Review: Columbia AirGill Chill Zero Shirt

There’s no easy way around this, so I’m going to lead with the fact that this fishing shirt carries a suggested retail price of $130.  I often fish in T-shirts (even on the flats)… my favorite, custom-order T-shirt is a Grateful Dead (Montego Bay, Jamaica, 1982) commemorative, that cost me $25, with shipping.

I’ve also been given plenty of bug-protectors, sun protectors, and stylish fashions that feature the gaudy piping and strange color combinations that are supposed to capture the fancy of “edgy” anglers.  Whatever.

What I care about is pitting out under the hot sun, whether on the flats, or on some western river.

This AirGill Chill Zero shirt is actually sweat-activated.  In other words, the hotter you get, the more you pit-out, the better it wears.  It has zip pockets, rod holders, and all that jazz, but so does every other “fishing shirt.”  The pass-fail test for this shirt, and its price, is whether or not you actually feel cooled when you start to sweat.

I did.  It was remarkable.  I’ve never had a shirt cool me off when things got hot, and this one did.  The fabric wicked away extra sweat as well.

If you can choke down the price tag, the performance attributes of this shirt are indeed as advertised.  Do you really need that performance?  Completely up to you.  Does the shirt do what it says it will?  Yes.

The AirGill Chill Zero Shirt will be available in the spring of 2013.

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