Down with night running!

Today my partner Henri and I ended up at Mountain Equipment Coop - the great outdoor store of Canada for those not in the know. I gravitated to the womens clothing section and found myself lost in touching textiles and awing and ooing over beautiful designs.

Where I ended up and started peeling off my own layers ready try on clothes was in the down jacket section. I bought my first full-on down jacket sometime in the nineties for my mountaineering course in the Rockies. Ten plus years later it's dirtier than hell but I live in this once quasi-living specimen from The North Face. You can find me in fact on a cool summer evening sporting my big fat jacket. Yes, I too, like George from Seinfeld have been laughed at and referred to as the Michelin lady. Doesn't phase me - I love me jacket and all it's bulges and prefer being snuggly vs cool at the start of anything active in the outdoors. My jacket has also been part of almost every amazing outdoor adventure I've been part of - which is probably why I love it so.

Now here's my point - down jackets have come a long way in the style department. I tried on a bunch of MEC designs including:














Far Left and Middle- MEC Tremblant Jacket/Vest in Boysenberry
Colour is why I first gravitated to this and the next down jacket. Cozy, cozy, cozy! Like my down jacket, they are very comfortable. Different than my nineties jacket, the cuts on these are tailored at the sides to fit my body better. I almost can't believe that they've done this with something as bulky as down.

Far Right - MEC Uplink Pullover in Merlot
Besides a great looking and hugging fit for this jacket, I LOVE the merlot colour!!! Henri, he did not. This jacket I WILL buy for middle of the night running when I'm really down to a stumble forward. As I plan on doing at least the 12 hour dirty girls that starts at 8pm, you will definitely see me in this beauty out there in Mansfield. Hmmm...if a heat wave prevails in August, this pullover will probably be handier during a night ultra run like Haliburton in September when the temps really do hover near zero.