To discuss snowboarding’s history and not mention the Forum 8 is leaving out a key player in a 40 year old saga. The VHS era of snowboarding videos inspired a generation of riders, with the Forum videos of the late 90’s and early 00’s being at the top of that list. The team was arguably the finest brand team ever put together, in this author’s humble opinion. Peter Line was at the helm for that crew, his silhouette forever etched into the generation’s memory on the cover of The Resistance.
Skip forward a few decades, and snowboarding has had a roller coaster ride of hype that took the industry from counterculture symbol to mainstream advertisements. Anything and everything—from deodorant to razor blades—became Extreme. While that happened, the industry consolidated, and the corporate takeover of the sport ensued. Forum was bought out by Burton, and then quietly put out to pasture. Nowadays, only a handful of brands exist that are owned and run by snowboarders. But Forum is back.
Resurrected by Peter Line himself, the brand is now focused on creating high quality boards and outerwear without the hype. As a designer by trade, Line has put his years of professional riding and designing for Foursquare/Special Blend to practice and developed outerwear for riders, by riders.
Forum was nice enough to send out some gear to sample, and our crew put it to the test in the best (and worst) conditions of the BC coast range. Up here is the 3L All Mountain jacket that I’ve been riding since the middle of last year. Read on to find out why this jacket is a surprisingly innovative piece of gear that will make for a better day of riding.
Forum 3L All-Mountain Jacket
Pros: Stretchy Fabric, Massive waist pockets, unbeatable style
Cons: Zippers can be tough to zip with gloves on
Materials: Polyester
Features: Self-packing pocket, YKK Conceal zipper, Wraparound stash pocket
Bottom Line: This is a rider-owned and operated company, and the design comes from Peter Line himself. People wax poetic about “core” snowboard brands, and Forum is a core as it gets. The jacket won’t make you a better snowboarder, but it’ll sure as hell make you look better while snowboarding.
On first impression, this looked/felt like a well-built jacket. Everything was in its place, with a few bonus extras that you don’t see in other snowboard jackets. The big standout feature is the conceal zipper down the middle. It’s one of those things that seems trivial at first, yet ends up creating a sleek look that doesn’t compare to the exposed zipper look that is standard in your average snowboard jacket.
The other big standout is the stretch fabric. It moves with your body. You’ll just have to trust me until you try it on, but it does make a big difference when you are moving fast, especially in rotations. Basically, it’s one less thing to get between you and a good time with the flexibility to move about but still be protective from the elements.
Notable Features of the Forum 3L All Mountain Jacket
One of the big surprises on this jacket was the waist pockets. They are so deep you can put stuff in there and forget about it, which was precisely what happened to me with a pair of gloves last spring, no joke. It takes some getting used to, having pockets that go backwards and provide extra storage space, but now that I’ve had them, it is a game changer for being able to stash enough for a day of shredding without needing to wear a pack. I usually ride light anyway but it’s nice to have an extra set of gloves and goggles for storm days and not feel bogged down.
Another design feature that really works well is the layout of the hood, which has a bit of separation from the collar, allowing for a bit more free movement in the head without messing up the fit of the hood. Again, something that is easier felt than explained.
Something else you may not realize how great it is until you try it out a bit is the fact that this jacket packs into itself. Just stash it all into the chest pocket and watch it pack up super small, great for travelling or spring days when you may need the jacket for the morning but then want to stash it away for the afternoon.
Drawbacks
This jacket is but a shell, meaning no insulation. While that isn’t a drawback in itself, its not the lightest shell out there due to the extra pockets and 3L material. So if you are the pack rat type, it might not suit your needs. That said, I’d say that this jacket hits a sweet spot between function and minimalism.
The chest pocket, while it’s big enough to stash a radio and some snacks, is not super easy to manage on the fly. It’s easy for stuff to fall out so you want to make sure you’re not just being willy-nilly about what you put in there and where you take it out.
Final Thoughts
Snowboarding is, and always has been, about style. Your jacket is a major part of the outward appearance and goes hand in hand with looking good while you’re out there having fun. A good snowboarding jacket will be lived in off the hill too, and this looks the part of being different enough to stand out but clean enough to not be ostentatious about it.
The person behind the design (Peter Line) might be one of the world’s most well-rounded snowboard jacket designers in that he’s a legendary pro rider who also knows how to make a pattern that stands out. On top of all that, the jacket has more function than your average shell, especially without the price-gouging overcharge that some brands are getting away with these days. With the stretch fabric, hidden zipper, and massive pockets, you really do get something that’s different than every other snowboard jacket on the market today. And who the hell wants to be like everyone else? No snowboarder that I know.
If you enjoyed this review, check out our other gear reviews including everything from base layers to sunglasses, and much more. We appreciate you taking the time to visit our site and hope that this has helped you make a more informed purchase for your snowboarding gear!
