The question I鈥檝e been asked most during my six-and-a-half-year tenure as 国产吃瓜黑料鈥檚 Gear Guy is:听鈥淎re Yeti coolers听worth the money?鈥 ( 补苍诲听no.)听It鈥檚听a sign of our current times, however, that this听has听been surpassed in the past two months by: 鈥淚s the worth the money?鈥澨齈eople have asked me in the store, at a car dealership, while running, and while doing pull-ups on monkey bars at a park. My answer is a resounding yes.
The reason? It鈥檚 the most comfortable and usable mask of the dozen I鈥檝e听been testing for the past six months, ideal for both all-day wear and hard workouts. (But please note that this is not听a medical or surgical mask.)听I thought I would need a quiver of face coverings when I realized that wearing them would become part of our daily routines, but this is the only one I really need.
The longest I鈥檝e worn it without taking it off was for seven hours, when I purchased a Toyota Tacoma. While the dealership figured out my financing, I honestly forgot I had it on. The slight structure听kept the polyester and polyurethane听fabric (which felt similar to a nice, insulated base layer)听off of my nose and mouth, so it didn鈥檛听feel听constrictive or hinder听my breathing.
The soft and supremely stretchy ear bands are made from a nylon-spandex blend that never rubbed or pulled at the back of my ears, unlike the cords of most masks. Even so, the straps create plenty of tension, which kept the mask听firmly attached to my face. The bendable nose bridge also allowed听me to dial in the fit above my beak so it wouldn鈥檛听slip听down. This is a tall task: I have a rather large, bulbous nose, and it鈥檚 a nightmare in most masks. The angle of my bridge and the curvature of the snout itself create听a steep slope to a cornice鈥攑erfect for sending poorly fit coverings off the edge. Yet I鈥檝e听never had听to pull the Sportsmask back up over my nose.
The Sportsmask is also the best mask I鈥檝e used for exercising. The first test I conducted was a circuit that involved sprints, push-ups, and kettlebell swings. Breathing was significantly easier, and it held to my face more effectively than any other version has. The fact that this听mask provided complete听coverage while still keeping a pocket of air in front of my nose and mouth helped听mitigate the feeling that I was听being tortured while sucking for air between sets. Don鈥檛 get me wrong: it sucks听to exercise in any mask, so I鈥檓 not going to tell you Under Armour cracked some secret code to create full oxygen flow, but it鈥檚 the best option I鈥檝e encountered for allowing you to breathe while keeping your airways covered.
I firmly believe that the investment in this mask is worth it for anyone. When I recommend products, I often add a caveat like, 鈥淭hese skis are totally worth the extra $500 if you ski perfect powder 50 days a year.鈥 There is no such caveat with this mask. At $30, it鈥檚 roughly double the price of other performance masks on the market. But I would argue that its fit, comfort, and breathability mean you will use it twice as much.