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After a new lightweight waterproof to use on and off road and all of the derivatives using goretex active get amazing reviews on the road tests, but I've never seen one reviewed for off road.
Is that because they are just too fragile? The usual off road recommendation seems to be the Endura mt500, but I can't get a good fit, and the hood would really annoy on the road, so I'm open to any other suggestions!
They're quite fragile, there is a hooded version but it's still more fragile compared with an MT500. But the MT500 is a 3 layer jacket (I think?), 3 layer jackets tend to be more robust
Not sure if the shake dry is better but I would never ride normal active-shell ofroad - it is way too fragile. Also wonder about their robustness to wearing a rucksack as my paclites didn't cope well with a messenger bag.
My two event jackets are much better.
You might struggle to find a balance between on and off road in a single jacket. I've been using a Sportful Survival active shell jacket for a few years and it is good, and no damage yet, however I am tempted to get a dedicated MTB jacket as I'd prefer a more relaxed fit than you'd want in a road jacket.
but I've never seen one reviewed for off road.
there was a thread on bearbones I seem to recall where someone bought one and tore one arm to pieces on set of brambles on the first ride.
I've got the 7 Mesh Oro jacket for road riding, which uses the Gore shake-dry material. It's absolutely fantastic. It was given a baptism of fire when I first used it for the Etape Eryri Xtrem this year - 13 hours of torrential rain, ridiculous winds, and varying temperature - it kept me dry and at a comfortable temperature for the duration. Excellent breathability, packs down to next to nothing, easy to take care of, no reproofing required. I couldn't ask for anything more from a road jacket. However, the material is way too fragile for mountain biking and I believe that it's recommended you don't wear a pack with them. I can see the material getting easily torn by a stray branch or bramble, yet alone a crash. I'm firmly in the camp of different jackets for different disciplines - it's the only way to avoid compromise (well, apart from the compromise of extra cost).
Thanks gtip, that's exactly the type of feedback I was look for, looks like it's going to be an expensive autumn! Alternatively I just bite the bullet and get a turbo... hateful things 🙁
Small gore one active jacket on sale at Blacks plus web search for extra 15% discount codes. I got Large for 157. Sizing is wrong on Blacks website though...check Gore website for that.
Agree with qtip. All of it.