It is 6 am, dark, and raining…so what am I going to do while held up in my tent? Write about zippers of course! I am struck by how appreciative I am for the little things that bring me comfort – my choice of coats with double zippers, a 2 person dome tent (I can’t imagine holding up for days in one of those 1-person mummy style tents) , my Crazy Creek Chair, and a warm sleeping bag. For the moment, I just want to talk about the uber interesting subject of zippers!
I am so glad I held strong to the decision to bring jackets that have double zippers -meaning the kind that unzip from the top and bottom of the jacket. I have three coats with me-a windbreaker, a warmer water-resistant jacket (which also doubles as my pillow), and a rain jacket. The double zipper thing provides so much comfort for me.
Most riding days, I start wearing a quick-dry type tank top or tee-shirt with a long sleeve breathable shirt over it, then cover with my 15 year old Pearlizumi lightweight windbreaker (bright green not waterproof). I almost bought a new windbreaker before I left but I could not find one that fit and had double zippers (okay, I might have been looking only in clearance at REI, but still). The double zipper allows me to not only adjust the airflow into my jacket, but also, to unzip it from the bottom to make the jacket less restrictive when riding.
My snuggly Colombia coat (that I scored at a thrift shop) keeps me warm as I write this. I appreciate being able to unzip from the bottom when I am sitting in my tent (or elsewhere). It is just more comfortable than having my jacket all bunch up around my waist and restricting me.
My raincoat unfortunately does not have a double zipper (only because I could not find one at REI at the time I was looking). The best I could do was a raincoat on clearance from Northface that has a one way zipper, but ties in the middle and has velcro too. If I wear it while riding in the rain, I keep it unzipped, tie it in the middle, velcro the top and wear my waterproof pants to keep my legs dry (dry-ish as my sweat from inside dampens my leggings). Again, a double zipper would be better, but that was as close as I could get at the time –in retrospect, I should have tried harder and ordered one.
I might add that the zip pockets on all my coats are also very handy for keeping things safe and dry. Jackets with armpit zippers rock too. That extra bit of breathability in that particular location is worth a few extra bucks. Okay…I think I’ve beat this horse about dead. I think the rain is letting up…