I awoke Saturday with the knowledge that if I got on the bike, it would be a solo journey, as the weather was less than optimal for cycling, and well, people around here may melt. The plan was to watch Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, but all of the feeds were junk, so I kitted up, and went out in the 39 degree drizzle.
Precautions were taken to make a wet, sub-40 degree ride a bit more tolerable. Embro under the knee warmers, full fenders, and my new Sportful UK Rain Jacket, courtesy of PBK.
Yes, it was a freebie, but as most of you know, free or not, if something I test doesn't work, or has issues, I will not blow sunshine up anyone's skirt.
Now, on to the show...
I left Service Course in a light drizzle, which was little more than a nuisance. To be honest, with a baselayer, jersey, and armwarmers under the jacket, I was quite toasty. As my pre-review review postulated, the Sportful jacket was quite adept at keeping the wind at bay. I actually had to un-zip about 15 minutes in...
Once out into LexCo, the drizzle became rain. No worries. Rain beaded up, and fell right off. I felt a bit like a duck.
Another feature previously mentioned was the fit itself. When standing/off the bike, the jacket feels odd, like there's not enough material across the front, but as suspected, once on the bike, and in the closed-chested, rounded-back riding position, it was perfect. Also, flapping from the wind was minimal. The only time I noticed it was on a 50kmh+ descent, and the material movement was slight. Not that loud flapping action from other vests, and jackets.
2 hours, and many different intensities of precipitation later, I hit the door @ Service Course. Yes, I was wet. Feet wet. Legs wet, but toasty thanks to the embro. Hands wet, and a bit cold. I was wet under the jacket too. But, and it's a Kardashian-sized but(t), the wetness under the jacket was from my sweat. The jacket kept me warm enough, and dry enough, to return soaked with sweat...in 39 degrees and rain.
I also discovered a feature that I saw in my initial pre-review, but completely missed for what the feature was designed...sort of. Remember the little zippers on the sides/back of the jacket? I called them vent zips, and it seems they DO work in that capacity. What I discovered Saturday was that they are access zippers, so one can get into jersey pockets! Perfectly placed, and dreadfully easy to operate. So simple, yet so genius.
Once back at SC, I hung the jacket up on the elliptical (as that's what it's used for now...a $900 drying rack...), and it was DRY, rain and sweat, in less than 45 minutes.
I like the Sportful UK Rain Jacket. I'm still on the fence about the flouro, high-vis yellow. I know that it's to keep dummies like me, who CHOOSE to ride in the shit, a bit safer, but that doesn't negate the fact that it's eye-searingly bright. I like low-key cycling clothing, and high-vis flouro yellow ain't it...
Like I said before, I'd probably never BUY myself a $125-150 rain jacket, but if you live somewhere that rain is a constant companion, the purchase of this jacket is something to consider.
Not that they really helped keep my upper body dry, as it POURED on me for about 30 minutes, I also rolled the Planet Bike full fenders on Saturday. Talk about a 10 minute install being time well spent! I stayed DAMN dry, until the rain started dumping. If you ride, or even plan to ride in the weather, it's $45 well spent!
Sunday, Il Prof and I rolled around for 2:30, and just chatted. It was quite nice. The day went from overcast, and a bit damp, to blue sky about halfway thru the ride. It was about all I wanted/needed.
Speaking of Het Nieuwsblad...here's the last 76km...
And Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne was cancelled Sunday due to weather. People on Twitter pissed and moaned. Funny how people will complain about pros not wanting to race, and risk their livelihoods, in horrible, cold, icy conditions, yet those very same people who bitched won't pull their bikes out if it's below 50....
Enjoy your day...
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