Ditched almost all of my apparel...

[newbie2011]

So just an update... I used my new stuff this weekend. 1st was Friday while shoveling and snowblowing in a big winter mix storm that hit PA. Ice, snow and rain all at the same time. I was out for about 2 hours and there was precipitation the entire time. Not one drop of water made it thru the "weather proof" softshell material. Now it was not terribly windy so on that day I couldn't speak to the "windproof" but I could say that it was very breathable as I did not sweat, it regulated air flow wonderfully.

Today was my first ski day in the gear. Got to the mountain about 730 to hang out in the parking lot with the rest of the Beer 30 group. It was about 15*F and extremely windy. Before when I knew it was going to be windy I would always wear a thicker midlayer under my shell but today I just had a baselayer and then the pull over... I did not feel 1 thing. It was absolutely wind proof. It was wonderful. Skied all morning in it and then again hung out in the parking lot for our annual cookout and did not layer down. It got to almost 40 and because the stuff is so breathable it worked like a charm.

As far as skiing went, movement was free, did not feel bulky at all. This was one of the best decisions that I made getting this Blackfish Gear!

That's a great update, thank you ! Even if I might not use it for skiing at first, the warmth and wind protection it provides sound great and it's something that I was looking for. Need to check if they have any EU retailer

[mvhoffman]

Last summer I got myself a Black Diamond softshell, but I think it's targeted at ... some kind of higher intensity activities, although not sure which, as in cool and windy time it was not providing much windproof nor much warmth - if any, so I was a bit disappointed. I had an older one, wind-stopper kind, that was sort of too stiff and too warm, so I was looking for something lighter, guess the BD one was too much light.
These from Blackfish look interesting, but how cold does it gets where you'd be using it ? Would you/could you still use some kind of insulated mid-layer ? Not sure if it would fit on top of a midlayer for below 0C temperatures

So just an update... I used my new stuff this weekend. 1st was Friday while shoveling and snowblowing in a big winter mix storm that hit PA. Ice, snow and rain all at the same time. I was out for about 2 hours and there was precipitation the entire time. Not one drop of water made it thru the "weather proof" softshell material. Now it was not terribly windy so on that day I couldn't speak to the "windproof" but I could say that it was very breathable as I did not sweat, it regulated air flow wonderfully.

Today was my first ski day in the gear. Got to the mountain about 730 to hang out in the parking lot with the rest of the Beer 30 group. It was about 15*F and extremely windy. Before when I knew it was going to be windy I would always wear a thicker midlayer under my shell but today I just had a baselayer and then the pull over... I did not feel 1 thing. It was absolutely wind proof. It was wonderful. Skied all morning in it and then again hung out in the parking lot for our annual cookout and did not layer down. It got to almost 40 and because the stuff is so breathable it worked like a charm.

As far as skiing went, movement was free, did not feel bulky at all. This was one of the best decisions that I made getting this Blackfish Gear!

[newbie2011]

Last summer I got myself a Black Diamond softshell, but I think it's targeted at ... some kind of higher intensity activities, although not sure which, as in cool and windy time it was not providing much windproof nor much warmth - if any, so I was a bit disappointed. I had an older one, wind-stopper kind, that was sort of too stiff and too warm, so I was looking for something lighter, guess the BD one was too light.
These from Blackfish look interesting, but how cold does it gets where you'd be using it ? Would you/could you still use some kind of insulated mid-layer ? Not sure if it would fit on top of a midlayer for below 0C temperatures

[mvhoffman]

Nice! This sounds like a great option. Let us know how they work out.

I will be skiing in them this weekend, but just from wearing them around the house, they are extremely comfortable. I have no doubt that the performance will be great

[Ukuvox]

Nice! This sounds like a great option. Let us know how they work out.

[mvhoffman]

Well the title is not false, I ditched 90% of my apparel in favor to go to soft shell apparel.

I grabbed a jacket the other night from the cellarway to run out to the store. It was my trusty North Face soft shell. While driving to the store I thought to myself, "this jacket is so comfortable, I wish my ski gear was this way. I had the most comfortable Columbia pants and jackets, however no matter how comfortable they feel, I still feel boxy and bulky. After getting home from he store I was looking online and came across the Blackfish brand. They are a fishing company out of MN that has partnerships all over. They have softshell bibs, pants, hoodies, jackets, etc. I commented on one of their Instagram posts and a few minutes later got a reply by one of their partnered/sponsored fisherman from upstate NY. We strike' d up a conversation and I was throwing some questions out to him. We discussed the different apparel options and he asked what I was fishing for. I laughed and told him that I was actually interested in it for ski gear. He then started to tell me that he uses it for skiing as well as ice fishing. He gave me some things to look at...

I then purchased that night a soft shell pullover hoodie, and a set of bibs. I will start a post and do a proper review once both items get here. The bibs should be delivered tomorrow or Wednesday. The hoodie came on Sunday and I wore it immediately because of the cold and wind. Not even a little bit got thru. Now according to the advertisement it is "wind proof" and "weather proof." I am still going to wash for the first time in Nikwax detergent, but the hoodie was so comfortable and felt great.

Since deciding to switch to soft shell on this whim of mine I actually ended up selling 3 pair of pants, 2 jackets, and a set of bibs. Obviously I'm hoping this works out...

Oh, and the best part... for the soft shell bibs and hoodie the price came to $200 total. so much nicer than spending $250+ just on bibs or a jacket alone.

Anyone else use all softshell?