Stormproof…
Growing up in the Pacific Northwest as I did, I like foul-weather gear that works. I’ve duck hunted in sleet and wind, and I’ve fished for walleyes where we had to shovel snow out of the boat when we were through.
And I’ve been in rainstorms where the only thing to do was curl up in a fetal position and wait for the skies to stop dumping water.
So I have a fine appreciation for foul-weather gear that does what it claims and an intense dislike for that which doesn’t.
Enter, here, Stormr’s Stryker jacket. This may well be the best coat I’ve ever had. While I’ve not been in one of those equatorial rainstorms that make you wonder why you left home while wearing it, I’ve worn it in some absolutely miserable conditions, and it kept me warm and dry.
“There is only one thing you have to work on with Stormr gear,” says pro photographer Garrick Dixon. Dixon is one of those photographers who spends more time on the water than a guide, shooting fishing images and videos for a host of companies in all kinds of conditions. “That one thing is how to dress properly.”
He was telling me this when we were waiting for rides to the boats in Lewiston, New York, last spring. We were scheduled to fish on Lake Erie at a time just after ice out when big packs of ice were heading toward the Niagara River. Between the wind and the water with a surface temp just above freezing, you had to wear layers upon layers under Gore-Tex raingear to stay warm.
With his Stormr jacket, bibs, gloves and beanie Dixon was wearing a long-sleeve T-shirt, shorts and wool socks. Wear anything more, he said, and he’d be sweating. Since that day, I’ve taken my Stormr Stryker jacket everywhere I could expect wind, cold, rain, snow or sleet. I’ve found the jacket to be as close to perfect as I might want.
These jackets are made with neoprene at the core, a fleece inner lining and an outer fabric all welded together. The Stryker also has a reinforcing fabric on places where you expect wear, pockets inside and pockets outside the coat, and a hood.
Besides that, the hood, cuffs and waist are adjustable for fit—and to keep out wind and rain.
If you take a close look at the Stormr Stryker jacket, you’ll see that it bears a strong resemblance to a diver’s wetsuit. And it feels like one when you pick it up. But it is different.
The details of construction stand out—there are waterproof zippers on the front and the two handwarmer pockets and one of the two chest pockets. There are also two D-rings on which you can hook the kill switch for the outboard or pliers or whatever.
Inside, there are three pockets, one of which has a Velcro closure and is sized for a cell phone.
Stormr’s Stryker jacket is very well designed, very well built and something that does just what it’s supposed to do: keep you warm and dry.
For more information, go to: www.stormrusa.com.