Kristina Matyskiela

Day 4 Experience with ColdAvenger Pro-
January 31st, 2009, Saturday.  12F. 6 to 8” Snow with ice! 5 mile trek at Oglebay Park and Resort in Wheeling, WV.  8:30am – 10:00EST.

So we are not in Versoix, Geneva Switzerland, but what we’ve got today will do!  We have had some interesting weather that included snow, then freezing rain, more snow, more ice – ah, the beauty of winter.  It is really a shame that the crampons haven’t arrived yet. Hum…

Another great day for me ol’ traveling companion, Yukon Cornelius and me to head out into the great outdoors.  I gear up in my windproof, cold proof, waterproof, moisture wicking clothing, grab my backpack, trekking poles, ice axe, and my favorite cold weather piece of equipment – the ColdAvenger®!  I truly will not venture into the cold weather without it.

We arrive at the park and the crystalline beauty is overwhelming.  There is literally a thick layer of ice atop of the deep, fine powder, perfect crampon/ice axe training, except my crampons are en route.  Drats.  In places, the terrain has a blue hue and I begin to think of Mt. Everest.  Except, well, Oglebay lacks the infamous icefall and of course, altitude. 

Once again, the ColdAvenger® proved to be a very valuable asset to my outdoor equipment collection.  I did not use my inhaler prior to my hike, because I am stubborn that way.  I relied solely on the ColdAvenger® and I was not disappointed.  Up hills, trans-terrain, down hills; it was all good.  Some of those hills are rather steep.  My husband has a long step and tends to get ahead of me pretty quickly.  I try to keep up rather than maintaining my pace.  This triggers the breathing issues that I have and I had to stop a couple of times to catch my breath.  I do not blame this on the ColdAvenger®.  I blame it more on pride. 

The ColdAvenger® definitely warms and humidifies the incoming air, and I finally have the valve adjusted exactly where it is most comfortable for me.  The fact that I do not have to layer on the Chapstick is also a huge plus.  Because the incoming air is humidified, my nasal passages remain moist and so do my lips, thus no having to apply and reapply Chapstick, and no chapping!  More though is the fact that I do not have to worry about applying and reapplying sunblock to exposed skin areas.  I have very sensitive skin and must order a special type of sunblock that will not cause breakouts (lucky me).  With the ColdAvenger®, not only can I finally breathe freely while in the cold, but my lips and nose stay moist and warm as does my face and neck, I also do not have to worry about applying  lip gunk and sunblock.  I have the Pro version of this product and the outer material is water-resistant with fleece lining that wicks the neck moisture nicely should I sweat.   The material is very durable and has so far held up in the elements.

Cleaning is a breeze!  I take it off, rinse out, hang it up.  Wish I could do this with all of my laundry.  It dries quickly and is ready to go when needed.

I used to suffer a lot when engaging in winter activity and often times, because I knew I would struggle breathing, I would not go outside to do what I love to do.  I would wait until it was warmer.  I am growing increasingly convinced that seasonal affective disorder is a direct result of stagnant winter lifestyles, because I would be depressed knowing that I could be outside having a blast, but I couldn’t breathe so I was apprehensive to go outdoors for any type of activity.  Thanks to the ColdAvenger®, I am getting out much more and enjoying my favorite time of year!  Plus, I feel like a real outdoor pro wearing the ColdAvenger®; I feel like I look as if I should be on a really high peak somewhere in the Himalaya.   Perhaps we could get a very tiny one made for Yukon Cornelius so he can also look like a pro…?

Until next time, let it snow!


Kristina Matyskiela