Best Parka and Bibs for a Lady mountain rider

savagecanuck · Nov 16, 2010

I am looking for new apparal for my wife.She is a mountain rider with a 09 RMK700.Not overally aggressive but needs to stay warm and dry.Seems Klim is #1 but spendy,motofist has no ladies specific,polaris has a line of ladies apparal.Not looking for junk like castle.Any feedback from you gals would be highly appreciated thks

DragonDiva · Nov 16, 2010

I like my Klim gear. I had Polaris stuff before but it would get wet (only the outside) and then ice up when in powder. The Klim's gortex is not a problem. I ride with some people that use snow boarding gear and they don't have a problem. I know there is lots of women's stuff available in snowboarding stuff. I would make sure that any gear has gortex to keep it dry.

girlpowder · Nov 17, 2010

savagecanuck said:
I am looking for new apparal for my wife.She is a mountain rider with a 09 RMK700.Not overally aggressive but needs to stay warm and dry.Seems Klim is #1 but spendy,motofist has no ladies specific,polaris has a line of ladies apparal.Not looking for junk like castle.Any feedback from you gals would be highly appreciated thks

HMK has a good selection for ladies. Yes, it's a little spendy too, but you pay for what you get most the time. If you start going the cheaper route your buying gear more often had you spent the money on the better stuff from the start.

http://www.hmkusa.com/category/Women's-Gear

powderpilot · Nov 17, 2010

I'm sure there is lots of good stuff out there, but I am sold on Gore-tex. I wear a shell and layer according to the weather. It makes the jacket a lot more versatile, since you can wear it on warmer days too. Anything that is made of Gore-tex will be a little on the pricey side, but you get what you pay for. I wore my last jacket for 7 years and it still looks like new, and I am not gentle on my gear!

You can go to Gore-tex's website and see which companies use it in their products. They have links to Klim, North Face, Burton and others there.

Oregongirl · Nov 17, 2010

girlpowder said:
Yes, it's a little spendy too, but you pay for what you get most the time.
http://www.hmkusa.com/category/Women's-Gear

Good gear is the first layer against you and the elements in a survival situation. I wouldn't advise skimping on the outlayer.....it just might help save your life one of these days.

Also - I would recommend pants instead of bibs. If you are riding in the backcountry and wearing a beacon, wearing a survival backpack, and wearing a protective vest (all of which are highly recommended) then it's a total PIA to strip down to pee. :face-icon-small-dis

CoyoteGirl · Nov 17, 2010

Oregongirl said:
Also - I would recommend pants instead of bibs. If you are riding in the backcountry and wearing a beacon, wearing a survival backpack, and wearing a protective vest (all of which are highly recommended) then it's a total PIA to strip down to pee. :face-icon-small-dis

X2. Man I can't imagine wearing bibs these days! LOL :face-icon-small-dis

I like a shell so I can layer and have options for making myself comfy. If you go with a non-removable liner you lose alot of freedom there. And getting to hot, sweating and then cooling off is just asking for trouble.

What I'll be running this year is the HMK Hustler Pant with a pair of silks underneath. Now I run HOT, so silks are probably to light for most ladies. Maybe start her off with a medium weight non-cotton layer there?

On top will be a HMK Huster Jacket (shell) with venting in the armpits for those who get too warm. Under that a 661 Coresaver, which holds alot of heat in and under that a silk top or light Polypropylene layer. For super cold days I'll put on a medium layer between the base and the Coresaver but generally once we start riding that will come off. But that's the nice thing about layering you can put on and take off as needed.

Alot of people like bibs so that they don't get snow down their pants. Well the above combo snaps together so that you don't get snow down anywhere! :face-icon-small-cooHMK's site

aksnomachinechic · Nov 19, 2010

I like KLIM, but it all depends on the gal too. I'm short so it's hard to find gear that fits my length. KLIM is what I am with right now until I find gear that comes in pint size for women. I find that most snow gear comes in Regular lenths and if I do find in short length it's either too thick and bulky or cheap.

Make sure she tries on several different styles and types to find her liking but never go cheap. You always get what you pay for if you do. KLIM has an awesome warranty too.

Oh and I do wear their bibs but not the womens insulated ones, too bulky.

Good luck!

savagecanuck · Nov 20, 2010

Well thanks for the input ladies.She ended up getting a Klim Alure jacket in black,adrenalin boots and a pair of powercross gloves.Her older bibs are goretex and since the budget was already pushed a new set of bibs[pants] will wait till next year or in the spring when the discounts come out.I will mention the bibs vs pants thing when it comes to a pee as being male I never thought of that one but its an excelent point

Search

Best Parka and Bibs for a Lady mountain rider

savagecanuck

Free Member

DragonDiva

Free Member

girlpowder

Well-known member

powderpilot

Free Member

Oregongirl

Well-known member

CoyoteGirl

Well-known member

aksnomachinechic

Well-known member

savagecanuck

Free Member

Similar threads