Hi,
I am looking to find a breathable rain jacket I can wear for MUni. I guess I am leaning towards Gortex. I can spend around 100 bucks for one maybe going up to about $130. I found a few at BikeNashbar, already, but I am still looking. Many of their jackets are XXL and I don’t need anything that big.
Anyone have any recommendations for a good rainjacket, or an online discounter that I can search?
Thanks
I’d recommend not bothering.
Get a cheap bike waterproof that has lots of ventilation on it and isn’t 100% super waterproof. Goretex and other breathable things aren’t breathable enough for when you’re doing tons of exercise, so you still get sweaty inside whatever. The extra expense doesn’t get you any real difference in performance for muni. Don’t buy a lightweight goretex jacket, as you’ll be crying the first time you crash and tear your super expensive jacket.
I’ve got a big old goretex jacket, which is great for walking, but I only wear it for muni when the temperatures are around freezing and it’s raining seriously hard, otherwise I’ll wear a really cheap specialized jacket which doesn’t even have a hood, and just accept that if it rains a whole lot I’ll get wet.
Joe
Just another little piece of info on Goretex. I own a couple of Goretex jackets for various purposes and they do work great at keeping you dry but, I agree with joemarshall in that they don’t breath well enough when exercising. I’ve been backpacking in my full blown Goretex jacket and I was soaked with sweat. However, they (Gore) make other garments that do indeed breath better. The Gore XCR fabrics (carried by many outdoor retailers) breath better. Also, there are the Gore Windstopper fabrics that breath even better. The trade-off is in waterproofness. They don’t guarantee that Windstopper fabrics will keep you dry. Personal experience with the windstopper is that it breaths much better than the full blown Goretex fabric and it does keep me dry in a LIGHT rain. If I’m doing any kind of exercise, this is what I wear. I sweat profusely so I’m usually wet anyway but I still take my Windstopper windbreaker if the weather’s gonna be rainy. If I’m just sitting around in the rain (camping or whatever), I like my Goretex. So, increased breathability equals decreased waterproofness.
Check Sierra Trading Post. They’re a close-out specialist and their stock constantly changes but sometimes they have good deals on Goretex stuff.
http://www.sierratradingpost.com/
This is where we get all our gear, if we can. Prices are good to great, but the stock is always changing.
Wear the blue swimsuit. It’s entirely water friendly.
Performance Bicycle is having an end of season sale…you might find a good deal there.
Joe’s response smacks of Truth.
you do not want a gortex jacket for muni, you will be wetter on the inside than the weather on the outside.
try campmore
or ebay
The best way to get good gear for next to nothing is REI’s AS IS sales;) there amazing.
Joe, and everyone else, thanks for the info on my misimpressions of Gortex. Now, I know what to look for in regards to MUNi.
Greg, you bust me up! LOL
After a day of being MR. MOM - My three year old fought tooth and nail against a nap, then decided to have a BM in his pull-up and later took off the pull-up and left the peach sized BM on the hallway tile and finally showed me with “Dad, look…”, one of the cats, bit my 8 year old on the big toe, so hard he cried. Finally, my 6 year old got KO’d by the 3 year old as they all tumbled around in the refrigerator box that we got yesterday.
I needed the laugh.
Cheers!
Good. I feel my work here is done.
I have a Marmot Precip jacket that I use for hiking:
It’s about $100 and commonly available in stores like REI. I like it for hiking in the rain, but I don’t ride in the rain and I think it’s too nice for Muni.
With the zippers on the armpits down, it might work OK if you’re sweating lightly. It stores easily and it’s pretty light.
get thee to rei.com and have a look at their house brand jackets.
There is a sweet sale starting tomorrow.
/Yes I work for them
//No, this isn’t a paid endorsement.