Helly Hansen Offshore oilskins use Helly Tech® XP technology, offering a water resistant, breathable fabric designed for all-season use. The key to this design is safety, evident in the reflective patches and external rubber pocket with headlamp. Its unlined, full-stretch construction combined with a LIFA versa collar minimises weight and gives better mobility. There are also reinforcements at knees and seat to reduce wear and tear and is available at around £525 for the set.
The low bulk, mid-length cut of the Offshore waterproofs provides an ergonomic fit, making them very comfortable - and noticeably stylish. I don't mean just for these items either. The whole Helly Hansen range fits in with today's fashion trends very well. You can get off your yacht and go straight to the office in one of these jackets, looking both chic and professional.
One of the noticeable differences against similar outfits is the external rubber pocket on the right arm, containing a Silva LED headlamp. Though I thought at first this was a fantastic idea - it puts a torch in an easily accessible position (away from lifejackets and harness) and is great for visibility in an emergency situation - there problems once you're actually wearing the light on your head. With the lamp pocket empty, it protrudes from the oilskins and could easily get caught on something, the last thing you want if you're already in compromised circumstances. Skeptical I may be, it feels like an accident waiting to happen.
Another let-down is that the zips are standard size. This gets pretty impractical as they are virtually impossible to fumble open or closed with a gloved hand because you simply cannot get hold of the tag. It is also multidirectional which sounds good if you need the loo (lads) as you don't need to take off your jacket and you can just pull the zip up. Unfortunately there's this great big weatherproof gusset behind the zip, so if you've got to go, you've got to make an alternative arrangement happen a bit sharpish. On top of that, getting the thing back onto the slider afterwards is fiddly to say the least. It seems strange that zippers on the two breast pockets are more heavy duty than the main ones - closer to what you would expect to come as standard.
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This set was designed to look good and be very light and comfortable. Its low bulk manufacture certainly achieves this, but unfortunately at the price of practicality. If you want to play sailor for the day while on your commute to work these are the oilskins for you. But if you actually want to get your feet wet, you might want to think twice. |
For more information visit www.hellyhansen.com
Group test
Helly Hansen's jacket and trousers are among the oilskin sets we will include in our up-and-coming MainSail waterproofs group test. Keep an eye out for this Battle of the Giants (Henri Lloyd, Musto, Gill, Helly Hanson, XM Yachting) all pitted against each other. Only one will be crowned Best of the Offshore Sets, so watch this space!
