February 7, 2010

Worn & Tested: Nike Zoom Force 1

Earlier on this season I decided to sell my old snowboard boots at a swap as they were too small and just too uncomfortable to ride through. My last 2 pairs of boots were Burton so I decided to mix it up and try a pair of Nike boots who are on their 2nd year of putting out snowboard boots. Nike put out 2 models of men's boots this year: The Zoom Force 1 and the Zoom Kaiju. I opted for the Zoom Force 1s because that's all I had the budget for. After a few months of riding at the local hill and a trip to Fernie in December I thought it was time to write a review. The first difference I noticed was that they were actually the right size and hence much nicer to ride in. The toe box seems a little bigger than they did in the Burton Ions. They've comfy and don't loosen up by the end of the day. My last pair of boots had Burton's speedzone lacing so these don't lace up as quickly but I do have more control over which areas have the right tension. In terms of flex these boots are great. Not too stiff for park and not too loose for the rest of the mountain. Although I am happy with these boots and will be riding them for another season after this for sure I would expect Nike's boots to improve substantially over the next couple of years as they are new entrants into the snowboard market and their massive budget doesn't hurt either.
The inner lacing system. Easier to get tight than Burton's version but it takes longer to do.
The tread pattern on the boots is grippy but almost too sharp as I often scratch my hands on them. 
The locking lace loop. This broke on one of my boots after 4 months of riding and although it's been slightly fixed it's still not perfect. 

February 5, 2010

Winter Hike

After school today I decided to go for a little hike to try out my new Jansport knapsack and work on my photography. I headed to rainbow valley ravine where I used to go tobogganing with friends most days after school. 
The race hill.
We dropped this back in the day.
Woolrich 60/40 parka, Osh Kosh Hickory Stripe chore coat, Holden pants, Jansport bag, and Sorels.
Fallen tree to cross.
Snow covered leaves.

February 4, 2010

Raul Meireles

As I've mentioned before, along with fashion, football is one of my biggest passions. However, there are very few footballers that have a fashionable image on the pitch. Without question, one of them has got to be Portugese midfielder Raul Meireles. Good footballer as well, just plays for the wrong club.

Gant Rugger

The first time I encountered Gant was when my friend Chris and I were at Winner's looking for random stuff (Team China basketball jerseys) we found this shirt that just said Gant across the front. We thought it was some sort of joke and slang word we had never heard before. Unbeknownst to us was that Gant is/was a large player in American sportswear. Fast forward to today where I am looking at the newly brought back Gant Rugger, who's website launched earlier this week, I am liking what I am seeing. Rugger is Gant's more youthful causal line and their website stays true to that. Their offerings are pretty consistent with what I wear in the summer whether it be madras & oxford cloth shirts to chinos. They're even offering a selvedge oxford cloth shirt which has definitely shot up my 'to buy' list. Apparently you can pick their stuff up at Epaulet or in Edmonton at Glam Slam and Harry Rosen. 

February 3, 2010

Pick Up: Ralph Lauren Fair Isle Sweater Vest

As you may have seen in my christmas sweater post a while back, I'm a big fan of fair isle. According to wikipedia (yes i will certainly use it as a legitimate source), "fair isle is a traditional knitting technique used to create patterns with multiple colours and is named after Fair Isle, a tiny island in the north of Scotland, between the Orkney and Shetland islands. Fair Isle knitting gained a considerable popularity when the Prince of Wales (later to become Edward VIII) wore Fair Isle tank tops in public in 1921. Traditional Fair Isle patterns have a limited palette of five or so colours, use only two colours per row, are worked in the round, and limit the length of a run of any particular colour."  I picked up a wool fair isle sweater vest by Ralph Lauren.  



February 2, 2010

Pickup: Jansport Heritage Ski & Hike Bag

Thanks to one of Selectism's twitter contests and a friend, this arrived in the mail last week. Made from Jansport's original weathered nylon with antique brass and leather details, this bag is sure to join me on a few shorter hikes this summer. The original Jansport woven label from 1967 is a nice touch too. The colour may be a bit bright but I figure after some wear and tear it will dull down a bit.