The longer you’ve been biking, the more you’re likely to run into rainy weather. Beyond that, the challenge of being able to do your regular ride while it’s raining is something that seasoned cyclists can’t resist.
When you’re biking to the rain you need a jacket that you can rely on to keep you dry. The Gore C5 Gore-Tex Shakedry can keep you dry while biking through the rain and it has a few extra features as well.
Let’s take a closer look at just what makes this jacket worth buying.
Staying Dry
There’s one reason you buy a rain jacket, at least one main reason anyway, and that’s to keep you dry while you’re on the road.
If your rain jacket doesn’t keep you dry while you’re biking, you might as well have gone without it in the first place. Thankfully, the Gore C5 Gore-Tex Shakedry is the top of the line when it comes to keeping cyclists dry.
This jacket features the latest technology from Gore Wear. Rather than just being merely water resistant, this jacket has been designed to cause water to bead up on the surface and then roll right off. This also means that when it’s time to head back indoors, all you have to do is shake the jacket off and all those little beads of water will just drop to the floor. You can rely on this jacket to keep you absolutely bone dry while you’re biking through the rain.
If that wasn’t enough, this jacket is also totally windproof. Rainy days are usually made worse by added headwinds and increased chill, but this jacket will have you protected from more than just unwanted moisture.
Now that we know that we will be staying dry even when biking through strong rains, let’s take a closer look at the utility this jacket offers as well as its style.
Utility
If you received a new bike commuter you’ve always got utility in the back of your mind. Every piece of gear you carry as a little bit of weight and there isn’t much room for equipment that doesn’t justify its own weight.
The Gore C5 Gore-Tex Shakedry more than makes up for the minuscule not waited adds to your bag. We already covered that this jacket is the best in the business when it comes to keeping you dry, but it’s utility doesn’t stop there.
Biking during the rain is more hazardous not just to do to the weather, but also due to decreased visibility of cars on the road. This jacket comes with reflective decals that make you more visit especially during rainy weather. The jacket also features a stowaway pocket which allows you to fold up the jacket and tuck it into itself when you don’t need it. The adjustable collar and elastic hemline mean that you can adjust the fit of this jacket to make sure that you are kept dry and protected from the wind while still keeping the mobility you need to bike around.
All in all, this jacket has utility that’s about as good as it’s Style.
Style
If we’re talking about the Gore C5 Gore-Tex Shakedry, we need to talk about style. Not only does this jacket excel at keeping you dry as well as having great utility for cyclists, it’s also the perfect choice for the more fashion-conscious bikers out there.
This jacket is available in black and a very dark navy blue. This utilitarian color choice is meant to match the jacket’s dedication to functionality before form. As far as men’s clothing goes, black and navy are the two foundational colors so you shouldn’t have any trouble matching this biking jacket to your outfits.
The comfortable cut gives you plenty of room to move around while you’re biking, but doesn’t look too baggy or ill-fitting. The form-fitting collar gives the overall appearance of a slimming look while looking more professional.
Overall, this jacket is a huge style win. It has all the utility and rain protection you needed to stay dry on those long commutes as well as being a rain jacket you won’t be afraid to walk into work wearing.
Let’s take a closer look at the pros and cons of the Gore C5 Gore-Tex Shakedry.
Pros and Cons
No review would be complete without a list of pros and cons. We’ve dug into what this jacket has to offer in some detail, but here’s a rundown of the best, and worst, of what this jacket has to offer.
Pros
- Ultra Light – This jacket weighs a minimalist 116 grams. This means that you’ll never have to worry about the added weight of this jacket.
- Rolls Up Very Small – The jacket comes with a built-in stowaway pocket and can be rolled up into a very portable size. You’ll be able to carry this jacket around just in case while not sacrificing your storage capacity.
- Best Water Protection – The GORE-TEX Active with SHAKEDRY™ will not only keep you dry, but make sure that all you have to do is shake the jacket off and it will be nearly dry as well.
Cons
- Expensive (but worth it) – This jacket does have a hefty price tag. Budget conscious cyclists might have some sticker shock with this one. However, the features and build quality make the cost totally worth it.
- No Backpack – This one won’t be a con for everyone. GORE Wear recommends not wearing a backpack on top of this jacket. There are plenty of workarounds for this especially with more streamlined bags that can be worn underneath the jacket. This is more an issue of preference than a true con.
Recommendations
So do we recommend this jacket?
We won’t leave you waiting out the rain for very long. The Gore C5 Gore-Tex Shakedry is an outstanding rain jacket that would be a great addition for any cyclist’s gear. It’s fashionable as well as the top of the line when it comes to rain jackets that will keep you dry.