Best waterproof for gravel riding?

OK, sorry for invoking the ‘g’ word but it’s for good reason, basically I want (moon on a stick incoming!) the fit and performance of a Shakedry road jacket but in a more robust package. Hence why I’m not really looking at MTB waterproofs (I have an old Endura eVent but the wrists sit comically high up my forearms when on the drops and it’s very square, like wearing a sack!).

Definitely needs to shrug off occasional bramble and gorse scrapes, shouldering of muddy bike, maybe once in a blue moon shoulder checking of tree…

I find it hard to judge breathability, but I do know that the recycled material jacket I picked up recently is sadly pretty bad, I’ll be feeling damp and chilled inside pretty quickly, even if it’s not actually raining that hard.

I might have missed out on the Gore Torrent jackets in my size, is an Endure similar or is that a baggier MTB fit? I could probably live with a hood.

Ta

I’ll have one too. I’ll add I’d like mine in a moderately visible colour too. I’ll probably have a hood as it might be my walking water proof too. I’d say it’s worth going to a general outdoor type shop. Lots of outdoor gear is cut much closer to the body than in years gone by. Sleeve length is a lottery but some were ok on my ape like form. Not sure why i didn’t buy anything. I think like you i decided i had no idea what would breath

I might have missed out on the Gore Torrent jackets in my size, is an Endure similar or is that a baggier MTB fit? I could probably live with a hood.

I don’t know what size you are, but Sport Pursuit currently has the Gore Torrent in S, M and L for £90 – the fabric’s Gore-Tex Active, so at the more breathable end of things for a waterproof fabric. Not super durable in terms of sustained waterproofing, they seem to go after a couple of years of solid use, but not terrible.

I quite like the Rab Cinder Kinetic, or whatever it’s called – stretchy, soft-feeling waterproof with a soft shell sort of feel – but I’m not sure how it would cope with abrasive abuse on account of the relative sparsity of prickly things on this side of the Peak. Also it dries quite slowly if it does get sopping wet, though good in changeable conditions. The back pocket is useless though.

i got the GRVL 3 seasons one, it isn’t fully waterproof but it is pretty water resistant, windproof and breathable, with a close fit and no flappiness.  Would definitely recommend it :

https://off.road.cc/content/review/jackets/grvl-3-season-jacket-review-12495

That GRVL one looks nice (shame not a brighter colour) but I’m still wary of anything softshell which relies upon DWR, my Stolen Goat Orkaan (which seemed to be well regarded) could still wet out enough that I eventually felt like my body warmth was being lost to evaporation, whereas with a slightly looser fitting hardshell at least there is a sort of air gap between skin/baselayer and the outer shell.

Is the GRVL skin tight like an Orkaan/Gabba etc?

I don’t know what size you are, but Sport Pursuit currently has the Gore Torrent in S, M and L for £90 – the fabric’s Gore-Tex Active, so at the more breathable end of things for a waterproof fabric.

My Shakedry is XL so I had presumed I would be Xl across the board.

I’ll have one too. I’ll add I’d like mine in a moderately visible colour too. I’ll probably have a hood as it might be my walking water proof too.

Yeah worth a look. For what it’s worth the Endure seems to come in a pretty broad range of colours, I was drawn to the ‘Torch red’ or whatever they call it.

Showers pass cc jacket here.     pretty good.

they do a few others too.

This is my walking coat, which I imagine would be ok for gravel – big pit zips and a stowable hood. Not had it out in torrential rain yet though

Rab Arc

Is the GRVL skin tight like an Orkaan/Gabba etc?

no, it’s close fitting with stretch but not skin tight like a Gabba.

£185 for a windproof!! It looks like a bin liner to me.

A bin liner would be waterproof

I wear a Rapha Hooded Rain Jacket for gravel (and MTB and road) riding. It’s awesome.

It seems to be £300 and made of GoreTex now, but I’d imagine the cut is still just as good and they do have regular sales.

Sports Pursuit also have the Gore Spirit jacket down to around £50 . I bought one from Gore for about that on BF . It’s made from their Infinium material , not fully waterproof but so far it’s been the most breathable jacket I’ve had .My mate has a Rapha jacket made with the same material and he’s been surprised just how water resistant it is .No hood only a couple small pockets , no pit zips but for the 20 odd mile rides I do around the Somerset Levels and nature reserves where the surface is indeed Gravel it’s been fine . I believe the Torrent is more of a slim fit roadie jacket?

It’s made from their Infinium material , not fully waterproof but so far it’s been the most breathable jacket I’ve had

I have a walking jacket made from this, it’s awesome stuff and I can see it being perfect for riding.

Galibier Courchevel? https://www.galibier.cc/product/courchevel-storm-waterproof-cycling-jacket/

or if you can live without a hood their tempest pro?

I really want to like Galibier, the cut and features (and price!) are really attractive, but I sent a Tourmalet back after one ride it was so sweaty! 2 or 3 years ago right enough…

Makes something like the GRVL 3 seem more attractive, it’s just that fine line between maybe getting a little wet from lack of waterproofing, or a little wet from sweat…

It’s made from their Infinium material , not fully waterproof but so far it’s been the most breathable jacket I’ve had

I’d got the impression Infinium was reasonably thick/heavy for a shell? I’ve got an ME jacket made of it, and sold a Gore Phantom made of it which was just a bit bulky and heavy.

Will need to try and check out a Rab Kinetic, I think Tiso have them. Will have a look at Showers Pass also, ta.

One thing the Infinium isn’t is thick and heavy

I’ve used God only knows how many expensive waterproofs over the years and have eventually settled on “cheap but good enough”.

Having basically written off a top-end Gore jacket on about its second ride (brambles), and crashed a brilliant thermal waterproof (Karrimor), I now just go for the entry level stuff. Currently I have a Rapha Core Rain Jacket (RRP £140 but I got mine for about half that in a sale), I could buy 3 of them for the price of a single Shakedry!

And it’s brilliant. Does exactly what it claims, no frills, not too much trauma if it gets wrecked!

Wore it on a long weekend in the Lakes a couple of weeks ago (weekend before Storm Darragh), it was used 3 days running, got covered in grit, rained on and then it washed up as good as new having kept me warm and dry all weekend.

sold a Gore Phantom made of it which was just a bit bulky and heavy.

You sure it was a Phantom??? The Phantoms I’ve seen have just been like a thick jersey…

The Phantoms I’ve seen have just been like a thick jersey…

That could be right, I tend to go for a layered approach, so the outer shell basically needs to roll up in a back pocket.

One thing the Infinium isn’t is thick and heavy

Ok cool, maybe mine is an older version of the material or I’ve gotten mixed up!

Will check out the Rapha jackets too, conveniently I think my local Tiso has Rapha stuff and Rab stuff to try on.

Time to sell my spare, unworn Shakedry first! (not so subtle stealth ad…)

I’d got the impression Infinium was reasonably thick/heavy for a shell? I’ve got an ME jacket made of it, and sold a Gore Phantom made of it which was just a bit bulky and heavy.

‘Infinium’ – basically Gore Windstopper with a newer, fancy name – is basically an ePTFE membrane, like Gore-Tex, sandwiched between a face and a backer fabric. The overall bulk of the fabric is down to the face and liner materials used, the membrane itself is just a filmy, very thin white layer, so you can make Infinium quite bulky or very light depending on the other fabrics in the sandwich.

So basically it can be thick or thin depending on the jacket and the fabrics used.

ps: In case it’s useful to anyone, Windstopper/Infinium fabrics are functionally waterproof, same membrane as Gore-Tex, different construction without a PU element. Ifb the seams are taped, it will be effectively a decently breathable waterproof at least from new. I think the reason it’s billed as ‘windproof’ rather than ‘waterproof’ is partly that the seams aren’t usually taped – some are, Rapha I think do this don’t know about Gorewear – and that in the longer terms, the fabric may not be as durably waterproof as it’s more prone to contamination than full-on Gore-Tex waterproof fabrics.

Gore’s terminology, which keeps changing, makes keeping up with what’s what in their range of fabrics, erm, mildly confusing.

For me unless it’s hosing down in which case I’ll have a cheap packable over the top, I use an old perfetto for the whole winter. Yesterday had a stretchy gilet over the top for a bit of added warmth. But then I’m unlikely to go out in the first place if it’s going to be heavy rain for the whole ride.

I’ve got a Rab cinder kinetic and a downpour lite. Both seem to wet out quickly affecting breathability but stay waterproof. They both size up large so I went for a size down for a better fit, sleeves still plenty long enough.

I much prefer the downpour lite as a carry on the bike in case it rains jacket and for wearing as it’s a lot lighter, hence the name I guess. The kinetic gets worn when it’s already raining when I leave.

Neither are as good as my shake dry jacket though but scared to use that off road around here with lots of thorn hedges etc

Putting my money where my mouth is, I picked up a Mountain Equipment Firefox jacket in Gore Active for half price a few weeks ago. It is ePTFE tech. You can read the comments below for a really good discussion on how Gore fabric is changing.

7Mesh Skypilot Jacket review

I really like the Active Fabric. As you say, Shakedry is the gold standard for waterproof breathability but Active is for me the more practical. You will need to refresh the DWR regularly but for me, it is the best compromise. I prefer jackets from mountaineering companies as I find they make proper hoods, are long in the arms and tend to last longer. Pockets at the back of a waterproof are pointless to me. I also like jackets I can wear for multiple activities.

Hope this helps?

Sanny

I’ve had one of these for a couple of weeks now. Castelli Alpha Ultimate

https://www.merlincycles.com/castelli-alpha-ultimate-insulated-cycling-jacket-303095.html

I haven’t been caught out in prolonged downpour but have stayed properly dry in an hour or more of drizzly stuff and a few short sharp showers too so I think it’s very good. If I were planning on repeated high energy interaction with flora or geology I think I would look elsewhere, given the price. Works down to 3-4 degrees for me with double base layers and just room for a thin warm layer too when needed.