Get acquianted
The C7 Parka was born at 700 meters above sea level in November. It was indeed a dark and stormy night. We had been scaling a mountainside to gain access to the areas above the red deer stags, spent all day in the rain, and almost got within reach several times. We walked back to camp in the dusk using headlamps, and while we fed the fire we thought about how we could stay warm and dry in such weather. This was day one.
Four days later, the base pattern and a mockup was ready. The rest of the journey is about not giving up.
Our first edition men’s C7 Parka is designed for the Nordic masculine physique with a protecting long and slim fit. It is designed to protect you from the brisk winds and harsh weather in the Nordics but without restraining your movement so you are able to walk, sit, climb, draw back your bow or take aim.
The parka has a long cut so that wind will not cut in between jacket and pants, and the rain will be led below that spot on your thighs where you always get cold. We have chosen the best membrane we could find, and we added our own face fabric to give it the properties we wanted.
C7 in action
The design of the jacket is inspired by original polar expedition and hunting clothes combined with the traditional Nordic parkawhere length and tight fit gives optimal protection in harsh weather conditions.
The C7 Parka is made from the eVent® DV Alpine 3-layer membrane with a matte woven surface that reduces noise. The C7 Parka is waterproof and windproof to protect you from wind and weather in harsh Nordic climate. The Direct Venting membrane is highly breathable – and when your acitivy level is high, we have added full length side zippers and deep front zipper to allow for full ventilation of your body.
Take a few minutes to listen to the good people from the eVent Fabrics Team behind the DV Technology:
The C7 Parka has Cordura on the shoulders for extra strength and durability. The collar has added fold and drainage design to lead water from the collar and down to the small drain hole when water pressure is high on the front zipper.
The side zippers goes almost to the elbows, allowing you to enter the jacket “from the side” and not struggle too much with getting it over your head. The three-way side zipper can also be opened anywhere along the line to ventilate or to put the belt of a backpack inside the front. This unique feature allows air to flow and ventilate on the front.
The length of the jacket offers good protection in rough weather conditions. The adjustable width of the parka allows for adding extra layers – fleece or down/fiber insulation performs best if it is not collapsed or compressed.
All pockets are secured with zippers and combined with added depth and smaller entry size. It will annoy you but it will also prevent loosing bits and pieces even though you forget to close or zip it. All zippers have large ergonomic zipper pullers for good grip when it is cold and wet. All pockets and entries are symmetrical.
Don’t use your shell for cargo – it will add to much weight to your garment and will eventually wear the seams or worst case rip the membrane beoynd repair. Use a good fitted backpack, smaller chest pack or even a cross body for cargo, optics, range finder, food etc. and learn how to store and remember where your stuff goes. This will help you when you least expect it.
- – Front chest pocket – Add your lens cloth for easy access.
- – Sleeve pockets – keep your hunting license, shooting card etc. in the upper sleeve pockets.
- – The front slits in the C7 Parka corresponds to the warm kangaroo pocket on the T1 Mid layer fleece to allow you to heat and dry your hands.
- – Chest pocket – Both chest pockets have entries for hunting radio antenna – keep emergency kit here.
- – Back pocket – Keep and dry your gloves, headover, and mittens using your body heat. The pocket is big enough to store your map.
Check the back of the parka – it has a slide-in feature for adding your sitting mat. It is tiring and energy consuming to sit on a cold rock or an iron tree stand chair for hours. We recommend using an EVA-mat like the S1 Sitting mat to make your experience more comfortable.
Colour coding
The face fabric has a unique melange and matte surface and the light colour is developed specially for hunting in the open and in the fells where you need to blend in with the Nordic open landscape.
Stay safe out there
The team behind the VRTBR® Hunting Edition have learnt from experience – and sometimes learnt stuff the hard way. Even on a 4 hour walk it makes sense to take care of yourself and pay attention to weather, physical condition, the terrain and your companions. We have added quite a few safety features into the garment and hope that you will find them useful.
Taking it from the top, there is a small buckle on the hood. Use this for adding a small LED light. We want to move around unseen – but sometimes it is useful to be spotted in the dusk by others. Use an LED llight that can be litereaaly turned on an off so that it only lights up when you turn it. Remember to check the battery state before you pack for your next adventure – being a 4-hour walk or the 4 weeks in the outback.
Inside the hood, we have added red liner that you can use for visibility and locator beacon in emergency situations. In the neck, we have added a narrow pocket along the collar for you to store a safety blanket. 60g of safety in the hood may come in handy.
The hood is designed without straps but with adjustment at the front; the adhustment is internal and diffuícult to find at first – but since it is internal, you will not get hit by buckles in the face when the wind is hefty. The sides of the hood are curved to allow for larger field of vision.
The side zippers allow for optimal freedom of movement but without compromising the comfort of the length and the protection given by a long parka. The zippers are 3-way and allows for ventilation under the arms as they open one-third down the sleeve. Where you often struggle to get in and out of a parka, the side sippers allow for easier use.
Two extra extension zippers add more room in the jacket when extra layers are needed. The base layer and fleece have similar lengths and combined, gives optimal comfort and protection.
The length and tight shaped fit provide lee and reduces the thermal bridge from below without strapping the jacket in the waist or at the bottom.
Care and attention
Protect your garment and it will protect you.
- – Before wash, secure all zippers and closures. Machine wash warm [40degrees Celsius] with liquid detergent. Rinse twice and hang dry.
- – We know it sounds strange but iron warm to rejuvenate the water repellent finish.
- – Do not use bleach or fabric softener. Do not dry clean. Hang dry.
Your best fit
Find a measuring tape and check out the following body measures following the indications on the dummy below. If you are not the proud owner of a measuring tape – and you haven’t got the faintest idea of where to find one – then go creative and find some rope, string, paracord or even fishing power line will do – although that might challenge you a bit…
Then find someone to help you out. The best and most accurate body measures are taken by someone else since some of the measures requires more than one hand and the chin to do it; and then you can always take the opportunity to state and underline how amazingly good looking you are.
We may not have your best fit – and this is where you write us an email on hello@vrtbr.com and tell what to produce next time!
Chest – Measure under your arms, around the fullest part of your chest.
Waist – Measure the narrowest part of your waist.
Hips – Measure 20cm from your natural waist as a guide. Stand with your feet together and measure around your widest part.
