Storm King Parka

Additional Information

Story

From fabric to cut, a full spectrum rethinking of the rain shell. We built the Storm King Parka around Supermarine® Cotton, a 21st century edit to a nearly forgotten World War II fabric. You can think of it as the pinnacle of cotton technology, extremely breathable, highly water resistant and completely windproof. It can only be made using the longest staple Egyptian cotton fibers. They are woven together in a complex and dense weave that swells up and seals when exposed to water. It's not "waterproof" but it can keep you dry for hours in the rain without any of the sweaty clammy feeling so common in "waterproof-breathable" synthetic fabrics.

We've been experimenting with Supermarine® Cotton for a while now, but a good jacket takes more than an excellent fabric, it needs to be cut right. For the Storm King Parka we started with the sleeve. A four piece construction with both a pivot sleeve and full articulation gives it an incredible range of motion. Taped seams for additional water resistance.

Full sleeve ventilation zips can be opened from both the top and bottom. These combined with the invisible half pit zips and a two way Riri Aquazip on the front allows for subtle and precise adjustments to your body climate. The clear view hood is designed to minimize any obstruction of visibility. The high collar front protects your neck from the wind while also securing the hood without the need of a draw cord. The envelope pocket construction means the three front pockets function as six, with snap secured pockets on top and simple access side pockets behind.

Made in Vancouver, Canada with Swiss fabric. Available in Anthracite, Black and Cobalt Blue.

Fabric

The secret to the future, they say, is hidden in the past. Supermarine® Cotton is a 21st century edit to a nearly forgotten World War II fabric. You can think of it as the pinnacle of cotton technology, extremely breathable, highly water resistant and completely windproof. It can only be made using the longest staple Egyptian cotton fibers. They are woven together in a complex weave that swells up and seals when exposed to water. The result is a beautiful cloth that we think is the best rainy day fabric around.

For decades it's been obscured from the public, kept alive mainly by demand from a few Air Force units, Antarctic explorers and funnily enough, bird watchers; all who have different understandings of its unique properties. Supermarine® Cotton stays comfortable under pressure and there is none of that sweaty/clammy feeling you get with GoreTex and other synthetic "waterproof-breathable" fabrics. It isn't technically "waterproof" by government standards but you can stay dry for hours in the rain wearing it. It's woven from the longest staple Egyptian cotton so it breaks in beautifully. The dense weave combined with the premium fiber results in a fabric that is simultaneously tough and supple.

Historically this fabric is an updated version of a fabric the British invented in World War II to keep their pilots alive in the North Sea if they happened to get shot down. It was later used by the British Navy, in Antarctic exploration and by Edmond Hillary during the first ascent of Mount Everest. It was even used to make fire hoses and eventually found its way into high-end hiking gear. Since it requires a very dense weave of the most expensive cotton fibers on the market, it never quite broke through into the mainstream and with the advent of GoreTex it faded from the general marketplace. Bird watchers still sought it out since it's significantly quieter than the loud synthetic fabrics that took over, while Antarctic teams prized it for its amazing windproof quality. The main customer of the past few decades however has been various Air Forces who understood just how superior a fabric it is, and are willing to pay for it.

We source our Supermarine® Cotton from Switzerland (where it goes by the tradename ETAProof®) and it differs from the historical British version in one important respect, it is treated with a premium durable water resistance (DWR) that is not wax-based. The water resistance in the historical formulation comes from two factors, the denseness of the weave and the fact that cotton fibers swell up when exposed to moisture. Adding the DWR treatment into the mix results in a significantly superior rain repellant and breathable fabric that far outclasses both the synthetic "waterproof-breathable" fabrics of the world and the heavy, clammy Barbour-style waxed cotton. It looks better, wears better and is dramatically more comfortable.

We've been testing this stuff extensively over the past year and we keep on thinking we've stumbled upon a little bit of magic. We made button down shirts and walked out into torrential downpours without a jacket or umbrella. We've done hours of laps in Prospect Park during thundershowers wearing the same shirt and stayed dry. We've taken it out into 100% desert heat to see how well it breathes. We challenged our bike messenger friends to beat it up on the road. More important than all that though was the fact when we headed out of the house, we almost always reach for a Supermarine® Cotton shirt or parka, not because we wanted to test it, but because we wanted to wear it.

Details

Storm King Shell Parka

100% Supermarine® Cotton woven in Switzerland (ETA Proof®)

Highly water resistant

Fully taped seams

Super breathable

Highly wind resistant

Four piece articulated sleeve construction

Full sleeve zippers for superior ventilation

Invisible half pit zip

Adjustable sleeve cuffs

Modified Pivot Sleeve construction for freedom of movement

Riri 2-way Aquazip

Fitted clear view hood

High collar front

2-way entry envelope pockets

Double angled envelope pocket on chest

Unlined

Fits large for layering

Spot clean or have dry cleaned

Made in Vancouver, Canada

Sizing

Fits large for winter layering, (comparable to a US outdoor brand like Patagonia.) We recommend to buy one size down from your usual Outlier size.

Size Chart (in inches)

	X-Small	Small	Medium	Large	X-Large	XX-Large
Chest Size	36	38	40	42	44	46
Body Length (front from shoulder)	27.5	28.5	29.5	30.5	31.5	33
Sleeve (from center back)	34	35	36	37	38	39

Colors

Anthracite

Black

Cobalt Blue