! Ok, next one will actually be about SAR gear. I promise.

Leave A Comment, Written on September 29th, 2011 , Uncategorized
Greetings, once again.

Welcome to what must be my 4th attempt at a gear blog for SAR folks. I apologize to all the past readers (both of you), since I clearly just lost interest and stopped posting. This time, the WordPress tools are better, the dashboard easier, and I will be installing the right tools on my Android phone to post from that. Oh, and I might actually promote the site, so more than a couple people read it.

Leave A Comment, Written on August 1st, 2011 , Uncategorized

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