Abstract :
WHEN I FIRST STARTED venturing into the mountains you generally had two options if it started raining ??? stay inside and stay dry, or go outside and get wet. Yes, we had ???cagoules??? (whatever happened to them?) but they had none of the waterproof and breathable qualities of today???s rain wear. They had one or the other, which meant that if your jacket was waterproof, it wasn???t breathable, so you???d invariably get soaked from the inside due to perspiration, or if it was breathable, it wasn???t waterproof. Such inconveniences didn???t just bring discomfort; they could also be dangerous since a wet climber eventually becomes a cold climber, which can lead to hypothermia.
