Gear review: Columbia Compounder Shell

Reviewed by:Sonia Adcock
iRun because it feels magical to me

Product: Columbia Compounder Shell

Product category: Jacket

Canadian MSRP: $349.99

Product Website: Columbia Sportswear

Description:

The Columbia Compounder Shell uses an air-permeable waterproof fabric (omni-dry) that transfers moisture vapour out of the garment at an extraordinarily high rate, while still retaining wind and waterproof properties in the worst of conditions.  In addition, a new moisture management technology (omni-wick) uses a special compound that disperses sweat quickly across a broad surface area for accelerated evaporation leaving you feeling dry and comfortable faster than ever before. The shell is specially designed with vents that promote air circulation which let you stay significantly cooler during hot weather or vigorous adventures.

Pros:  There are many pros to this shell.  To begin, the colour is very cool without being too flashy.  The pockets are plentiful and they key holder is an awesome feature.   I also love the venting system.  On my first 42.2km run, it was about +4 and very foggy resulting in it being extremely damp.  As the fog started to lift, the temperature started to rise and the air vents enabled me to keep cool.  One really great feature is the adjustable wrist band.  By keeping it loose I was able to wear my Garmin inside the jacket and the sleeves were long enough to cover my fingers when they got cold from the wind and rain.  The most important thing was the fact that I was warm and dry for the entire run.

Cons: When it comes to wearing this jacket for running, the only feature I didn’t like was that the hood was not detachable.

Ideal for: I would say that this jacket could be used by runners of all abilities.  As well, I would definitely recommend that hikers would find this jacket to be very effective given all of the pockets and venting it has.

Overall:

I would recommend this jacket. I used it on three occasions when it was either very damp due to heavy fog, or raining. The temperature for each of the runs was between +2 and +5.  I did a short run/walk of 6km and two long runs of 42.2km using the jacket.

This jacket performed extremely well.  It kept me warm and dry when it was raining and when the temperatures rose, the venting system kept me cool. I would wear this jacket not only for running, but for cycling and hiking as well.  While I didn’t like the hood when I was running, I did try it when I was walking and it was fine for that.

About Sonja Adcock:

Turning 52 and not wanting to run any more 50 or 100 mile races, I decided to challenge myself by running 52 marathons in 52 weeks, while raising money for a local charity called “The Snowsuit Fund”.  While I will participate in some races, for the most part every Sunday morning, I run the marathon distance.  I usually start at about 5:30 am and run about 22.2km and then meet up with my Sunday Run group at 8:00 to run the remaining 20km.