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endura pro sl waterproof shell jacket

nathan somevi trio

this year's lagavulin islay jazz festival took place three weeks later than its usual mid-september slot in the calendar, apparently at the behest of a delay in producing the box for lagavulin's limited edition festival bottle (£220 in case you were wondering), a delay that took it out of the earlier portion of autumn and into the bit where the leaves fallen from the trees are starting to turn to mulch, the wind has a tendency to blow harder, and precipitation is on the increase.

endura pro sl waterproof jacket

that said, saturday afternoon, when i formed one fourth of saxophonist, laura macdonald's quartet, was fairly amenable. the few showers that appeared were spaced far enough apart, that my bike rides to and from the car rental in bridgend remained pleasantly dry. however, the same cannot be said for sunday.

with heavy rain and galeforce winds on the rise overnight, sunday was considerably less pleasant, leading to cancellation of all but one ferry sailing. that left several musicians and sound crew stranded on the hub of the universe for an extra day, and prevented mercury prize nominee, fergus mccreadie from playing at his own gig on sunday evening. keen to experience all the jazz i could manage to cycle to, i had arranged to ride to the rspb visitor centre at aoradh (pronounced oorig) to experience the substantial guitar skills of nathan somevi, accompanied by niall ford on drums and rachel duns on saxophone.

endura pro sl waterproof jacket

the visitor centre is around 15km from the croft, offering a 30km round trip in the aforementioned galeforce winds and, at times, torrential rain. clad in cycling apparel that wouldn't mark me out as too different from my peers in the audience, i opted to embrace my torso in endura's pro sl waterproof shell jacket, highly visible in its fluorescent yellow version. despite the greyness of the day and any vehicles having their windscreen wipers on maximum, it was unlikely that i'd blend into the background.

endura pro sl waterproof jacket

overall, i probably spent the better part of two hours in those conditions, predominantly due to the womanly struggles of my compatriot on the journey. on arrival at aoradh, the merino wool jersey that nestled below the jacket was commendably dry, but it seemed likely the return trip into a rising headwind would be the strident test not only of the pro sl's waterproofing, but its accompanying breathability.

endura pro sl waterproof jacket

as the majority of you will be aware, breathable fabrics rarely display much in the way of stretch, so, if carrying any stuff in those three rear pockets, the hope that the size of the jacket will encompass all, while still allowing the rider to breathe, is a fervent one. the medium size provided more than enough wiggle room. part two of any waterproof equation, from my point of view at least, is the length of the sleeves. there's little point in benefiting from impeccable waterproofing, if there's a noticeable gap between cuffs and gloves. box number two successfully ticked.

endura pro sl waterproof jacket

however, as mentioned in previous reviews, remaining dry on the outside is all very well, but of little benefit if suffering from the notorious 'boil in the bag' experience. i am very happy to report that the pro sl seemed to have dispensed with the majority of any internally generated moisture en-route. suffice it to say, though i had wet feet, straggly wet hair, gloves and legs, my torso remained dessicated.

endura pro sl waterproof jacket

though this first baptism by rain ride offered no respite, and therefore no need to stuff the jacket in a rear pocket, subsequent rides did. inside the collar is an elastic loop, meaning that once rolled up, it's a simple matter of sliding into the loop before packing inside a pocket. disappointingly, the jacket is minus a means of hanging the jacket on a hook, something that, despite my continually making mention, endura seem to ignore. however, that is a minor gripe, particularly in the light of the overall efficacy of the jacket, and its extremely light weight.

there are many stowaway waterproof jackets on the market, but not too many that would survive hebridean weather for as long as did endura's pro sl jacket. given that we're but a week away from the clocks changing and ending british summertime, there's a strong likelihood that this jacket will see a great deal of use.

and scottish rain.

sunday 16 october 2022

twmp ..........................................................................................................................................................................................................