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rapha brevet gore-tex paclite plus jacket
i was given a bum steer. not deliberately, you understand, but a misdirection nonetheless. i made mention earlier this week that saturday promised rain, a fact that you'd think was highly unremarkable in the hebrides. however, we have seen glorious if not stifling weather over the past couple of weeks, with nary a raindrop in sight. that forecast rain duly arrived on the very day the land rover club put in an appearance, of which i had been invited to take photographs for the local newspaper. aside from the lack of promisingly sparkling images at the behest of the delivered rain, matters were made null and void by my having been sent to the laggan bridge for 10am, only to later discover that the venue was several miles distant commencing at 12:30pm.
fortunately, a friend of mine owns a shiny new land rover defender and had intentions of joining the happy throng today (sunday). even better, he is a professional photographer and thus far better able to nab a few potent images than yours truly, particularly given the dramatic improvement in sunday's weather conditions.
however, to return to the rainy saturday with which i began, pedalling towards my misdirected and mistimed appointment in persistent rain was hardly the hardship that one might have expected it to be, for there is truly no better means of testing the veracity of a purportedly waterproof garment, than spending some quality time in the rain. as it transpired, the rain was on for the day, so there was really no need for me to look the gift horse in the mouth by perambulating the estates prior to lunch at debbie's. but this is the hebrides where you never want to take meteorology for granted.
my original 10am appointment had necessitated a grand départ sixty minutes earlier than usual, reckoning that trying to organise a substantial peloton of land rovers into some semblance of an aesthetic arrangement, would probably take longer than you'd think. however, upon discovering that the land was bereft of rovers, my morning constitutional suddenly had the unfortunate effect of being way to early to arrive in bruichladdich at lunchtime. thus, a quick rearrangement of the parcours was necessary to bring me to my double-egg roll at a more amenable time.
the name, loch gorm, reputedly alludes to its deep blue colour, one that could be clearly seen last weekend during the unbroken sunshine. on saturday it was little more than loch grey, and you had to be pretty close to its banks to be even aware of it through the heavy rain. rapha's brevet gore-tex paclite plus jacket does pretty much what it says on the label. beneath the hang-loop at the collar is a bigger bright pink elasticated loop at right angles that collar. rolling the jacket up into a tight bundle allows it to be slipped inside this pink loop, keeping its compactness intact and allowing it to be stuffed into a jersey rear pocket, or, in the case of the recently reviewed brevet jersey, the wide zipped pocket above the usual threesome.
it is a very light, two layer gore-tex jacket, the inner membrane closely resembling that of gore's shake-dry fabric. externally it features the usual perforated, reflective hoops which provide a commendable amount of visibility should you be in the habit of brevetting after dark, and its ecological properties are greatly enhanced by the outer fabric consisting of wholly recycled nylon.
aside from gore-tex' reputation for excellent waterproofing, the second string to its bow is a similar reputation for breathability, the very factor which the majority of us are hopefully grateful. many a breathable waterproof has been disappointingly not quite as breathable as the intrepid velocipedinist would hope for, but the brevet jacket seems determined to buck this trend. i had worn the jacket on a couple of previous occasions, despite a lack of rain, and the breathability had seemed quite promising, a factor that, if anything, was substantially confirmed during my three hours in heavy rain.
what had begun as persistent heavy drizzle, very soon became persistent heavy rain, and as i breezed past saligo bay, with its incredibly limited visibility over the north atlantic, i turned into a cold headwind (7 degrees celsius) blowing at near 40kph. despite this continuing from saligo to bruichladdich (around twelve kilometres), on arriving at debbie's for a very welcome and necessary soya latte and double egg roll, my jersey and armwarmers were in the same dessicated state as on leaving the croft.
the jacket's sleeves are of an excellent length, allowing them to be pulled over the cuffs of my gloves, keeping unwanted draughts at bay, and preventing surface water seeping inside. given that the jacket had to encompass all that i had placed in the three rear pockets, i cannot deny that i would have liked an extra centimetre of length on the drop tail, but given the jacket's purpose as one to wear when the weather unexpectedly turns foul, i can forgive this minor indiscretion which allowed rain and mud to affect the rear hem of the brevet jersey.
though saturday's inclemency remained from morning till nightfall, as a pac-lite jacket, we can safely assume that rapha intend it to spend at least a portion of its career stuffed into a bag or pocket, rolling it up when the rain goes off. as with many a lightweight waterproof, that's often easier said than done. there was no need to alter its format during those three hours in the rain, but i had previously had cause to divest myself of its windproofing and attempt to roll it up in the wide grey yonder, occasionally a thankless task when the north wind doth blow. it not only behoves you well to choose your timing, but also to find a sheltered spot in which to do so.
given the triumphant result of my hours in the cold and wet, i have no qualms whatsoever in recommending rapha's gore-tex paclite brevet jacket which, to be honest, did a lot more than was expected of it and did so with the minimum of fuss. to quote a well-worn epithet 'don't leave home without it'.
rapha's gore-tex paclite plus brevet jacket is available in dark navy, brick (as reviewed) and dark yellow in sizes ranging from xs to xxl. price is £265 with free standard delivery. | rapha gore-tex paclite plus brevet jacket
sunday 1 may 2022
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