Does anyone recall the old Marmot Sherpa shirt? It was a bit like their DriClime tops but featured extra insulation quilted onto the chest area, the idea being that a backpack would provide plenty of additional warmth for the back. The overall level of insulation was much less than a typical down jacket or other garment for wearing around camp, being intended for wear whilst actually walking.

I never managed to get hold of one - they don't seem to have been produced for very long - but it struck me as a good idea and certainly one very much in keeping with lightweight hiking. Are any manufacturers currently producing similar tops? and do any of you have experience with, and thoughts on, this sort of area-specific insulation?

This is sometimes used in bicycle and ski gear.

This is something that is nice when you want extra core warmth in the chest area. It's not insulated, but is a nice warm fleece piece that blocks wind as well as providing warmth.

http://www.thewarmfront.com/main.html

And it's very light.

Good heavens, a fleece d!cky :) (spelling adjusted because the profanity filter seems to have a rather restricted vocabulary)

Interesting idea, that. I've been wearing my Macpac Geothermals recently (it's a cold ride to work at this time of year) and one of the tops combines the Geothermal polypropylene/acrylic fabric with areas of light fleece on the shoulders and upper chest. Admittedly it looks distressingly like a uniform from "Star Trek: The Next Generation" but the difference in warmth is marked. It's certainly not a new idea, but it seems so appropriate to the ultralight ethos and practice that I'm surprised it appears not to be more widely explored.

Edited by bigjackbrass on 11/15/2008 05:52:05 MST.