Eddie Bauer Multi-Purpose Upland Field Coat

OK, so when was the last time that anyone actually bought something from Eddie Bauer? My impression of Eddie Bauer is that of a store that has completely faded from a real outdoors heritage into the mediocre blandness of the suburban American mall. They sell boring, non-descript clothes to boring, non-descript Baby Boomers (maybe this explains why they filed for Chapter 11 back in June...). So I don't remember why I even went to their website the other day, but I did, and I started poking around. I came across their "Heritage Collection" and, surprisingly, there were a couple of decent looking items.

One thing that really caught my eye is their Multi-Purpose Upland Field Coat. Now, already owning three Barbour jackets, it's pretty obvious that I am a sucker for field coats. But this one did seem to have some cool features. The recoil pads, the bi-swing back, the "Gun Carry Forearm Abrasion Patch," and the choke tube pocket (though, how often does one really change choke tubes on the fly?). Plus, it just looks good. At $399, though, the price seems pretty steep to me. You can buy about any Barbour jacket for that price, and I think I would personally have a hard time picking a jacket from Eddie Bauer over a Barbour. It does look like a good move for Eddie Bauer though, so maybe it is the start of a move in a new direction.