UKC

Hello all.
I'm in need of lightweight waterproof jacket for fell running and would appreciate some advice. Ideally, my new kagool will breath efficiently to prevent immersion in perspiration,have a detachable hood thats good, be light enough to stuff and be sufficiently robust to trust under a rucksack on my back. Forgive the crappy rhyme.

In reply to nik king: Nothing breaths well enough to cope with running.. I think they are all much of a muchness, the very light ones aren't robust and wet out, but will keep you comfortable for a few hours running.

Not sure why attachable hood is needed..

I like the paclite stuff, but basically buy whatever is on offer when I'm looking.

In reply to nik king: as said no waterproof is breathable enough for high exertion, skin is the most waterproof breathable product I know

top breathability is from event, rab or Montane or Gore Active shell,berghaus, Mountain equipment but you can get chepaer and lighter that does the job, i.e. Minimus Jkt, Mica Jkt

or if you need a regulation beater then litespeed H20 jkt, but its not breathable really

detachable hood, no

light and robust? mutually exclusive traits in waterproof jkts

I'd go with Iain's advice plus a really light pertex. Something like a Montane smock is surprisingly useful when it's not lashing down.

In reply to nik king:
What budget ?
If high, then the Goretex Active Shell fabric is best for breathability, lightweight and properly waterproof, although not convinced how durable it is. Only companies I've seen doing running style jackets ( as opposed to hillwalking style ) are Gore Running and Berghaus. Not cheap though......

In reply to nik king: I just use an old Berghaus Goretex Paclite jacket, which I wear for running, walking, climbing etc and it's stood the test of time. A lot of folks I know (on the MM side of life) tend to go for OMM jackets. Have a look at the Planet Fear website.

In reply to steelbru:

OMM, Mammut, Montane.. all do nice jackets.. I have the Mammut Mica is it? but tend to use my old paclite more as its more durable. But for short runs/races or when weight is crucial and rain less likely the Mica is great. But its thin so wets out quickly and has a wrip.. horses for courses and all that...

In reply to aultguish:

I have an OMM Kameleika jacket - not because I do MMs, but it rains a lot here. It's okay - it keeps you dryish in light rain, but if it's pouring, you get wet. It's not sufficiently breathable to stop internal condensation.

Having tried assorted jackets, I've decided that there's no such thing as a lightweight running waterproof. There are things that might stop you getting completely soaked, but you'll still get a bit wet.

In reply to tony: True....the problem is when you run you want the hood down in almost all situations.. so you have a huge whole.. more than anything it just prevents you getting saturated, but keeps the wind off and traps domr heat in to be honest..

Its why there is no point in getting too caught up in breathability rates, waterproof levels etc when buying running jackets..

In reply to IainRUK:

The main difference I've found is in the degree of unpleasantness, particularly on the sleeves - I really don't like having cold clammy wet sleeves. Unless it's really cold, I'll usually run with a t-shirt under a jacket, and cold wet synthetic sleeves feel horrible. The really lightweight jackets are the worst for this.

In reply to nik king:

Might be worth googling if people have run in the new Polartec Neoshell stuff. I've not tried it yet but it looks promising. It gets rave reviews for its breathability in climbing and cycling applications, while retaining good (but not Goretex) levels of waterproofness.
I've used Goretex, Event and the OMM shell stuff and none of them do quite what they claim. Event is the best of that lot, but I wonder why it's ok for shell jacket manufacturers to make grandiose advertising claims about breathability that are fanciful at best?

In reply to nik king:

Like others have said, there comes a point where any breatheable fabric will cease to be so when it comes to running for me it comes down to fit and robustness. I've been using a Marmot Essence for a few years now and does me fine. Pretty skinnily cut so not too flappy in the wind. Hood isn't detachable but not sure I'd want than anyway. Got a Lightspeed too but it's pretty horrible to run in once it's wetted out.

In reply to tony:
Have you seen the Gore Running jacket with short sleeves, and cycling style seperate arm warmers ? Interesting idea http://www.gorerunningwear.co.uk/remote/Satellite/PROD_JGXRUA?landingid=non...

My earlier post when I said the only companies I'd seen doing running style jackets were Gore Running and Berghaus - I meant in the Active Shell fabric, not in general.

In reply to IainRUK:


The idea is that I can use the jacket as a general summer water/windproof as well as a running jacket. I have rab event jacket that has a fixed hood that merrily whips my eyes when the hood is down and its breezy. I suppose the hood doesn't need to be detachable as long as it stows away in the collar. Having read the other posts though, my idea, like my hood, may just be flapping in the wind. Thanks for info.

In reply to nik king:

I just use a windproof when I'm running in bad weather.

In reply to davidbeynon: for 1-2 hrs its normally fine and as good as anything really, but if you race then you may need waterproof.. depends on the organisers.

In reply to nik king: I've recently bought a Haglofs Endo II pull. Gore Tex Active, super light, thumb loops rather than wrist tabs and smock design so great for when it's hooning it down

In reply to nik king: I would strongly recommend the Haglofs Oz pullover. I've tried plenty of others, including the OMM range and this is by far the best. Lightweight, breathable, waterproof and with a hood you can have up and still run. Fantastic bit of kit.

In reply to nik king: I've got a rab volt pertex shield, im really impressed with itso far, also have omm but i find that holds water in the fabric the next day