Rain jackets

7mesh stuff is really nice - as are the guys who work there. By that token Arcteryx makes awesome rain gear too.

Not to put words in Mike's mouth but he did put an emphasis on "Made In Canada" in his post. I don't think at the production level either company's jackets would qualify? The production Mission wool and waterproof jackets are physically made in Vancouver.

Arcteryx still has a factory in the van area. If you email them, im sure theyll confirm which products are made there. It will almost surely be the high end stuff. Maybe just get an avalanche bag that inflates an umbrella over you when it starts raining.

Heres a hazelcolgatesque tangent for you.

One winter day I left work with about an hour of light, just enough for a quick ride. As I was changing, I discovered that I forgot my belt so I grabbed what I had - steel skid strapping - and made do.

With so little light I opted for a solo shuttle; drive up, ride down, hike back up with a headlamp to get the car. In the first few minutes of riding, I slid on ice and ate shit hard. I was rattled, rode poorly the rest of the way down, felt off.

At the bottom I stashed my bike and started the hike up, feeling odd inside. By the time I got to the truck it was clear that my dim sum lunch wanted out. And by the time I got back to the bottom and found my bike in the pitch black with a bic, the poo situation was becomjng dire. It was diherrea for sure.

So there I was in the woods, in the dark, in the rain, without any kind of tool to remove this steel belt id put on, and totally unable to get my pants down for this very urgent shit. All I could do was head for home, hoping I wouldnt juice all over my drivers seat.

In the end I made it home with mere seconds to spare and I learned my lesson. Dont eat dim sum and then use skid strapping as a belt. This has guided me through life ever since.

Hahah this is an amazing story, thanks for sharing.

In terms of rain friendly footwear, does anyone use those commuter style "booties" for mountain biking that just cover your regular mtb shoes? or is it too easy to rip them up? Contemplating whether I should buy winter specific shoes or if I would be able to get away with booties.

For commuting I used the soft shell Pearl Izumi ones for MTB. My Mallets ripped them up a bit.

I've been using them lately on the trail, and they work well, but rainy ride trail choice leads to less walking.

If I didn't have a long list of gear requirements, I think I'd rather get winter specific shoes.

In terms of rain friendly footwear, does anyone use those commuter style "booties" for mountain biking that just cover your regular mtb shoes? or is it too easy to rip them up? Contemplating whether I should buy winter specific shoes or if I would be able to get away with booties.

They suck. Proper winter shoes are best but even shoes with no mesh or vents with a wool sock are pretty good. I'm riding Giro Teraduras and I can easily wear a thick wool sock and be warm at 4°c or so. It hasn't been cold here in Whistler yet this fall so I can't say how that will work below freezing but I think it will be OK. I have North Wave winter shoes too. They have GORETEX uppers and are a good at sub zero temps for me.

^Giro Winter Merino wool socks are the hype! Wear them with 5.10 Impact Clips with no issue.

the thick white plastic provincial liquor store bags make good booties and/or gaitors in a pinch!

the thick white plastic provincial liquor store bags make good booties and/or gaitors in a pinch!

Plastic bags inside your shoes work great. Even better are the gortetex overstocks that the coop sells
These over wool socks FtW. They occasionally fill with water on extreme days but your feet never get cold. I thought they were a waste of $$ until I tried them. Now I love them.

Yeah, in order of preference and cost:

1) Winter shoes (insulated for warmth, waterproofed for our conditions)
2) Wool socks under gore-tex or waterproof socks (Sealskinz) in a shoe that isn't a sieve.
3) Booties over top, or plastic bags underneath. But at least spring for waterproof socks like in #2 if you're going to do this regularly.

This all assumes wool socks. In fact I wear 'em year round. Thicker in winter, generally. BTW I'm going to plug the new 8" NSMB merino wool socks. Find 'em here. They're not the thickest but they've been working great when it's damp and cold and we've had great luck with SockGuy socks - they last for many, many washings and dryings.

the situation:

in berlin, it's winter (sometimes it gets fucking cold over here, -10 to -15°C), bike messenger with 4-5h shifts. what jacket to wear?

atm i'm looking at the following products:

new gore bike one pro jacket
new gore bike one thermium jacket
7mesh revelation jacket

all very expensive

i've now discovered the sugoi stuff mentioned in this thread, would be a lot cheaper than the jackets on the list.

anyone got some more tips for inner city riding, in the cold, in the night with lots of short waiting times in warm restaurants?

For cold weather activity, it's actually a lot easier to get it right. The reason there are so many different attitudes and opinions in this thread is that layering for activity when it's pissing rain and cold is one of the most challenging layering situations. Add an aversion to abrasion from falls and it's a source of constant hand-wringing.

In your case, a gore-tex or similar shell over a thermal layer and a thin next-to-skin layer is the ideal. However that outer layer does not need to be a 3-400 euro piece. For your conditions, you mainly need wind resistance and a layering system underneath that will bring sweat to the outer layer. So anything breathable, but not necessarily waterproof, will be perfect. In that case, I'd steer you towards Softshell garments, made by the likes of Schoeller or Gore Windstopper.

What's the best breathable, water proof shell/jacket for $200-250 CDN? I value rugged build, waterproofedness and breathability (ie the fabric and some god damn vents) over tons of pockets, hood etc. Although, I suppose a hood that can be pulled over top of the helmet when it's skipper and gilligan's 3 hour tour level rain might be a handy feature.

The race face stuff seems to get shite reviews for breathability and quality. Something from Sugoi or Endura or ??

Don't want to spend made in Canada/Trumpland prices.

Edit: I think waterproofedness is ranked below durability and breathability (and windproofedness) as I hate over heating and generally wear merino base layer to stay warm even when wet. Should make the price of 200 a lot easier to attain too.

For cold weather activity, it's actually a lot easier to get it right. The reason there are so many different attitudes and opinions in this thread is that layering for activity when it's pissing rain and cold is one of the most challenging layering situations. Add an aversion to abrasion from falls and it's a source of constant hand-wringing.

In your case, a gore-tex or similar shell over a thermal layer and a thin next-to-skin layer is the ideal. However that outer layer does not need to be a 3-400 euro piece. For your conditions, you mainly need wind resistance and a layering system underneath that will bring sweat to the outer layer. So anything breathable, but not necessarily waterproof, will be perfect. In that case, I'd steer you towards Softshell garments, made by the likes of Schoeller or Gore Windstopper.

thx, i got a good online deal on the gore bike element urban soft shell jacket, should be here by next week :)

will add my shitty lidl rain jacket if its pissing

thx, i got a good online deal on the gore bike element urban soft shell jacket, should be here by next week :)

will add my shitty lidl rain jacket if its pissing

Let us know how it goes. Softshells are underrated by people who haven't used them. Many have decent water repellency in light rain but they will saturate when it starts really coming down. Very breathable, though, and comfortable to wear (plus not as noisy).

What's the best breathable, water proof shell/jacket for $200-250 CDN? I value rugged build, waterproofedness and breathability (ie the fabric and some god damn vents) over tons of pockets, hood etc. Although, I suppose a hood that can be pulled over top of the helmet when it's skipper and gilligan's 3 hour tour level rain might be a handy feature.

The race face stuff seems to get shite reviews for breathability and quality. Something from Sugoi or Endura or ??

Don't want to spend made in Canada/Trumpland prices.

Edit: I think waterproofedness is ranked below durability and breathability (and windproofedness) as I hate over heating and generally wear merino base layer to stay warm even when wet. Should make the price of 200 a lot easier to attain too.

In that price range, you're going to sacrifice either breathability or waterproofness - there just aren't membranes that really do both well at that price. Retail, that is - you could find a deal on a more expensive jacket for sure.

The Race Face Chute is great for waterproofness and durability IMO. Not so great for breathability. Pit zips help. But you're saying waterproofness is less important, in which case I would advise you to seek out a lightweight shell. Referred to more as a windbreaker. I'll have a review out in a bit, but look at Patagonia for example - the Houdini is a great lightweight riding shell IF the fit works for you. I'm 6'1 / 190 and wearing a Medium and it isn't tight, so you have to size carefully. Arc'teryx has a good lightweight shell called Squamish. There are others. But that is the jacket that I think you're after - and you can probably find one for less than 200. It's not going to keep you dry when it starts raining hard but it'll breathe well, keep you warm when you're riding fast down a hill (ie Mtn Hwy after a ride on Fromme) and packs up well.

In an upcoming jacket review or article I'm going to write about owning two jackets. You could argue for spending 200 x 2 vs 400 x 1. One jacket that is waterproof but sacrifices some breathability for torrential "why are you even out here?" days, and one (which you'll use more often) that will keep the windchill off and mild amounts of rain, but won't hold up for more than an hour if it's really raining on you.

There are always sacrifices if you don't want to spend 350+ on one piece (which I totally understand), but there is wisdom in having multiple jackets and tagging in the one that works best given the current conditions.