Race to Zero Puffer

Name: Race to Zero Puffer. Purple edition
Brand: Vollebak
SKU: JKT018NVYXSM
Price: 79 GBP
Availability: InStock

An ultralight puffer built with super-compact insulation.

£395 £79

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Model is 6ft 2 / 188cm with a 39 inch / 99cm chest, and wears size Medium.

Ultra-lightweight weighing 277 grams
Constructed with super-compact insulation
Water repellent and wind resistant

Race to Zero is an ultralight packable system built for running 5km or 5 days straight. Each piece is built with advanced materials, packs down into itself, and fits into the palm of your hand.

The Race to Zero Puffer is the warmest layer in the system. It’s built with super-compact synthetic insulation that’s compressed down to a third of its normal size, while retaining 80% of its thermal properties. And while insulated jackets are normally constructed with big puffy baffles to keep the insulation in place, the Race to Zero Puffer is built with continuous sheets of insulation anchored down with stitched bartacks to reduce weight, bulk and the potential for cold spots. The outer shell and inner lining are made from an ultra-lightweight, recycled nylon engineered to be the same thickness as silk. And the puffer weighs just 277 grams.

Technical Details

Outer material made in Italy: 100% recycled nylon

Outer material weighs 50g/m2

Synthetic insulation made in Italy: 50% recycled PET bottles, 50% polyester

Integrated packable mesh pocket with bungee hanging loop

Breathable

Water repellent

Wind resistant

2 zipped side pockets with lockable zippers

2 zipped side vents with lockable zippers

Bungee hanging loop at back neck

Jacket weighs 277 grams

Machine wash max 30°C

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What is the race to zero?

There are some very simple rules of running. Rule one: lighter is nearly always better. Your gear should feel weightless. So our Race to Zero gear is the lightest running system in the world. The mission is to get as close to zero as we can on the weighing scales, so once you put it on you forget it’s there.

Every piece packs into itself

Every piece in the system packs down into itself in exactly the same way. At the bottom of the jacket you’ll find a black, zero-shaped pocket. It’s the same black, zero-shaped pocket you’ll find on the shorts and the t shirt as well. To pack the puffer up you turn the pocket inside out and push the puffer into it until you’re left with a pouch that fits into the palm of your hand. Once it’s packed down you can stuff it into your race bag, or clip it on using the elastic hanging loop.

Ultra-lightweight and comfortable

Weighing just 277 grams, the Race to Zero Puffer is super lightweight for an insulated jacket. Whether it’s on your back or in your backpack you’ll never notice it’s there. The puffer’s outer shell and inner lining are both made from an ultralightweight and 100% recycled nylon which is engineered to be the same thickness as silk. So it will always keep you warm and comfortable.

Constructed with super-compact insulation

The puffer is built with super-compact synthetic insulation which keeps you as warm as much heavier and thicker jackets. That’s because we compress the insulation down to less than a third of its original size before it’s stitched into the jacket. And while the insulation takes up 70% less space, it retains 80% of its thermal properties.
Built with continuous sheets of insulation

Most insulated jackets are built with baffles. These are the long puffy strips or squares you see all over puffer jackets which are designed to keep the insulation in place. For the Race to Zero Puffer we’ve done something completely new. It’s built with continuous sheets of insulation anchored down with stitched bartacks to reduce weight, bulk and the potential for cold spots.

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Our insulation is made from recycled plastic

Instead of pulling feathers out of ducks, we pull plastic out of used plastic bottles and turn them into insulating synthetic fibres. Every single jacket uses 5 half-litre recycled plastic bottles. Staying warm is all about trapping as many pockets of air next to your body as possible, so these synthetic fibres are built to be hollow, which means you’ll automatically have millions of air pockets trapped next to your skin. And as the curl of the fibres traps more air than straight fibres, the microscopic texture of the fibre itself also retains heat.
How the insulation performs against down

While down traps heat well, it doesn’t breathe well. So it’s not the ideal option if you’re working hard. If you’re running our insulation will do a better job of regulating your body temperature, as it will breathe better and won’t hold onto sweat. It’s also made from a blend of different fibres each with their own ‘multi-shape’ structure. Some are designed for puffiness, others for resilience or thermal efficiency. By making each fibre a different shape, we stop them linking together and clumping like down does when it gets wet.
How plastic is turned into insulation

To turn recycled plastic bottles into insulation we work with pioneers in thermal insulation based in Milan. They’ve been working on recycled fibres and using plastic bottles in their technology since the 1980s, well before it was the cool or right thing to do. They use a process called mechanical recycling to blend the bottles, eliminating the need for hazardous chemicals and creating synthetic fibres that have the highest loft for the lowest weight, just like down.
Why we don’t use down for the insulation

Over 80% of the down in jackets worldwide comes from ducks kept in industrial farms in China. Practises include ducks being plucked alive and feathers being harvested from force-fed ducks bred to produce foie gras. With complex international supply chains that cross cultures and borders that are hard to police, the best anyone can guarantee is that the ducks they used were already dead when they plucked them. So the only real way to ensure you don’t harm ducks, is by not using them.

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Repels wind and water

As well as keeping you warm, we’ve also built the puffer to be wind and water repellent. The nylon fibres on the outside of the puffer are mechanically closed during the production process which makes the puffer highly wind resistant. And it comes with a water repellent coating so that light rain will simply roll off the jacket’s surface, keeping you drier for longer.

Massive side vents let you cool off

Two massive zipped side vents help to cool you down if you get hot. They run all the way from the bottom hem of the jacket and almost up to your armpits. So you can open up the jacket like a sleeping bag on both sides if you need to cool down rapidly.
Side pockets for carrying your gear

You’ll find two large zipped pockets on either side of the jacket. They’re big enough to hold gels, water bottles, or maps. Both pockets come with lockable zip pulls that fasten in position.

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