Did you know under the new FTC guidelines that bloggers have to tell readers when they receive product for free? And despite the fact that I could give a f@#% about the FTC, I will divulge that the good people at Orage hooked me up with the JP Auclair pro model jacket and pants last winter. Being a ski journalism hack has its privileges, even if the magazines pay like third-world brothels.
Every year, lowly ski magazine editors leave behind perfect January powder to go stand on a shitty tradeshow floor in Las Vegas. We get to see/try all of next year’s gear from every company in the game. If it wasn’t for all the pushy marketing nerds and the showboating snowboard industry, it’d be an awesome time. Anyway, when I tried on the JP jacket and pants in the Orage booth, I was instantly sold and asked for some right then and there. The attention to detail on these garments is bang-on – exactly what you would expect from a legend like Auclair and a standout company like Orage. With his vast experience ranging from the earliest rails and pipes that skis ever hit, to first descents on the peaks of Alaska, Auclair has learned what he needs in a jacket: a technical, slim fit with pre-formed elbows, adjustable cuffs to accommodate over- and under-the-glove wearers, and a 2-way front zip with double storm flap. And, of course, it has some sort of Orage-specific, 3-ply, 20,000 waterproofing. Bottom line? You can shred unencumbered and stay dry and warm (or cool – it has 2-way pit zips) while killing it. This jacket is not for numbnuts who ski around with their jacket open and flailing. It’s for someone who is too busy lapping up balls-deep pow to be so irresponsible and style-challenged. I recommend it, and you know this is true because you’ll see me wearing it on the slopes again this year, despite the fact that other companies are still sending me free gear. And that’s the truth. – Mike Berard
p.s – I think the MSRP is around $450. Shit, I don’t pay for this stuff. Find the jacket HERE.
