so I believe she's more qualified than anyone on this forum to give an opinion.
since she has no personal experience USING the vest to develop an opinion, we'll rank her opinion's value above everyone else who also hasn't used it. But I would value ANY opinion from ANYONE who has actually used one above hers.
IMO, it's a general rule of thumb that it's a trade off between protection and movement. More protection = less movement. Less protection = more movement. Now I'm sure that there is a sweet spot in that ratio that designers have found to build a popular vest. In the Gladiators case, i interpret based off visual speculation, that the vest provides more protection, less movement. But certainly, not a gimick.
