Since getting myself a tandem AquaYak, we've been getting out on the Bay a lot more, and I wanted to get myself some sun-protection for under my bump-helmet.
My dad had kept his
US GI Boonie hat when he left Viet Nam, and I swiped it, but it seems as I've grown both up and out, and it's too tight to really be comfortable these days. I'm guessing his short-back-and-sides gave him a bit more room than my ponytail does, too.
I'd seen the Platatac GBH and GBH-R and thought it was time that I updated my cover. (1968 boonie on right, for scale and reference.)
I went in and after some back and forth to get the right fit, I settled on the GBH-R (which has a narrower brim).
This is a feature packed hat. Hats have features, you ask? Yes indeed. so, apart from the obvious; fit and cover, which the GBH-R provides with a circular stitched brim to add stiffness, it also features a sew-in cord chin-strap, with a traditional leather cord-lock (I remember teething on my dads). Inside, a mesh lining with hidden vents adds heat dissipation and wicking to keep hot heads cool.
I chose the pre-dirty looking ATACS-AU for mine, which is made of the
windproof Nyco ripstop (the Multicam version is 100% Crye cotton ripstop). You can see it here up against my
Multicam First Strike Snatch Bag which shows off the subtle patterns of the ATACS-AU, this is my first piece of this particular camo scheme and it is "street capable", in that it doesn't particularly -look- like camouflage, in the way Multicam or Auscam DPCU does.
The GBH-R also features a hidden internal shock cord retention around the brim, with cord-k at the rear to adjust
tightness.
There are a very robust set of branch-loops around the side band, which are bartacked onto the hat, and these are both well spaces and generous enough to stuff a variety of items, be they local foliage, spares, or even lures. I plan on rolling a coil of paracord around mine, following
Stormdrane's fine examples.
Lastly
, the GBH-R features a 35mm x 35mm loop field on the crown for IFF patches and badges. I have a glow in the dark patch on mine currently, helping me find it in the dark of a tent overnight, or the bottom of a kit bag.
I tend to wear mine "sides up" with the chin-strap acting as a retention loop. The hat has stretched to fit nicely, especially helped by some hot weather tree-cutting I did, getting good and sweaty, which also proved the quick cooling and drying properties of the Nyco ripstop. The other thing I like is that the whole hat is fabric, meaning it is both lightweight and crushable; when not being worn it can be mashed into a pocket, or into a pack, then pulled out, flipped open and it's ready to wear.
