When I was a kid I had this idea for a clear bubble that enclosed my bike so I could ride in the rain and not get wet. Of course the idea wasn’t original and in fact enclosed bikes have been used to break bicycle speed records – but at the end of the day a bubble bike isn’t all that practical. Fortunately Gore has come up with a more fashionable, versatile solution for staying dry on the bike: the Alp-X Jacket.

The name Gore is now synonymous with waterproof breathability and with good reason. For more than 30 years the company has been researching and developing high performance fabrics like Gore-Tex with an eye toward serious athletes facing extreme conditions. The attention to detail in the Alp-X jacket is clearly visible from the expertly taped seams to the double-shielded enclosures.

Tightly taped seams inside the jacket.

Although this jacket is versatile enough to be worn on the trail or the road, it really works well for mountain biking for a number of reasons. First, it’s super lightweight and easy to cram into a Camelbak without taking up much space and the jacket can be stuffed into its own rear pocket. My size large jacket weighs just north of half a pound at less than 11 ounces – so light that I usually forget it’s stuffed in my pack (until it starts getting cold or raining).

Now I know what you might be thinking at this point: Aren’t we supposed to stay off the mountain bike trails when it’s raining? I’m definitely a firm believer in staying off wet trails but the fact is that sometimes mountain bikers get caught off guard, especially during epic rides that start in the morning and go until dusk. The Alp-X is the perfect emergency shell for avoiding hypothermia and keeps you mostly comfortable even when you’re pumping the pedals. Although this jacket is very breathable, if you’re like me you’ll probably still sweat a little once your heart rate gets up no matter what the outside conditions may be.

Aside from using the Alp-X to stay dry, I’m finding that the jacket is great for blocking the wind on the trail and on the road. In fact when the air is dry I feel like the Alp-X does an even better job regulating body moisture and smoothing out temperature variations due to climbing / descending / and resting. Even on the coldest days this winter I’ve worn the Alp-X over nothing more than a lightweight long sleeve jersey and have felt great.

Beyond its solid performance, the Alp-X is a seriously sporty looking jacket and I find myself making more and more excuses to wear it out. Gore claims this jacket has a “Euro fit” which apparently means it’s slim and the zipper pull is on the left. The cut is definitely athletic right down to the “pre-shaped elbows and 3D ergonomic fit.” On the trail this means the jacket doesn’t get in the way when you want to throw down sick moves. The Alp-X also includes velcro wrist closures, an elastic waist cord, and an expandable tail to help customize the fit to your body even further. The upshot? Air and water don’t have a chance of getting inside this jacket unless you want them to.

The Alp-X comes is a two high-vis colors but the black and gray version seemed a little more “mountain bike” to me. Before choosing this jacket one of the folks at Gore commented that the black jacket isn’t very visible on the road to which I scoffed – mountain bikers don’t need to be seen. Actually that’s not true (hunters, training rides on the road, etc.) but it turns out this black jacket is very visible at night thanks to its reflective piping and accents. On a recent night ride a friend remarked that the pattern looked like something out of the movie Tron which in my opinion, makes it freaking awesome.

Pac-lite durability and waterproof-ness come at a cost, both in terms of usability and finances. The jacket is crinkly – sorta like a heavy duty garbage bag – which means you won’t be sneaking up on anyone on the trail. Fortunately since this jacket is shaped and fitted, there aren’t too many areas of excess material to flap in the wind while you’re riding. And as you might expect from a rain jacket, the Alp-X isn’t exactly soft on the skin so be sure to don a comfy base layer to avoid direct contact during your ride.

In terms of monetary cost, at $269.99 MSRP this is a fairly expensive jacket. The good news is this is a piece of equipment that will last for years and is guaranteed to keep you dry – forever. So if, in 10 years, you start to notice leaking around the seams on your Alp-X, Gore will repair or replace the jacket at no charge. Considering lifetime costs, this jacket is actually a steal.

Care and maintenance is no big deal for the Alp-X; just toss into the washing machine on warm and let ‘er rip. Dry on medium heat and the jacket is as good as new. In fact, washing and drying the Alp-X actually helps maintain the water repellent finish on the outside so water will continue to bead as soon as it hits the surface.

The Alp-X is probably the closest thing you’ll find to a mountain bike bubble that won’t weigh you down or harsh your flow in the rain. If you’re serious about mountain biking year round, the Alp-X is a great investment that will ensure safe and comfortable rides for years to come.

Thanks to the folks at Gore for providing this jacket for review.

Here are two pieces of outerwear that are perfect for this time of year when the temperature starts to dip and the weather becomes a little less predictable. The Gore Bike Wear Tool Windstopper Jacket (MSRP $199) and the Fusion SO Windstopper Pant (MSRP $199) are two great products to hit the trails in. Both are made from Gore’s Windstopper material which is both wind and water resistant.

Before diving into specifics, a quick note on Gore Windstopper fabric. If you’re familiar with Gore-Tex you know it’s waterproof and breathable and the Windstopper membrane is actually made from similar materials. The biggest difference between Windstopper and Gore-Tex is that Gore-Tex is guaranteed to keep you dry; Windstopper is not. Depending on the garment, this could be due to differences in seam taping, enclosures, etc. Bottom line: Gore-Tex is waterproof, Windstopper is water-resistant.

Gore Bike Wear Tool Jacket

The Tool jacket comes with a fleece liner on the inside which feels great. Along the underside of the arms there are a set of vents which open with a zipper to help regulate comfort once you get the blood flowing. Gore basically thought of everything when they designed this jacket like the slight curve on the arms for a zero pull feeling when bending your arms. Love it.

I was equally impressed with the attention to detail on this jacket. One of the very first things I noticed was the intelligent use of integrated reflective piping instead of obvious, single purpose strips of reflective material. The seam taping inside the jacket is impeccable and does a good job keeping the wind out of the jacket while riding.

Last spring I tested out the Countdown jacket which was and still is a great jacket; the Tool is every bit as comfortable but different. For one thing the Tool has a front pocket which is big enough to hold your cell phone or wallet. For those who don’t wear a hydration pack, the jacket also has three deep pockets in the back much like a jersey, deep enough to hold 24oz water bottles and/or emergency tools comfortably.

Wearing the Tool jacket in fall conditions was a pleasure. Clearly the product designers at Gore spent lots of time in the saddle getting the materials and fit just right for biking. I never once felt the jacket snag under my arms or experienced any restriction of movement, even through technical twisty sections.

Specs for the Tool Jacket:

• WINDSTOPPER® Soft Shell
• Fleece lining
• Slim fit
• “Fleece-lined high collar, close fit”
• Adjustable collar with easy-to-operate cord stopper for one-handed use
• Zip with semi-lock slider
• Zip tags for easy handling
• Zip-underflap
• Pre-shaped elbows
• Napoleon pocket with zip
• 3-compartment patch pockets on back
• Long back
• Abrasion resistant elastic binding on hem
• Additional zip pocket on back
• Zip underarm vents
• Reflective piping on back and sleeves
• Reflective logo

Gore Bike Wear Fusion SO Pants

The Fusion SO pants are really two pairs of pants in one since they can be worn in both long and short configuration. These pants do not have a liner so you may want to get a comfy pair of bike shorts if you plan on using these for extended periods on the bike.

I really love the feel and look of these pants. Starting at the bottom, Gore added an anti abrasion pad to prevent the chain ring from ripping the cuffs. You can also adjust the fit of the leg bottoms from close to loose – it’s your choice. When you get hot you can ventilate the lower leg with a zip and allow even more air in the pant. Up top you have an adjustable elastic waist for a perfect fit.

The Fusion pants gets the same treatment that the Tool jacket and other Gore products get with the reflective logo and velcro tabs. The breathable liner material up top near the waist prevents discomfort from the elastic waist band and also keeps air circulating which should keep you dry. On the trails the Fusion SO pants felt as comfortable as my favorite freeride shorts which also happen to be from Gore.

Overall I think the Windstopper Fusion SO pants and Tool jacket are a great investment since they effectively extend the riding season into the cold and windy months. Just like the rest of Gore’s product line up, these two items look great both on and off the bike. Now you can go for your ride and grab a beer afterward without screaming to everyone that you’re a rider (not that there’s anything wrong with that ).

Specs for the Fusion SO Pant:

• WINDSTOPPER® Soft Shell
• Loose fit
• High-cut back
• “Elastic, width-adjustable waistband with Velcro “
• 2 side pockets
• Zip pocket on back
• Zip-off pant legs above knee
• Concealed zip at trouser bottom (wedge-shaped insert behind)
• Pre-shaped knees
• Lasercut pouched pocket with zipper
• Reflective print on back of trouser legs
• Reflective logo

Thanks to the folks at Gore for providing these products for review.

Last week I wrote about some of the technology behind the Gore-Tex membrane and how Gore works closely with brands like the North Face and Pearl Izumi to produce super high quality gear. This week I thought I’d talk about the testing process Gore uses on everything from jackets to footwear to gloves and some of the new developments we can expect to see in the future.

Fabric Testing

In order for Gore-Tex to “guarantee to keep you dry,” they need to test every new garment design before it goes into production. At Gore they use some fancy scientific tests like the “sweating hot plate” and water pressure testing but in the end a good garment design will be all about comfort. To that end, they have a few tests to mimic real world conditions with real human test subjects.

The comfort chamber: This should probably be renamed to the dis-comfort chamber since it’s basically just a small room where the temperature can be set from -20° F to 120° F. The comfort chamber also features fans to add in wind chill to see how stuff like Gore-Tex snowboard jackets will perform on windy ski hills.

The rain room: This room is appropriately named and is the place where Gore tests all their rain gear (like Gore Bike Wear jackets). Rain falls from the ceiling in a fairly natural pattern and there are even nozzles pointing up from the floor to simulate rain coming off a wet bike or motorcycle tire.

The wash room: Ok, so this test doesn’t involve human subjects like the other two but it turns out continuous washing is the best analog the Gore engineers could find to normal wear and tear experienced in the field. I’m told there are more than 200 washers in the room and they’ve all been rigged to run continuously, often for hundreds of hours at a time.

Gore also tests footwear by flexing shoes over and over in a water bath to see how many flexes it takes before water penetrates the toe box. I saw a set of Pearl Izumi kicks in the testing lab and apparently if a shoe doesn’t pass this test, it’s back to the drawing board before the shoe can be manufactured.

Coming soon?

Gore-Tex fabric technology has been around for a long time (30+ years) so it’s interesting to see where Gore might be heading in the future. Back in September element22 and I sat down with a Gore rep at Interbike to preview the Fusion jacket which makes use of “comfort mapping” technology introduced in 2005. Basically the idea is that different parts of an athlete’s body have different insulation and ventilation needs. The kidneys, for example, like to be kept warm (no kidding).

The inside of the Gore Bike Wear Fusion jacket where the colors show various comfort mapping zones

Gore has also developed a new type of waterproof apparel enclosure called “Lockout” that they’re using on a motorcycle jacket which basically looks like a zip lock bag with a slider. Could we see this concept migrate to Gore Bike Wear in the future? I’m guessing yes (just as soon as they improve it – getting it to work properly is a little tricky).

I’m still testing my Gore Bike Wear Alp X II jacket so stay tuned for the official review.