comments:
I live/work/play in Texas, so hats are a way of life for me. I have this one, and it fits the bill, except for the "screaming scoutmaster" part. I don't think it really does that. I have one like this that I wear too, and it works as advertised. I use it a lot when fishing at the coast. Between that hat and a Palmyth brand long-sleeve fishing shirt, I can wade all day in July/August on the TX coast and be completely comfortable. If I start to get a little warm, I either dip down into the water, or take my shirt off and get it wet, dip my hat in the water too, put them right back on, and I'm GTG for at least an hour. They keep me cool and protect me from the sun in EXTREMELY harsh conditions. Add in a cooling buff and good polarized sunglasses to protect from the glare off the water, and I'm all set for a whole day of fishing. I use the same tactics and gear for any outdoor activity. The "Campaign" hats are not ventillated enough and will cook you to death, but they sure do scream "Scoutmaster!". Same with anything made of felt or wool, like "Indiana Jones" style. There's a good reason cowboys/ranchers in the South only wear their felt hats when "dressing up", or maybe in the winter. The hats they wear in the pasture, on horseback, on a tractor, etc are all straw; well ventilated, light in color, wide brim... I really like the Tilley LTM6 (or that style), but I need to be able to crush it and generally beat the heck out of it (I'm rough on hats), so I'm not willing to spend that much money on a real Tilley brand hat... yet...