Norwegians have to put up with a fair bit of miserable weather, so it’s no surprise that this four-way stretch softshell is thick and warm enough for the usually mild, oft windy but inevitably wet British springtime.
The fabric isn’t fully waterproof but the material does a fine job of letting water bead off, and it’s very good at fending off biting winds. It’s also stretchy, and though Bergans pitch this as a multi-sport jacket, the arms are long enough to cover at full stretch on a bike and the tail is slightly dropped, with an elastic adjuster to keep it in place.
Deep, zipped side pockets hold a surprising weight without the contents flapping about. They are a struggle to access when you have a pack on and the Napoleon chest pocket reaches full capacity at a couple of chocolate bars, though.
The fixed, elasticated-edge hood easily goes over a helmet, so despite the thin fabric you can get hunkered down nicely in crap conditions with the foldover lined chin guard preventing rub.
The build is brilliant, but the cut and sizing are a bit on the large size, so if you’re used to close fitting cycling garments you may find the excess fabric an irritation. If mountain biking is just one string in your outdoorsy bow, it might be a positive.
This article was originally published in What Mountain Bike magazine, available on Apple Newsstand and Zinio.