Dutch cooling vest geared to athletes: lightweight, form-fitting

[ActiveMSers]

This relatively new cooling vest company sent me an e-mail recently asking if I could review their gear. It certainly holds promise and their cooling vests have a solid history.

Izi BodyCooling.com is a Dutch based company which produces Cooling Vests since the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Beijing 2008, where we developed cooling vests for the Dutch Olympic Team. Nowadays, not only professional cycling teams, such as Rabobank, Skill Shimano and BMC (Cadel Evans, winner of the Tour de France 2011) use our IZI Hydrogel Cooling Vests, but also many MS patiënts benefit from our cooling vests.

When activated (in water or washing machine), the IZI Hydrogel Cooling Vest stays cool for UP TO 3 DAYS! Our vest can also be frozen in the fridge, for extra cooling. After the ice has melted, it will keep on cooling (up to 3 days).

Three days? We'll see. That might be just a bit of a stretch. I'll keep everyone updated if we move forward with testing. Here is their website:

http://www.izibodycooling.com/

[RSpradlin]

Gotta get a cooling vest before summer!

Hi, Dave
These cooling vests look different from the others you have tested thus far. Can't wait to hear your review. Also interested in the Dry Pro Shirt. Thanks for all you do!

[ActiveMSers]

The vest just arrived. It is super lightweight uncharged and looks to be pretty sharp looking, complete with pockets. Like an article of clothing rather than a flack jacket. Testing will be in late April or May.

[ActiveMSers]

By popular demand, I hope to begin testing sooner, perhaps in a week or two. We are starting to hit the 70s (not today, it's in the 40s) and this will help folks make educated decisions before the weather really heats up.

[ActiveMSers]

We hit a record-high of 83 degrees yesterday in Albuquerque (beating the previous record of 80; record low for March 25 is only 18), so it's time to get the vest charged. It takes about 20 minutes. I'm looking forward to start testing!

[ActiveMSers]

Okay, I'm a skeptic no more. Since this vest uses BOTH evaporative cooling and gel that can be frozen, the evaporation portion just kept cranking after I charged it Monday. The vest had some decent cooling power after three days (the frozen gel is supposed to last up to two hours), by far the longest of anything I've ever tested.

This is a definite contender to the ArcticHeat vest for athletics and if you live in an area with little humidity, this has the potential to be the single best cooling vest that I've tested to date.

But it's early! I'm only just beginning my testing. Since it is evaporative, I'll be giving it a whirl in steamy Houston, and humidity is a bad thing for vests that rely on water for cooling. I'll also see how it does frozen. Can't wait!

[AMFADVENTURES]

A request

Hey Dave, I think we all appreciate you testing this stuff for us, I know I sure do. I do have a request for some additional information as you go through the tests though. That would be the weight of the fully charged vest. Cyclists you know..... always worried about that extra fraction of an ounce.

Thanks

[ActiveMSers]

Additional information like weight? Ha, I always publish the weight, since that is such a key aspect. Uncharged this vest weighs virtually nothing, and one day post charge it weighed only 1 lb 10 oz. I'm guessing it was near 2 lbs fully charged on day one, but I'll confirm that when I really get testing. It is a very light vest indeed.

[ActiveMSers]

So uncharged (for travel purposes) it weighs 7 7/8 ounces. For comparison, the cotton T-shirt I tested it against weighed 9 ounces. The vest will remain uncharged until Houston next week, as it takes about 5 days to fully lose its charge and the weather in ABQ is a chilly 50 degrees with snow in the mountains....

[AMFADVENTURES]

Additional information like weight? Ha, I always publish the weight, since that is such a key aspect.

Of course you always publish the weight, what was I thinking?

Thanks Dave

Larry

[ActiveMSers]

Alas Houston did not cooperate weather wise, it was just too nice, so the humid weather testing won't take place until late May when I head back for another MRI round....

[KSPaddler]

Dave-

Do you have any recommendations for which of the coolings vests would work best under a PFD (life vest)? The IZI vest looks like it would be the most comfortable but if it is primarily evaporative, I'm guessing it probably wouldn't work well under a PFD, especially in Missouri humidity. Do you think the Glacier Tec phase change vest would be affective and comfortable under a PFD? comfort will be a big issue because I will be wearing it during a kayak race that will last between 60 and 85 hours, depending on how well my body cooperates. I can meet my ground crew support team at boat ramps every 4 to 8 hours where they can recharge a vest for me in ice water. Any advice on how to stay cool would be appreciated.
-Chris

[ActiveMSers]

Hmm. I would think anything under a PFD that is evaporative in a humid area would not work well; the humidity would just be held in. But it might be worth a try. I'd go with a straight evaporative vest (no other ice cooling) in training and douse yourself frequently with water.

As for the length of time you'll be on the water, 8 hours is 4 hours too long for even the best vests. The GT vest would work if you changed them out at the 4-hour mark and replaced all four packs at each stop. I don't think it would be too bulky, but again you'll have to try. I would not recommend ice vests unless you have a portable freezer; ice water will not get them cold enough.

One other option may be the vest from First Line Technology (http://www.firstlinetech.com/products/phase-core/). They work by absorbing body heat and are actually not very cold (no refrigeration needed). They are often used under gear like body armor, which is more confining than a PFD. I don't know how they would do in your situation....

[KSPaddler]

Thanks for the fast response.
I should probably know this but, have I received or created a password to enter the members only forum to get discounts on cooling vests? I tried my log-in password and that didn't work. (sorry if this is a stupid question

[ActiveMSers]

If you sign up to get the e-newsletter and 10-part motivational series you'll get the password in the welcome letter (and I remind everyone of the password in each newsletter). Now if you've deleted all of them and are currently smacking the palm of your hand to your forehead, just e-mail me, ha.