Happy Birthday, Bill.

Thanks Sam,

I was 68. I think I have had a really good life so ever new day is like a bonus.

I have been better but I also have been a lot worse.

I ordered both a shirt and pants. I just might have a chance to try out my new pants and shirt before it gets to cold for them.

I lost my right kidney to cancer the first of July but it seems like my old body has recovered from that really well. I have a few follow up exams in Oct and if all is Ok I might be able to get up east for a few hundred miles on the AT.

These new pants and shirt give me something to factor into a couple of new gear lists. I also will be able to test them in some of our Texas heat and see first hand how they work for me in some real hot temperatures.

Happy birthday and keep being a dude.

68?

Heck ... you're just getting broke in. You've got a lot more miles ahead of you.

Mark

Hi,

I want to thank all who have wished me a happy birthday, here or with a PM. Both of my grand mothers were tough ladies and lived to be 92. I hope I can get close to that before my hiking days come to a complete end.

My birthday did give me a reason to buy both the new pants and shirt but I want to get the thread back on topic.

Sorry Ryan for causing the topic drift.

Hi All-

One of the perks of being on BPL staff is the opportunity to purchase new BPL gear a bit in advance of its public introduction. I wasn't involved at all in the development of these garments, so please take my remarks below as those of an early-adopter customer, rather than a BPL insider with a marketing agenda.

That said, my Khaki Thorofare shirt and pants arrived today.

I gotta say, this is some of the nicest backpacking clothing I've ever seen. The fabric has a great bumpy texture on the inside to keep it off your skin, with just the right air permeability to balance moisture transport and wind resistance -- very softshell-ish. Under a jeweler's loop, it appears to have a denier gradient which I imagine will further improve its moisture transport rate. I didn't see it mentioned in the product description, but it also appears to have a DWR finish.

The garments are very well made, with quality I'd expect from a first-tier apparel vendor, not a cottage manufacturer. It has just the features I really want -- usable bellowed zippered pockets, plus hand pockets on the pants (I suffer with chronically cold hands...), lightweight snaps to control ventilation and bugs at the major openings...and nothing superfluous. And, it's *very* light.

For those who've asked about size, I'm 6'2", 160lb and ordered a size large in both shirt and pants. The sleeve and cuff length is about perfect for me, but the cut is a bit larger than I'd like. For somebody my height, but in the 170-180 pound range, I think it would be perfect. (In my case, a medium-long size would probably be ideal, but alas, no such option exists...)

I've used Cocoon products for several years, but this definitely takes BPL clothing to a whole new level.

Cheers,

-Mike

"...The fabric has a great bumpy texture on the inside to keep it off your skin, with just the right air permeability to balance moisture transport and wind resistance -- very softshell-ish. Under a jeweler's loop, it appears to have a denier gradient..."

Just speculating here but it sounds like a light version of Pertex stretch equilibrium or something similar to Cloudveil's own inertia fabric. Perhaps someone could post a photo?

Edit: Can never seem to these right the first time.

Edited by oiboyroi on 08/23/2008 21:02:27 MDT.

Bill, I am taking this off topic again - god bless you and I hope that your recovery is (and will) go well. I have had cancer touch my family three times in the past 12 months and can emphathize what your family likely went through.

Get well.

Back on topic - any idea on the tear strength of these garments? I hate bushwacking but it happens sometimes.....

Roy,

Interesting you would mention the Cloudveil inertia fabric. I have a pair of them, sitting next to me as I type this.

They are really great but they weigh 10 ounces. I hope the new Thorofare feel as nice on me as my Cloudveil pants do. The Cloudveil pants are almost to nice to use for hiking and they even have a zipper fly.

I expect my new Thorofare pants will have a fly of some-type within a short time after I get them. A zipper should be easy to instal and I will take the slight extra weight for the convenience. I can understand that adding a fly to the pants would have added some extra time to the construction of the pants and some extra cost. I will see what the extra weigh will be.

I will compare the material as soon as I get my new pants and shirt.

Added to thread:

Thanks Roy and David.

If someone doesn't post a picture I will try and take a few pictures and if they show the material well enough I will post them. I would guess I might see mine by the end of next week.

Edited by bfornshell on 08/23/2008 23:56:37 MDT.

Hi Bill,

Happy Birthday man!

The inertia fabric is great. I have a prospector hoody and REI pyrn (made of equilibrium) and both are similar to the description that Mike gave above. A picture would be great for clarification.

Hmm...or BPL could just come out and tell us but I'm sure they don't want to give away their secrets!

Just wondering how thin/sheer the pant fabric is. For instance, can items carried in the pocket (such as ID or cash) readily be seen through it? Does underclothing show through?

(And a 3rd lady interested in women's sizing here, Ryan)

Happy Birthday Bill.

Happy Birthday, Bill.

Thorofare Collection - Trekking Pant


Drawcord on Pant


Sidepocket on Pant

Thorefare Collection - Trekking Shirt


Collar on Shirt


Snaps on Front of Shirt


Pocket on Shirt

Edited by sharalds on 08/25/2008 12:48:01 MDT.

I have 2 questions:

Would you recommend replacing a windshirt w/ the Thorofare clothing? I read that it provides some wind and water resistance but is it enough? Sorry, I know this is a subjective question.

Do the colors look the same on the shirt and pants? From the pictures, it seems they might be slightly different.

Edited by pedro87 on 08/25/2008 13:21:00 MDT.

Peter, your question is subjective but I feel confident is recommending that you do NOT consider the Thorofare collection a substitute for a piece of wind gear.

The photos above show two separate colors - - Desert Tan and Dark Sepia. The pant and shirt are available in either of the fabric colors shown.

Thanks for the reply. From the pictures of the clothing posted, it just looks like there are 3 colors: the shirt appears to be dark sepia, and the pants appear to be 2 additional different colors (they don't look like each other and neither looks like the dark sepia in the shirt). Maybe its just the light? :) It's not a big deal anyhow. I was just curious.

Just a suggestion about unisex sizing....would you consider a shorter length in the pants?

A lot of women have learned to 'settle' for things, Ryan and I don't mean that as an attack on your line of clothing. It's more of a culture thing, I think. But some of us learned to color outside of the box. : )

Men tops usually can fit women but the pants are tougher.

Length isn't just a problem for women Donna. I'm 5'8ish with a long torso and wear a 32-34" waist which means a lot of pants come with a 32"+ length. At best I can get a 30" length which is still a little long. I've just learned to deal with it.

Or longer pants? I need at least a 34" inseam and I'm sure there are some guys out there who do too.