As you can probably guess, I use these gloves for lift-served skiing. I don't need them to be waterproof because I'm not throwing snowballs or building an igloo, but they need to be very breathable because skiing the bumps builds up a sweat, and they also need to be windproof for that long chair ride uphill.

Ragg wool gloves, even those with leather palms, aren't all that durable when you're using ski poles all day long, and they're certainly not windproof. Sure, an over shell will make them that way, but then you lose the dexterity--which I need for turning the pages of a book while sitting on the chairlift.

I've used windproof fleece gloves often, but they don't have the long gauntlets, and they absorb snow that falls on them--something that can be just brushed away on gloves with a woven outer layer.