Arc'teryx Alpha LT Jacket | The Quiver Killer

This is it, the premiere jacket from the premiere outerwear company, the Alpha LT from Arc'teryx. Three things stand out right away when you pick up the Alpha LT in a shop, first the minimal weight, then the incredibly tight build, and finally the price, the very steep price. At first the price tag is difficult to stomach until you consider the durability and flexibility of such a piece. This is a jacket that can replace 2-3 of your pieces, performing equally well in a -20F gale force blizzard in the backcountry as a 50F spring day on the slopes. This is my review based on a season's worth of action.

NOTE: High resolution images available on Flickr.

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[caption]After a thorough soaking in the Vermont backcountry[/caption]MINIMAL BUILD This jacket is ridiculously light, 12.9 oz to be exact, lighter than your thermals. The weight is achieved by a combination of the 320N GORE-TEX® Pro Shell 3 layer material and Arc'teryx's famous weight shaving techniques. This includes water tight zippers in place of dual flap covers, the minimal width tape for sealing seams, and optimizing pocket design for minimal material use. The result is a spring jacket that can handle ever variation of weather you can throw at it.

Another benefit to the minimal, understated build is a style that has a timeless element. Those of us that survived the neon era of snowboarding (the first one) know what it feels like to be holding a kit that all of sudden is far removed from the fashion of the day. Whether you admit it or not, if you are paying max dollars for a highly technical piece, the last thing you want is for the look to be played in a year or so. Besides the conservative look of the jacket, it is also a very rare piece to see. Unlike the North Face over saturation of the late nineties, it is unlikely you will see more than a handful of people rocking the Alpha LT.

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[caption]The jacket soaked on the outside dry on the inside post hiking trip[/caption]WEATHERPROOFING I crested the little Headwall and walked head first into a wall of 50 mph wind rolling off the headwall of Tuckermans Ravine. I turned my head slightly and took refuge inside the spacious hood of the Alpha LT. For a moment, it was as if I was standing behind a rock, completely sheltered by the lock-tight construction.

A week later the incredible sealed construction of the Alpha LT was put to the waterproofing test. We were deep in a Green Mountain monsoon, braving 30 something temperatures and driving horizontal rain, all in an attempt to build a jump track in the backcountry. It was a grueling day that put my gear to the test, soaking through piece after piece. The titanium gray has an odd way of soaking up a minimal amount of water such that it becomes a much darker color. You would expect to be completely soaked by the look of the jacket but instead you remain completely dry.

On top of this weatherproofing, the jacket does not make you feel like you are in a Finnish sauna. I happen to produce a fair amount of perspiration and I have never felt the least bit damp while rocking the Alpha LT.

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[caption]Flush minimal taped seams[/caption]SIMPLISTIC DESIGN Simplistic designs are not common place in the world of multi pocketed all-over print world of snowboarding. Arc'teryx does minimal design with an elegance unmatched by any other manufacturer. A solid simple design allows for low weight but almost more importantly, it dramatically increases durability.

The jacket has only three pockets, two Napoleon pockets on the outside and one flush interior pocket. The two exterior pockets feature Arc'teryx's famous waterproofed zippers. I have never had a waterproof zipper move as effortlessly as these. The pockets are more than adequate. I have rolled with two cameras, my wallet, and the iphone in just the front two pockets. They also work extremely well to quickly warm your digits and are never obscured by a pack.

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THINGS TO IMPROVE I suspect this is a near perfect jacket for the telemarking crowd but there is some definite room for improvement for the riding world. I scored it an 8.1/10 as a result of the below issues.

[caption]hip side holes[/caption]

1. My biggest complaint is that the length needs to be greater. Right now it comes just below my belt line. Another 2 inches or so would be ideal and would go a long ways to making the fit better. Otherwise the arm length is adequate and the chest size leaves plenty of room for layering and movement.
2. My second issue is around the waist elastic system. I have had significant wear around the bungee clasps on either hip. It is a bit disconcerting to have holes in your high end material after only a month of wear.
3. The inside pocket could stand to be slightly larger. Right now, an iphone with a decent headphone will not completely fit inside the pocket. It would also be nice if the exterior pockets had a slight angle to prevent my iphone from falling out when I forget to zip it up (this did happen to me).
4. My final issue is with the length of the bungee for the hood adjustment. It is so long that when it is fully tightened it easily catches on stuff, things like trees and chairs in bars. Both scenarios really hurt, your head and your ego.

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BACKGROUND

Arc'teryx is an outdoor clothing and sporting goods company founded in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, in 1989. The name and logo of Arc'teryx refer to the Archaeopteryx, the earliest known bird. The symbol is based on the "Berlin specimen" of the bird, the most complete skeleton to date.

In January 2001 Arc'teryx was purchased by the Adidas owned Salomon Group.[1] In May 2005 Amer Sports purchased the Salomon Group from Adidas.[2] The Arc'teryx head office is still located in North Vancouver, although harnesses, backpacks, and many other lamination equipment is from its own factory in Burnaby, BC, their apparel line has expanded, thus Arc'teryx has consequently outsourced to plants in China, Vietnam, and New Zealand.
Wikipedia