ORTOVOX Merino Freeride Glove W

The ORTOVOX Merino Freeride Glove W is a women's freeride glove for cold days off-piste, built with a two-layer upper of goatskin leather and a Sympatex membrane, and padded with recycled merino wool cuttings. The palm side of the lining is 100% merino wool, so the warmth comes from wool rather than synthetic fill. Net weight is around 200 grams.

Who is this glove for?

The Merino Freeride Glove W suits a skier who rides powder, cold couloirs and chilly resort days and wants a warm, abrasion-resistant leather glove. It is not a touring glove: ORTOVOX positions it at the low end of its own range for mountaineering, high-alpine use and ski touring, and at zero for climbing. If you need fine finger feel for bindings, screws or ropework, a thinner technical glove is the better choice.

How warm is the ORTOVOX Merino Freeride Glove W?

Warmth comes from three wool components: padding of 50% recycled merino and 38% virgin merino, a first lining of 100% virgin merino on the palm side, and a FLEECE LIGHT GRID lining with merino on the inside. Wool keeps insulating when damp and buffers moisture, which matters in a glove that spends the day in snow. This is built for genuinely cold days; on mild spring mornings it will be more insulation than you want.

Which size should you choose?

The ORTOVOX Merino Freeride Glove W has a regular fit, with enough room for the padding and the double wool lining without a loose feel in the fingers. Measure the circumference of your hand at the widest point across the knuckles, thumb excluded, and compare it with the women's glove size chart on this page. Width adjustment at the wrist and at the cuff, plus the elastic hem, let you close the glove over or under a jacket sleeve.

How is the ORTOVOX Merino Freeride Glove W constructed?

The upper is a two-layer build: goatskin leather on the outside, a Sympatex membrane behind it. The membrane is the windproof, waterproof and breathable layer; the leather is the wear layer that takes the contact with edges, skis, poles and ice. Goatskin is used across the palm, where grip and abrasion matter most, and it stays grippy when wet. Inside, the merino padding and the two linings handle temperature and moisture, so the glove works as a leather shell and an insulated inner in one piece rather than as a shell-plus-liner system.

Is the ORTOVOX Merino Freeride Glove W suitable for freeriding and ski touring?

Freeriding and off-piste skiing in cold conditions is what this glove is made for, and it works equally well for cold resort days and for descents at the end of a tour. On long ascents it is a different story: the merino padding and the double lining hold too much heat for sustained climbing, and most skiers will want a thinner glove for the way up and this one for the way down. The same padding costs you finger dexterity, so fiddly tasks — transceiver checks, crampon straps, camera dials — are easier with the glove off. For climbing, ORTOVOX itself rates this model at the bottom of its scale.

What is the ORTOVOX Merino Freeride Glove W made of, and how do you look after it?

The outer is 100% goatskin leather, the membrane 100% polyester (Sympatex). Padding is 50% recycled wool (MERINO), 38% wool (MERINO) and 12% polyester. The first lining is 100% virgin wool (MERINO); the second is 68% polyester, 24% virgin wool (MERINO) and 8% polyamide in a FLEECE LIGHT GRID structure. The goatskin palm is washable, which is unusual on a leather glove, but leather still needs leather-appropriate care rather than a hot machine cycle: dry it slowly away from direct heat so the hide stays supple, and keep the wool lining away from high temperatures. Treated this way, the abrasion-resistant outer is the part of the glove that will outlast everything else.

What makes this a wool-led ORTOVOX glove?

The padding is made from recycled merino wool cuttings — offcuts from wool production given a second use — making up half the fill. The wool used by ORTOVOX falls under the ORTOVOX Wool Promise (OWP) for animal welfare and traceability, and production is covered by the brand's Fair Wear Foundation membership. In the ORTOVOX range this glove belongs with the technical, wool-insulated pieces: wool is here for climate regulation, odour control and warmth when damp, not as a comfort detail.

Which details help on a cold day?

Dual width adjustment, at the wrist and at the cuff, lets you seal the glove against snow or open it to dump heat. The elastic hem adjustment keeps the cuff in place over a jacket sleeve, and the elastic wrist leash means the glove stays with you when you take it off on a windy ridge.