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Ibex Wool Aire Hoodie Review

We’ve covered Ibex in the past, including why Merino Wool rocks when it comes to outdoor adventuring.

Ibex recently sent us their Wool Aire Hoodie to review. And it came at the perfect time, just as a cold snap was descending on the Front Range.

Men's Wool Aire Hoodie
Ibex Wool Aire Hoodie

I was surprised opening the package. I knew they were sending me a jacket, but what was this mysterious package and why was it so light? Certainly this wasn’t the jacket! But it was.

The Wool Aire Hoodie is surprisingly light. A women’s medium is only 10 ounces. Mine, a men’s large, weighed in at 12.7 ounces. When wearing it, it is so lightweight that I often forget that I’m wearing a jacket. If feels similar to a windbreaker, but offers a lot more protection from the cold.

Men's Wool Aire Hoodie
Ibex Wool Aire Hoodie

For testing, I wore it for cold morning walks with the dog and on a few hikes. Even on brutally windy red flag days, the Wool Aire Hoodie helped keep my body temperature just right (part of the magic of Merino Wool) and was breathable and moisture-wicking.

During a long hike, I especially appreciated the temperature control of Merino Wool. I was comfortable throughout without experience any sweaty discomfort or chilliness. When it got too warm for the jacket, it was also compact enough to tuck into my pack without taking up much space.

It also fits well. I’m 5’11” and 180 pounds. A large fit true to size and the athletic fit was perfect for my lean and somewhat muscular frame. While it offers great insulation, the jacket doesn’t look like a puffy jacket. It looks really good and sharp!

Men's Wool Aire Hoodie
Ibex Wool Aire Hoodie

It features two hand pockets and a stash pocket on the left breast.

The scuba style hood was great, as well. Not a ton of excess fabric, but it moved well with my head as I leaned from side to side or bent down.

Since we’re publishing this close to Earth Day, it’s worth noting that the Ibex Wool Aire Hoodie is sustainable, as well.

The Wool Aire Hoodie is made from polyester, Merino Wool, and virgin nylon. All Ibex Merino Wool is sustainably sourced and the virgin nylon is made with Bluesign certified nylon, meaning that it using as few chemical inputs as possible. And with it’s wind- and water-resistance, it was made free of poly- and perfluorinated chemicals.

Men's Wool Aire Hoodie
Ibex Wool Aire Hoodie

If you’re in the market for a new jacket, I highly recommend the Ibex Wool Aire Hoodie. It’s the perfect lightweight performance jacket for the backcountry, but stylish enough for listening to live music at the beer garden. It looks great and performs well. It’s overall quality is insanely good and I can imagine it lasting for years.

High Camp Flask Firelight 750ml Review

With summertime camping approaching, I have been on the lookout for how I can bring my love of cocktails with me to the campsite. Sure, I could bring bottles and utensils and cocktail shakers, but that is a lot to bring with me. Alternatively, I could buy and bring pre-made cocktails, but where is the fun in that?

High Camp Firelight 750 Flask
High Camp Firelight 750 Flask

High Camp Flasks sent me their Firelight 750ml Flask to test and I think I might have found the perfect solution.

The Firelight 750ml Flask is big enough to hold a bottle of wine or my favorite whiskey, but what I found myself drawn to was making pre-made cocktails to store and serve.

Portable Ranch Water

14 oz. Tequila Blanco

7 oz. Fresh Lime Juice (or 7 limes)

1.5 oz. Agave Nectar

Topo Chico Sparkling Water or your favorite sparkling water

Mix together the Tequila, lime juice, and agave nectar and pour in your Firelight 750ml Flask. When serving pour roughly 3 oz. of the mixture into your drinking vessel with ice and top with Topo Chico Sparkling Water.

Alternatively, this ratio works well with your favorite whiskey. You could also swap it out for rum and swap out the Topo Chico for Spindrift Pineapple Sparkling Water.

Flask Features

What makes the Firelight 750ml Flask so cool is its features.

It stores in a slick fabric bag and comes with two 6-Shooter Tumblers that secure to the top and bottom of the flask using a magnetic locking system. The Tumblers are double-walled, so they keep drinks cold.

High Camp Firelight 750 Flask
High Camp Firelight 750 Flask

Additionally, the flask itself is vacuum insulation, keeping that Ranch Water perfectly chilled or your wine at room temperature even outdoors.

It weighs only 29 oz. empty, so if you’re backpacking, it doesn’t add much additional weight. Essentially it weighs only a little more than your typical vacuum sealed water bottle.

It retails for $125 and can be purchased along with other cocktail accessories at https://highcampflasks.com/.

Sleep Well In DKOTA Grizzly Cade Pants

I am really excited to share with you that I have found the perfect everyday sleepwear pants from DKOTA Grizzly: the Cade Pants.

DKOTA Grizzly Cade Pants
DKOTA Grizzly Cade Pants

They are made with a blend of Cotton, Polyester, and Baby French Terry. The Cade Pants have an elastic waistband with a drawcord, making them really flexible. There are four total pockets, including a hidden zippered pocket and back patch pocket.

Out of all my lounge pants, these are the most comfortable. They have become my go-to sleepwear and weekend lounge pants. The Cade Pants are perfect for sleeping in, but also rolling out of bed to take the dog for a walk.

During a winter camping trip, I also found that these were warm and comfortable enough in my sleeping bag. I didn’t feel overheated or cold.

The Cade Pants can be found at many of DKOTA Grizzly’s retail partners. If you visit their Find Retailer page, you can locate a retailer near you. There are multiple colors available and they retail for $68.

I normally wear 34×32 pants and I wear a large.

Altra Superior 5 Trail-Running Shoe Review

I’ve been wearing minimalist shoes fairly exclusively over the past 12 years.

Even with trail-running, I would wear shoes that had only 5mm between myself and the Earth. I could feel every tree root and rock on my runs.

And I loved that.

But I also recognized that, especially on more technical terrain, having minimal protection was holding me back. I could tear down the terrain as fast as I knew I could because of those rocks, roots, and uneven ground.

The reason why I started wearing minimalist shoes was because of an injury to my achilles. Any shoe I wore that wasn’t zero-drop caused pain and discomfort. And that issue still persists 12 years later.

Enter: Altra

Altra has been on my radar for years. They fit the mold of a minimalist shoe—wide toe box, foot-shaped shoe, and zero-drop—but with cushioning.

Altra Superior 5 Trail Running Shoe
Altra Superior 5 Trail Running Shoe

When Altra sent me a pair of their Superior 5, I was hesitant at first, but was immediately put at ease when I first slipped on the shoe.

When the box arrived, it was a wet, snowy day in Colorado, so I didn’t wear them outside initially to run. I took them downstairs to my workout area for a HITT style workout.

Immediately, I knew something was different.

With all the jumping jacks, jump squats, and even running in place, I was going harder, faster, and stronger than I had in my other workouts.

When I took them out for my first trail run, I noticed that both my speed and my stride had improved. I shaved off 15 seconds to my most recent best mile and my stride was more efficient.

What was going on?

The Altra Superior 5

I chose the Altra Superior 5 out of their lineup because it is their slimmest trail design.

It weighs only 8.5 oz. for a US M9.0 and 7.3 oz. for US W8.0.

While it is still zero-drop (meaning that there is a 0mm difference between the heel and toe placement), the Altra Superior 5 still has a 21mm height. 17mm more cushion than I am typically used to!

Altra Superior 5 Trail Running Shoe
Altra Superior 5 Trail Running Shoe

Even though it has more cushion than I am used to, it still provides some ground feel. While I wasn’t feeling everything, I did notice that my foot still had enough feedback from the ground to adjust how it was running, especially on technical terrain that was rapidly changing.

And if ground feel isn’t your thing and you want more protection, the Altra Superior 5 has a removable rock plate that adds additional protection.

The outsole is also pretty darn grippy with their MaxTrac™ outsole and multi-directional lug pattern. It handled well on a variety of terrain. My first run was on a snowy and slushy day and as a transitioned from dirt to concrete, it responded well.

The upper is pretty nice too. I had read some negative reviews about the tongue causing issues with some runners, especially going downhill and having their foot slip. But I never experienced any issues with the lacing system or the “burrito style” tongue wrap. My foot always felt very secure.

The tongue itself has more padding than I’ve seen in other shoes. It’s also integrated seamlessly as part of the upper, hence the “burrito style” reference.

Altra Superior 5 Trail Running Shoe
Altra Superior 5 Trail Running Shoe

The Altra Superior 5 also has built in gaiter attachments. This was a welcome addition. With other shoes that didn’t have this feature built in, my gaiters always sat a little bit funny and snow typically found their way in. Even after stomping through a foot and half in Rocky Mountain National Park, my gaiters stayed secure.

Hardy but Minimal

During the course of our review, I put on over 50 miles on this shoe.

Going into it, I wasn’t sure I would love it. I had run many ultras with very little protection and was somewhat content. But this shoe shook my belief that I was making the best decisions for my feet based on my previous footwear choices.

I am still happy that I am running minimalist, but in a more hardy shoe. My times have improved and I am able to tear down those trails the way I’ve seen my ultrarunning idols do.

I still appreciate that ground feel isn’t completely gone either. A big reason why I find joy in running is the ability to feel the Earth and Altra still provides that ability—granted it is with a bit more cushion.

Altra Superior 5 Trail Running Shoe
Altra Superior 5 Trail Running Shoe

If you haven’t tried Altra yet, but are curious about minimalist, zero-drop shoes, you’re missing out.

The Altra Superior 5 is available online in Men’s and Women’s sizes, but Altra has a handy tracker to show shoe stores in your area that have them.

They retail for $120.

DKOTA Grizzly’s New Boone Shirt Review

During Outdoor Retailer, I had the chance to visit with the St. Louis based clothing manufacturer, DKOTA Grizzly.

Over the past several years, I’ve been visiting their booths and seeing their products at our local Scheel’s and have always been impressed with their attention to detail when it came to creating functional and stylish clothing.

DKOTA Grizzly specializes in men’s rugged-casual clothing.

Their team walked me through their Spring ’22 line and I could immediately see how their product design had evolved from heavier fabrics to performance fabrics, making DKOTA Grizzly a “crossover brand” that can allow wearers to transition from the gym to work.

A majority of their new products, including the Boone shirt, that we’ll dive into more detail on, were created with active stretch a movement fabrics; making it the perfect spring or summer companion.

DKOTA Grizzly Boone Long-Sleeve Shirt
DKOTA Grizzly Boone Long-Sleeve Shirt

DKOTA Grizzly sent us their new Boone shirt to test out.

This shirt is made from a Nylon / Spandex blend. It is light and breathable. During testing, I wore it on a hike during a fairly warm spring day and found it to be very comfortable. The fabric itself was very cool, which I think would be a great pairing in summer when it is a bit warmer. Or, at the least, pairing it with a jacket on cooler days.

The Boone also has two hidden zippered chest pockets. Now, when it comes to button-up shirts, I don’t really ever use my chest pockets. But I liked the style of the zippers. Typically when buttons or snaps, it was always a pain to undo the button. The zippers made it a heckuvalot easier to access.

DKOTA Grizzly also designed this shirt so that there’s a sunglass wipe on the lower hem and a loop inside to hang your sunglasses from.

It’s little things like this that made their product design standout and I found myself constantly surprised.

I’m a big fan of this shirt.

It’s still warming up in Colorado, but as Spring starts to settle in, this shirt will join me on many adventures. Whether I am fishing, paddle boarding, or boating.

The Boone can be found at many of DKOTA Grizzly’s retail partners. If you visit their Find Retailer page, you can locate a retailer near you.

DKOTA Grizzly New Boone Shirt

They also created another shirt called the Barkley, which is a short-sleeved variation for what we tested.

To learn more about their manufacturing practices, you can visit their website: dakotagrizzly.com.