Zippers: friend or foe; hero or villain; ally or member of the Axis of Evil?
I have a long standing working relationship with zippers. Zippers have in general made our time here on earth better (or worse)? Itz hard to say definitively whether zippers are team players or selfish soloists, there are so many variables... Having caught myself in sensitive areas in a few instances, etc..., but for the most part zippers have been friendly to this aging amateur...Yet in the 2007 version of the Arrowhead 135 I must say that I felt betrayed by the zippers. I breathe cuz I need air...but when itz 30 below the moisture in the exhaling of air freezes forming frost. The frost accumulated on my zippers to the point that I could not use them, they essentially froze shut...this caused big problems because in order to access my camelbak tubes (tucked inside the top two layers of insulation), I needed to unzip...Note: I remember that Steger and da Ely boyz back in the 80s anticipated this problem before they left for their historic run to the North Pole and therefore left the zippers home and instead went with velcro and old fashioned snaps and even buttons. Finally, I gained some respite by using a neckgator to beathe through and thus capture the frost, but that ain't me and in any event the neckgator froze up solid and then I had yet another problem to deal with...so it goes...I guess, in hindsight, it wasn't that big of an issue, but if a guy was going for the Iditarod, a thorough investigation of exactly where the zippers' loyalties reside would be prudent...
I have a long standing working relationship with zippers. Zippers have in general made our time here on earth better (or worse)? Itz hard to say definitively whether zippers are team players or selfish soloists, there are so many variables... Having caught myself in sensitive areas in a few instances, etc..., but for the most part zippers have been friendly to this aging amateur...Yet in the 2007 version of the Arrowhead 135 I must say that I felt betrayed by the zippers. I breathe cuz I need air...but when itz 30 below the moisture in the exhaling of air freezes forming frost. The frost accumulated on my zippers to the point that I could not use them, they essentially froze shut...this caused big problems because in order to access my camelbak tubes (tucked inside the top two layers of insulation), I needed to unzip...Note: I remember that Steger and da Ely boyz back in the 80s anticipated this problem before they left for their historic run to the North Pole and therefore left the zippers home and instead went with velcro and old fashioned snaps and even buttons. Finally, I gained some respite by using a neckgator to beathe through and thus capture the frost, but that ain't me and in any event the neckgator froze up solid and then I had yet another problem to deal with...so it goes...I guess, in hindsight, it wasn't that big of an issue, but if a guy was going for the Iditarod, a thorough investigation of exactly where the zippers' loyalties reside would be prudent...
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments?