All Dressed Up

WHAT: Hoots Vorpal Jacket and Shorts WHERE: hootsgear.com HOW MUCH: Vorpal Jacket/$220 & Vorpal Short/$58

Testing upper and lower body armor is one of those things you really don’t want to take too seriously. Auguring onto my sternum at the Whistler Bike Park is not in my job description (I hope). And thankfully, through not much skill and a whole lot of luck, I didn’t eat shit at the bike park this year. Maybe that’s because I wasn’t too concerned about going down, what with me all decked out in Hoots’ new Vorpal jacket and short.

Producing pads since 1996, Hoots is the brainchild of Hoots Jay, one of the North Shore’s original characters. Today, Hoots Jay and his team of riders still do all the designs for their entire line of padding and clothes, and have come up with an affordable, functional tandem in their Vorpal series.

The jacket is damn comfy and loads the rider up with a ton of heavyset padding. Thick plastic sternum pads, spine protector, shoulder and triceps pads, as well as a light side rib cage pad make the Vorpal totally adequate for protecting riders looking to push the limits. Made of a light mesh, in a short sleeve style, the jacket is easily adjustable through front and back Velcro cinch straps at the shoulders, while a wide, stretchy abdominal Velcro closure keeps the almost over built spine pads securely in place. And as I say, while I didn’t get to necessarily try the Vorpal jacket last year because I didn’t really have a huge bail, I have worn it playing hockey, where I’ve been ice-bound on numerous occasions. While I realize this isn’t what the jacket’s made for, on the ice it worked real beauty…eh. As far as durability goes, no seams on the jacket have yet to fail or fray.

My only complaint about the jacket would be its weight. It’s a darn heavy piece, and a little on the hot side. But hey, you should only be riding the Vorpal when going down so it’s not that big of a deal. As well, the Velcro adjusts are a little long, and often get caught up with the synthetic mesh.

The shorts take a much different approach than the jacket, using only a light foam for padding in place of the jacket’s thick plastic pads. This makes for a fairly lightweight, usable padded short, protecting well against abrasion, but only barely taking the edge off of more direct hits. One bike park peel out while wearing the short still left me with a fair bruise on my hip. As a trade off, the short can be worn while actually riding your bike (not just going down) and features removable upper hip pads and a plastic tail bone protector all in a boxer short styled, mesh body.