I
grew up skiing in southern Vermont at my family's ski area, Magic Mountain. Since age three I skied every winter, and in all conditions. I remember the pain of thawing fingers and toes in between runs and my parents tried every mitten and sock system available to keep me and my siblings warm. I thought I had finally found the right system when, as an outdoor guide in the late '80s, I discovered Gore-tex over-mitts and pile mitten liners. What I got was a system that kept me warm only until my hands sweated, and then my liners froze, and so did my fingers. I had to carry extra liners to change out my mittens during the ski day. What was happening was that my mitten insulation became wet and then froze, thus losing all its insulation and warmth properties and my hands couldn't stay warm. I discovered RBH Designs' VaprThrm® mittens and ordered a pair because I was desperate to try something new. I was surprised and thrilled to find that my hands stayed warm all winter long. My hands still sweated from exertion, but I NEVER got cold hands again, even at temperatures of zero degrees in Montana. The mild vapor build-up in my mittens never bothers me because it dissipates nicely with RBH's special lining.
Thanks Nancy and Ryan for making me a custom pair of pearly white mitts for skiing. Yes! I finally have found the warmest ski mittens!
Julie Thorner
Bryson City, NC