We were joined in Chamonix by a crew of North Face staff and athletes, including the big mountain G.O.A.T Xavier de Le Rue. We were going freeriding with a dude who gobbles up the worlds gnarliest terrain for breakfast, which was enough to make me regret eating so many pancakes for mine.

Kitted up in Steep Series Brigandine jacket and pants we made our way up to Chamonix’s famous Les Grands Montets. I just want to point out here that I’m very sceptical about new technology in general, (I still use an Abacus instead of trusting calculators), so I was armed with a pocketful of reservations from the get-go.

“I was pretty shocked when after a tiny bit of adjustment to my leg vents I didn’t even have to think about being too warm for the rest of the day”

My initial thoughts on the new outfit were that it was definitely quieter than my other shell jackets. For once walking didn’t sound like I was wading through empty Quality Street wrappers. It was a sunny day, but we were mostly in the shadow cover of some of the behemoth mountains around us. We were riding hard and fast but stopping often to regroup (for us to catch us with Xavier), so the pace was intense but sporadic. When snowboarding I normally end up hotter than a Jalapeno fart, so, despite the big breathability claims, I did expect to be riding unzipped all day. I was pretty shocked when after a tiny bit of adjustment to my leg vents, I stayed zipped up and didn’t even have to think about being too warm for the rest of the day.

After I thought the hard work was done, we came out of the shadow of a mountain peak and were stood at the foot of a massive sun-drenched hill. I suddenly remembered that we’d walked down it to get here. It was hot as balls. We started making our way up and we were going at it with the gusto I usually reserve for elbowing my way to the front of a busy bar. I thought I’d have to take layers off immediately but after a few minutes of ascending, I realised that might not be the case.

“We started making our way up and we were going at it with the gusto I usually reserve for elbowing my way to the front of a busy bar”

After walking uphill for 20 minutes in the blazing sunshine I was warm, and I was a bit sweaty, but I was still jacketed up despite being layered for a much colder climate. I did take off my mid-layer half-way up, but that was the only temperature adjustment I had to do throughout the day. We’d been doing hard exertion all day, constantly in and out of the sun and this was the first time I’d thought about how hot/cold I was.

My favourite piece of kit? The L5 Summit Series pants. I’m a sucker for a bib pant especially one that has zips down the side to allow you to visit the Water Closet without having to strip in a toilet cubicle. That’s A+ design in my books.

Does FUTURELIGHT work? My simple answer is yes. It allows you to keep your shell on all day, despite temperature fluctuations. It’s much softer and more supple than a traditional shell so the comfort levels are premium. It was more breathable than anything else I’ve worn, it kept me cool when I wanted it and warm when I needed it. The bluebird weather meant I didn’t get a chance to test the waterproofing chops up on the hill, but rest assured I got in the shower wearing the Steep Series FUTURELIGHT Brigandine later on, and it passed the test.

Keep an eye out as FUTURELIGHT gets trickled down into more North Face garments and check it out for yourself in store.