Introducing Polartec Powershield Pro

Always on the pursuit of highly-functional fabrics, Polartec unveiled their new softshell material that’s built to be highly-breathable yet still extremely weatherproof. It competes head-on with Gore’s Windstopper Soft Shell, but promises better breathability and weather protection.

This is just the type of fabric we really need. Hardshells are only useful as dedicated rainwear or extreme conditions–everywhere else (e.g. where we recreate 95% of the time) is perfect for this type of fabric. One of the great features of Powershield Pro is its ability to move moisture away from the body at lower pressure variances. What do I mean? Well, the stagnant air inside your jacket is at a slightly higher pressure than the moving air around you. And, the inside air temperature is also considerably warmer (hopefully) than the outside temperature.

Both of these temperature and wind variances create a slight difference in air pressure, which tends to pull the moisture away from the body. With the new Powershield Pro fabric, this happens at both lower wind and temperature variances compared to the competition.

The headline Powershied Pro piece for Fall 2010 will be The North Face Kishtwar Jacket as shown below. This jacket is light, functional and breathable for high-energy activities like backcountry skiing and snowshoeing. I’m looking forward to getting my hands on one for testing.