ShopPosts Tagged ‘Columbia’
My Opening Day Upland Hunting Uniform includes Columbia’s Omni-Freeze
Monday, September 12th, 2011
I first discovered the comfort of the Columbia Omni-Freeze shirt during a steamy September 2010 prairie chicken hunt.
Living in Minnesota and growing up in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, my hunting wardrobe is built to protect against sub-freezing temps. However in recent years, I’ve had the good fortune of hunting quail in the southeastern U.S. and chasing September prairie chickens in the more arid western grasslands of South Dakota. Both of those pursuits were accompanied by 80 degree days, which made my wool and waxed cotton layers seem ridiculous.
Fortunately, Pheasants Forever’s savvy merchandise department added Columbia’s PFG Omni-Freeze shirt to the MarketPlace last year. Although it gives the appearance of an Under Armour-type base layer, the Omni-Freeze shirt actually accomplishes the opposite. Through Columbia’s cutting edge technology, the shirt actually is designed to reduce skin temperature on hot days by quickly drying sweat and limiting UV rays. Additionally, and perhaps as important, the shirt is ultra-comfortable. It is loose fitting and almost slippery to the touch. Although the tag says it’s made of polyester pique, the closest material I can compare it to is silk.
Fairness in Product Reviewing Act 2478, I do have two minor critiques. First, because of the shirt’s soft and silky material, it is susceptible to snagging on pickers and thorns. My second warning is completely aesthetic; you can’t hide your belly in the Omni-Freeze. There simply aren’t any buttons to cover up a beer gut like most hunting shirts. All in all, pretty minor shortcomings for a shirt that’s going to keep you in the field all day during an early season heat wave.
As I pack my bags for this week’s ruffed grouse opener, I guarantee the Columbia PFG Omni-Freeze long sleeve shirt will be part of my opening day uniform.
The Pointer is written by Bob St.Pierre, Pheasants Forever’s Vice President of Marketing. Follow Bob on Twitter @BobStPierre.
No Blood? No Guts? The Glory Behind Columbia’s PF Shooting Shirt
Tuesday, August 24th, 2010
Columbia's PF Shooting Shirt B&G Superlight
In college, I ran off a streak of more than two consecutive weeks without washing my hair. It began as a bet amongst roomies, but what they didn’t know is I’d have done it without chance at a payday. I enjoy getting dirty.
Now slightly tamed by reality, the partial appeal of hunting and fishing is the chance to be a big kid, get outside and collect grime. My reprieve this summer was a one-week trip to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. This remote, serene location helped cleanse my mind… but that was all it cleansed. While I deteriorated into the dirt bag of the trip, my uncle and two cousins stayed almost scrubbed for surgery in their Columbia Sportswear Performance Fishing Gear (PFG) shirts and pants which featured Columbia’s Omni technologies. Underneath my filth, sweat, sunscreen, mosquito bites, fish gut stains and food stains was an antiseptic mind that was jealous.
Luckily for me, Columbia and Pheasants Forever have partnered for a new addition to Pheasants Forever’s store, the blaze orange Columbia Shooting Shirt B&G Superlight. The “B&G” stands for Blood ‘N Guts, as in Columbia’s Omni-Shield Blood ‘N Guts technology that “resists guts and releases bloodstains, keeping you clean and protected in the wild.”
The one drawback to this Blood ‘N Guts science is that bird hunters wear the rag tag look with a sense of pride. Lucky hunting caps remain charmed by staying a safe distance from the wash room. Outerwear becomes so soiled and rank that panhandling doesn’t appear far off. Like a baseball player with a dirty uniform, the well worn look says “I know how to play the game.” My first trip on assignment for the Pheasants Forever Journal three years ago was to hunt with the Peaceful Valley PF chapter in northwest North Dakota. I’d just acquired a new upland wardrobe, and my biggest fear was the chapter members would take one look at my bright, shiny and blood-less attire and laugh me all the way back to the Twin Cities.
They didn’t, and we had a great time. Hey, the clothes don’t make the man. So I’ll give the new Columbia shooting shirt a try, and try harder to see if I can actually get it dirty.
Hunting For Thoughts on Hunting Apparel
Wednesday, May 19th, 2010
Browning is among the most popular outdoor apparel makers in the U.S.
My grandpa is the type of guy to genuinely show no interest in you, should you stray from his green way of living. John Deere green, that is.
I’ve yet to get caught up in the age old Deere vs. International or Ford vs. Chevy debates, frankly because I have no brand loyalty built up. Though I grew up on a farm, our tractor colors created a mixed race community. As for cars, I’m only qualified to enter conversations about Buicks, Oldsmobiles and Mercurys. Yeah, I’m an “old” 27.
It’s a similar my-life-is-a-collage story when it comes to hunting apparel. I mix Browning, Beretta and Boyt. Can’t forget about my good friend Bob Allen. Some days I’ll ride the Columbia. Gamehide? Check. And Filson just made the list when I picked up some new field chaps.
People definitely build perceptions and brand loyalties when it comes to these companies, too. Beretta’s been around for half a millennium, so ask any 300 year old and they’ll tell you Beretta’s how you do it. To some, Filson is viewed as elitist. To others, it’s the best. To me, I’ll have no problem throwing my new chaps on and feeling good about it because they are literally more valuable than the Kelley Blue Book price of my car.
Do you find yourself aligning with one particular line, or like me, do you mish mash it together?
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