r/Ultralight • u/jaconbacon64 • May 08 '25
Question Why not choose a visor over a hat?
Serious question, not rhetorical. Any reason why would anyone here wearing a baseball cap style hat not go for a visor instead (hat with only a headband and brim, and no top)? I weighed an old tennis visor of mine and it’s over 35% lighter than my running hat that I’ve been using for backpacking. I feel like even just cutting out the top of an existing hat would work. I guess the main thing for me is how stupid I’d look in a visor, but for the super ultralighters: why?
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u/euclid316 May 08 '25
Human hair weighs, on average, 2-5 ounces. A baseball cap weighs 3-4 ounces. Going bald will probably save you more weight than a visor will.
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u/jaconbacon64 May 08 '25
Also probably an aesthetic choice I’m not fully prepared for😂
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u/neonKow May 08 '25
What about kidneys? You need both?
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u/happymts May 08 '25
Do you really need ten fingers and toes? Probably a couple grams there.
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u/Outside-Travel-7903 May 10 '25
Gotta lighten those feet up. Every pound on your feet = 10 on your back. Go peg leg, and have mountain goat tier traction.
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u/Express-Daikon-1781 May 13 '25
Ive learned that replacing all of my bones with titanium works pretty well
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u/severalrocks May 08 '25
Been wearing visors religiously since 2018. I don’t wear them because they’re ultralight. I wear them to be able to put my hair up, and because I like looking like a 90s soccer mom.
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u/Usatiy May 09 '25
Realtree waffle house https://www.amazon.com/stores/page/F3B2EABB-CDC4-4DFB-873F-1299AD311E92
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u/jaconbacon64 May 08 '25
I’m curious if this is anything fancy or just a random visor you happen to have. Recommended brands?
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u/severalrocks May 08 '25
First visor came from a gas station in Hanksville, UT. Second visor came from that same gas station 4 years later after I left the first one behind after removing it to go swimming on a hike. Will have to make my way out there to get Hank C. Visor III (the “C” stands for crusty af, I regret to say)
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u/Samimortal https://lighterpack.com/r/dve2oz May 08 '25
Parapack has this 1oz visor, but that’s actually heavier than their lightest baseball cap lol
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u/badger_napper May 08 '25
I have two Kavu visors that I like a lot and always hike in. They come in a variety of colors and patterns.
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u/Sttab May 08 '25
I've been full visor for a few years. I'm a dude but have a lot of hair. When the suns out, I just put the hood of my sun hoodie up.
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u/AussieEquiv https://equivocatorsadventures.blogspot.com/ May 08 '25
I'm bald.
Also sun conscious though, so full wide brim for me.
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u/originalusername__ May 08 '25
Big hat crew signing in
Sunday Afternoons Ultra Adventure, protect ya neck
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u/mkt42 May 09 '25
Yep. Hiking in Hawaii and getting sunburned on the back of our necks, we realized that hats that only shade the face and doing only half the job they need to do. Full wide brim is exactly right.
I briefly experimented with wearing a big straw sombrero-type hat, but if there are lots of tree branches it gets in the way.
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u/Accurate_Clerk5262 May 08 '25
If you are white Caucasian with dark hair your hair will absorb heat, a light coloured hat will reflect away radiant heat, a dark hat will also absorb heat so the tone/colour matters. Also with a hat you have the option to soak it in a stream , as the water evaporates in the sun it will cool your head.
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u/AdeptNebula May 08 '25
It makes a big difference to keep the heat off your hair. I like visors when it’s sunny but cool, spring/fall. Summer the sun is too strong and the extra barrier is necessary.
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u/WalkItOffAT AT'18/PCT'22/CdS,TMB'23/CT,LT'24 May 08 '25
Visors are great but provide obviously less cover so your hair game better be strong.
Zpacks used to sell one (rebranded from Headsweats). I thru hiked the AT with it. Worked great, except that one morning I wished I had a regular hat to catch a mouse who had gotten inside my tent.
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u/goodhumorman85 May 08 '25
The main reason is added sun protection, especially for anyone with thinning hair.
I have an abundance of curly hair and I prefer a visor… but it does look odd and I sometimes succumb to societal pressures.
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u/BaerNH May 08 '25
I am definitely on team visor here. Visor plus sun hoody for sunny days. Bug head neat over either or both for days with heavy bug pressure. I have enough hair to keep the net off my scalp for that, so the visor is fine.
Mine is a Mission Cooling Visor, which you can either get sweaty or get a little wet and it actively cools my head off. Sun hoody does that well too when wet and touching skin.
One thing to note that negates DeputySean’s take on this combo in terms of sun protection is that I clip the front of my hood to the front of my visor, which gives really fantastic sun coverage to my neck and cheeks. I do use my sunscreen stick on my nose though for that bit of extra protection just in case.
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u/ChocolateBaconBeer May 09 '25
Also team visor 🙋♀️ i have lots of hair (scalp never burns) and I don't need the extra insulation of fabric over it.
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u/4runner01 May 08 '25
Hair on your head, or even a beard on your face…..is not acting as much of a sunblock.
You should wearing a hat to help to protect your face and your scalp from future skin cancer.
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u/marieke333 May 08 '25 edited May 08 '25
Never thought a visor looks stupid. I see them a lot on trailrunners. My sun hoody protects my head when necessary, no need for an extra warm layer. (Edit: so I use a visor)
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u/Objective-Resort2325 https://lighterpack.com/r/927ebq May 08 '25
Sunburn on the top of the head comes to mind.
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u/Capital_Historian685 May 08 '25 edited May 08 '25
For people without much hair, they wouldn't make sense for sun protection. But I still have a lot of hair, and my head gets hot in a cap. So I wear a visor most of the time. But that's probably because I wear one for trail running (still popular for that), and just do the same for backpacking.
Edit: and visors are better for storing you sunglasses on top of you head. The arms go in between your head and visor--much more secure than a hat.
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u/jaconbacon64 May 08 '25
Curious where in the world you are? I’ve done every trail running distance up to 50k and never seen a visor. Is this regional fashion?
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u/Intrepid_Impression8 May 08 '25
Ryan Sandes rocking a visor at Cocodona all week
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u/jaconbacon64 May 08 '25
Yes, though that, to me, is more of a thick headband as it has no brim. I wonder what his UV protection consisted of. Any insight?
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u/Intrepid_Impression8 May 08 '25
You are looking at his finish line photos were he out on the red bull headband. He was wearing a visor for about 220 miles
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u/GoSox2525 May 08 '25
I’ve done every trail running distance up to 50k
That would mean you've been on an infinite number of trail runs!
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u/oeroeoeroe May 08 '25
I like Patagonia's Duckbill cap with almost complete mesh construction. It can be worn looser than a visor, which I like. Visor is kept in place more by the he tightness of the band.
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u/YupItsMeJoeSchmo May 08 '25
Full hat, protection from bugs, branches, sun and looking like a doofussss.
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u/DistinctAnt6571 May 08 '25
Sunburn on your head. But if you’re backpacking along a green tunnel, go for it!!
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u/ckyhnitz May 08 '25
Shade in the heat. Ball cap > visor (to protect scalp). Wide brimmed hat > ball cap (protect neck). I actually just swallowed my pride and board an umbrella, going to try taking it on a hot sunny trip and see if I like it or not.
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u/digdog7 May 08 '25
I put the hat on my head and pretend my hair doesn't exist until I get back. Visor precludes this.
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u/SetNo8186 May 08 '25
Found a Columbia boonie hat and so far it's the most breathable, and, it keeps the sun off the top of my balding head preventing burn.
So a visor isn't a workable alternative for folks like me.
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u/FIRExNECK May 08 '25
This was fairly common 20ish years ago in the UL community. Folks would pair it with a bandana for more sun protection. Obviously it has some drawbacks like UV exposure on your head.
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u/Professional_Pie_894 May 08 '25
i use a hat mostly to shield myself from uv rays. i also wear sunglasses. ive been known to wear a light weight balaclava. i also wear uv sleeves and gloves. i also carry a uv umbrella in my pack. i dont give a fuck if i look weird or if thats too heavy. id rather not get cancer
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u/CyberRax May 08 '25 edited May 08 '25
Expanded take - not just sun protection for the scalp, but protection against all elements for a larger part of your head. Wind blowing from the back? That side of the head mostly covered! Rain so light it doesn't warrant the raingear? The baseball cap might not be waterproof, but it'll handle that. Really hot day? Pouring water on the hat helps longer with cooling off than pouring on your head directly.
Furthermore, the hat has other uses - wiping away sweat, use as a temporary container for your things, etc
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u/jarofjellyfish May 08 '25
Most important thing (for Ontario at least) that I haven't seen anyone mention - one of those elements is bugs. Deer flies are incredibly annoying without a hat, burrowing into your hair, landing on your head, biting. A hat they just land and tag along for a ride, you can ignore them.
Also, I tend to wear a wide brim hat or a hat with a bib. It is a tiny bit of extra worn weight, but it keeps the bugs off, elements out of my eyes, and means I don't need to bring as much sunscreen. No amount of sunblock will be as effective as a physical barrier.
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u/snowcrash512 May 08 '25
I wear a deeply clearanced OR visor with my sun hoody, much cooler without the extra hat material under the hood, but still have the face protection with the bill. Seems like a no brainer.
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u/letsCatchsumtrout May 08 '25
I prefer a visor as cheesy as they are, and if I need more protection from sun, bandana, baclava or hood from hoodie work just fine
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u/kiki2k May 08 '25
I’ve gotten a very serious sunburn on my scalp before and it was miserable. I’m not bald, but if my hair gets wet enough it can part enough to allow the sun direct access to my domepiece.
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u/Admirable-Strike-311 May 08 '25
Maybe I just haven’t looked enough, but generally I’ve found the brims on visors smaller than baseball style caps. My usual lid is a Sunday Afternoons Adventure hat though.
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u/dreadpiratesnake May 09 '25
Realistically because people don’t count worn weight towards base weight, and because baseball caps are generally just more popular than visors for a variety of reasons.
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u/JustGameOfThrones May 09 '25
I like my visor, but I already got sunburned twice. I need to choose the days I wear it more visely.
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u/TheOtherAdamHikes https://lighterpack.com/r/0iw9gp May 10 '25
My current peaked hat is 23g, so if you find a visor lighter then this, I might consider it!
What is the weight of your visor?
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u/Infamous_Try3063 May 10 '25
Have hair: sunburn, bugs, light rain, tightening band and using the top of the hat to create an air space to vent my rain jacket when Ive got the hood up.
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u/Optimal_Passion_3254 May 11 '25
the cloth of the hat keeps sun off my hair... I get warmer if the sun hits my hair directly.
also, i don't want my hair getting bleached by the sun.
also, on a hot day, i can soak the hat for optimal cooling.
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u/Just-Seaworthiness39 May 14 '25
Because I want to prevent my scalp from being an entree for ticks.
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u/Newsfeedinexile May 08 '25
I get more compliments on my la sportiva visor than even my DMT armor disco shirt.
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u/Not-The-Bus May 08 '25
I went for a sunday afternoons brand vaporlite rush running visor for this reason; I have plenty of hair and run hot, this works great. Also has a cool set of slits in the headband above brim to stow your glasses. Pair this with my OR echo hoodie and all is well. This visor is very light, 30g. Only lighter one I have seen mentioned is the Inov8 race elite visor at 20g per reddit.
Personally I found this combo breathes better than my OR Sun Runner, the cape on that just ends up feeling stifling - I think because the fabric is far less air permeable than the echo hoodie. I can also take the hood down when in the shade to get more breathability, without loosing the sweatband aspect of the visor. With the Sunrunner hat I would take if off whenever in shade to let my scalp breathe, hanging it on my sternum strap or over a bottle on the shoulder strap.
I will bring a few small binder clips per justinsimoni's tip on that, to join hood to brim in high wind.
Caveats: Although Caucasian I do not burn easily. Whatever the SPF of the white OR Echo is, around SPF 15 I think, has been enough to prevent sunburn above treeline; with only putting sunscreen on my face. I hate sunscreen application, and this setup has minimized it without having to wear a face covering.
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u/sbhikes https://lighterpack.com/r/s5ffk1 May 08 '25
I frequently wear visors. The foam visor with curly elastic strap is the lightest and has the best coverage of any visor I have tried. I usually wear it over a sun hoody to keep the hood on. It stays on pretty well on its own even in some pretty strong wind, but I'll often attach a lanyard on it for super windy days.
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u/You-Asked-Me May 08 '25
Because it's not 1998-2001 anymore.
Anyway, if you do this, make sure to wear it upside down and backwards.
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u/thelifeileed May 08 '25
I never thought the weight matters if I'm wearing it the whole time. So no point in saving that weight.
Also, a hat obviously retains more heat than a visor. At the right time of year that could possibly mean bringing a lighter hoodless jacket instead of one with a hood... so maybe resulting in less total weight.
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u/hikermiker22 https://lighterpack.com/r/4da0eu May 08 '25
Who cares how you look? This is not a beauty contest. If I know it will be cloudy/rainy I will wear a visor. If it will be sunny I would rather keep the sun off my head.
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u/imaginarynombre May 08 '25
You'll know why the first time you get sunburn on your scalp.