Outer Jackets
Sprayway Anakin Pro lightweight jacket
Once jacket arrived I tried it on; do you ever get that feeling that someone has sneaked in your room at night and measured you up……….no, well it felt like this, the jacket was made for me. There is some weird Velcro straps on the sleeves which (I’m guessing) is an effort to shed as much weight as possible, I personally don’t dig these, I never get them quite right. The hood was nice though.
Other moaners complain about the lack of pockets, but they miss the point it is a lightweight jacket.
I waited a while to try out this jacket and when the time finally came the weather took a turn for the better, how typical, the only time I want it to be wet and windy.
Anyway, once the sun waved goodbye I was off. I wanted to try out a number of different things, firstly starting with windproof-ness and waterproofness. So off I went to the peak of Snowdon. The weather during this trip was pretty wet and windy. I was quite happy with my time to the top, I was not far from fell running, and so the first thing that came to mind was manoeuvrability, no complaints there. With regard to breath ability, I heard a fair few people stating this needed work on it; well, I thought it was OK, arm pits vents or side vents may be a future option but for me I could’ve lived without in the temperatures I was wearing it with. The wind was none existent on the summit thanks to the Gore-Tex shell and guess what………I was dry as a bone, the water beads running straight off the fabric was a great site.
Next test was to see how it compared with regards to weight. The jacket's light and packs down small and neat into the mesh stuff bag which comes with it. So I strapped it to the bungees on my backpack and went off to do the Offa’s Dyke path, it was featherweight. For those who have done the ODP south to north, you may remember the twitchells near the start, all those branches whipping back and smacking my body, pain in the backside, but proved the Sprayway Anakin Pro can take a beating (I even ripped my tent in the same twitchell). In a nutshell, it’s durable. More rain around the black mountains, and a real heavy day of showers in Haye on Wye and still dry clothes, I was getting to like this jacket more.
Further test was cycling; more rain came smashing down and time to don the jacket once more. I really rate ‘Gore Bike Wear’, so the Anakin Pro had some really tough competition. Anyway, after a really wet ride on my mountain bike (minus mud guard) it felt like I had about 100 litres of water splashed up on my back, yet my clothes underneath was……yes you guessed it, dry as a bone. Great all-round jacket.
One further thing is, it looks decent enough if you’re a kid on the streets.
The two biggest rivalries for the Sprayway Anakin Pro Jacket in my opinion are Montane and Haglof. My favourite lightweight jacket without doubt now is the Anakin Pro without a doubt.
It’s a good quality, cheap (compared to other lightweight jackets), high spec jacket and if you’re on the look out for a lightweight waterproof then trust me, you cannot go wrong. Easy 9/10.
Other moaners complain about the lack of pockets, but they miss the point it is a lightweight jacket.
I waited a while to try out this jacket and when the time finally came the weather took a turn for the better, how typical, the only time I want it to be wet and windy.
Anyway, once the sun waved goodbye I was off. I wanted to try out a number of different things, firstly starting with windproof-ness and waterproofness. So off I went to the peak of Snowdon. The weather during this trip was pretty wet and windy. I was quite happy with my time to the top, I was not far from fell running, and so the first thing that came to mind was manoeuvrability, no complaints there. With regard to breath ability, I heard a fair few people stating this needed work on it; well, I thought it was OK, arm pits vents or side vents may be a future option but for me I could’ve lived without in the temperatures I was wearing it with. The wind was none existent on the summit thanks to the Gore-Tex shell and guess what………I was dry as a bone, the water beads running straight off the fabric was a great site.
Next test was to see how it compared with regards to weight. The jacket's light and packs down small and neat into the mesh stuff bag which comes with it. So I strapped it to the bungees on my backpack and went off to do the Offa’s Dyke path, it was featherweight. For those who have done the ODP south to north, you may remember the twitchells near the start, all those branches whipping back and smacking my body, pain in the backside, but proved the Sprayway Anakin Pro can take a beating (I even ripped my tent in the same twitchell). In a nutshell, it’s durable. More rain around the black mountains, and a real heavy day of showers in Haye on Wye and still dry clothes, I was getting to like this jacket more.
Further test was cycling; more rain came smashing down and time to don the jacket once more. I really rate ‘Gore Bike Wear’, so the Anakin Pro had some really tough competition. Anyway, after a really wet ride on my mountain bike (minus mud guard) it felt like I had about 100 litres of water splashed up on my back, yet my clothes underneath was……yes you guessed it, dry as a bone. Great all-round jacket.
One further thing is, it looks decent enough if you’re a kid on the streets.
The two biggest rivalries for the Sprayway Anakin Pro Jacket in my opinion are Montane and Haglof. My favourite lightweight jacket without doubt now is the Anakin Pro without a doubt.
It’s a good quality, cheap (compared to other lightweight jackets), high spec jacket and if you’re on the look out for a lightweight waterproof then trust me, you cannot go wrong. Easy 9/10.
