Street Price: Varies from $119 - $159 | Compare prices at 4 resellers
Pros: Perfect fit for most active uses, ideal weight for many conditions, great hood design.
Cons: Not as stylish as some other fleeces for around town, not as warm for its weight as some high-loft models.
About to get on route while wearing our Editors', Choice winner. Notice the long, slim cut that fits easily under the climbing harness and the fitted sleeves that do not creep down over Eric',s hands.
Credit: Phillip Hranicka
Comfort
Without increasing warmth, it doesn't get any more comfortable than the Patagonia R1 Hoody. The fleece is lightweight so you feel like you're wearing a really warm shirt rather than a jacket. Also important: the quarter-length zipper eliminates the rigidity of full zip models, and the hood fits over and warms your head like a dream come true. It features long slim sleeves and comfortable thumb loops. These are great features and especially useful when the fleece is used as an active base layer. Also, the sleeves have wide and comfortable elastic wrist cuffs that effectively keep the sleeves rolled up to the elbow. This is a critical feature if a fleece is intended to be used for climbing.
Weight and Packed Size
Our men's medium model weighs 12.8 ounces and compresses to slightly less than one liter in volume. Although fleece is not superbly warm for its weight (,down and synthetic insulation are warmer per unit weight/volume),, its warmth when wet and comfort next-to-skin make it a material that we almost always carry with us (,if we aren't already wearing it),.
Wind Resistance and Breathability
All of Patagonia's R1 models have very poor wind resistance and excellent breathability. The material dries very fast, which is a huge advantage for high exertion activities and three-season backpacking. This pullover is ideal for highly aerobic activities like cold weather runs. The "Regulator Fleece" fabric that makes up the body is soft, thin, and leaves small air gaps between each square of the grid to add breathability and allow moisture to effectively escape.
If you start to really overheat, the 1/4 length zipper can be opened to mid-torso to effectively dump heat. Although high-loft models breathe fairly well in low-exertion situations, as soon as activity really ratchets up, the fur tends to hold heat/moisture and a stifling/soggy feeling can ensue. Even top scoring high-loft models like the Patagonia R3 simply cannot compete with the breathability of the R1's grid fabric. Unfortunately, this same grid fabric allows wind to blow right through without much resistance. However, as wind protection isn't the intended use of an active fleece like this one, a lack of wind resistance really isn't much of a detraction. If you're looking for a similar weight fleece that provides more wind resistance, be sure to consider the Patagonia Piton Hybrid Hoody - Men's .
The ever useful and stylish R1 in the Columbia River Gorge. This model is ideal for even highly aerobic activities like running in cold weather.
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