(Photos: J. Maus/BikePortland)
This year has been absolutely brutal weather-wise. So much water has fallen from the sky that it seems as though I can count on one hand how many times I’ve left home for a ride and not gotten wet at least once. The recent few days of sun have been a welcome change, but there are still a lot of rainy days ahead before the reliably dry late-summer-fall season.
Staying comfortable on the bike when it’s raining is a constant battle. It’s one thing to manage the weather when I’m taking short trips while biking around town for errands and work; but it’s a different thing entirely when I roll out for a much longer ride on one of my fast bikes to do some exploring or training (or both, as is often the case). Back in January we shared some great tips on what to wear (and how to wear it) to survive our dark, cold and wet winters. Now that we’re in the “shoulder season,” you still need to fight the rain, but if you wear too many layers you’ll roast and get wet from the inside out. Yuck.
Luckily we have Castelli. The brand has been around since the 1940s and has a deep connection to bike racing in Italy. And you might not know it, but they’ve got a strong connection to Portland too.
In 2005, fresh off bankrupcy and a major restructuring, the U.S. arm of the company established its headquarters in Portland (the North Tabor neighborhood near I-84 to be precise) under the guidance of former Nike executive Greg Cowan. Cowan resurrected Castelli and has returned the brand to prominence. Today Castelli employs 35 people (and oversees 20 sales reps around the country) from its warehouse and offices in northeast Portland. From design to development, distribution to marketing, Castelli does everything — except make their clothing — right here in Portland.
But of course none of that matters unless they make great stuff.
This spring I’m riding more than usual and I’ve spent many miles in the saddle with Castelli’s latest rain gear. Here’s the lowdown on three pieces that you might want to consider adding to your kit.
Perfetto Light Jersey ($159)
Versatility is something I admire in a product. My Giant TCX-SX cyclocross bike for instance, has left me smiling after races, all-day off-road singletrack adventures, and even a paved century. Castelli’s new Perfetto jersey is of the same ilk. I’m not even sure they should call it a jersey because it also functions as a rain jacket and windbreaker vest.
Material is everything. With the Perfetto, Castelli Gore Windstopper fabric on the front and sleeves with their Nano Light fabric on the back to help repel water. Whether those trademarked names mean anything to you or not, the important thing to know is it works. I’ve worn this jersey for a two-hour ride in 55-degree temps (Castelli’s recommended temperature range is 50 to 68 degrees) and a nearly constant light rain. Combined with their Nano Flex Armwarmers (see below) and a wool base layer underneath, I stayed very comfortable and happy. The rain beaded off the fabric, but I didn’t overheat.
If you’re familiar with Castelli’s groundbreaking Gabba line of jerseys, you can think of the Perfetto as a lighter weight version made for slightly warmer temps.
Other features I like are the tall collar (which is lined with a soft mesh to prevent chafing on your neck), long sleeves (tiny jersey sleeves are a pet peeve of mine!), and the extra long tail flap. The extended fabric over my rear end keeps road much out of my chamois and it’s emblazoned with large reflective “Castelli” lettering. Other little features I appreciated are the three generously-sized rear pockets and the strip of sticky silicone grip material along the bottom that keeps the jersey in place.
The Perfetto nails the balance of weather protection, breathability and fit. Speaking of fit, this jersey runs very small. I ordered up a size (XL) and it fits perfect.
— Check it out on Castelli’s website.
Nano Flex Armwarmers ($59) and Legwarmers ($99)
That saying, “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts,” definitely applies to Castelli’s Nano Flex arm and legwarmers. With the armwarmers and Perfetto jersey, I’ve opted to not even carry a rain jacket on a few rides.
Castelli’s rain-beating (and beading) Nano Flex fabric is lined on the inside with a thermal fleece. The official temperature rating is 46 to 72 degrees, but they feel a bit too warm for anything beyond the mid 60s to me.
This year the Nano Flex line fits better thanks to a section of Nano Light fabric on the back of the warmers (I didn’t realize this was supposed to fit on the back of the warmers at first, so the fit is a bit off in the lead photo of this post). I have a pair of the old version and definitely noticed the improvement. I have thin arms so I also appreciate the dual-sided silicone grip at the top.
The finish and function on these warmers are top-notch. They’re more substantial than a typical warmer, but the small amount of extra bulk is well worth it when the sky turns grey and wet.
— Check out the armwarmers and legwarmers on Castelli’s website.
Disclaimer: An agent for Castelli provided these products to me to use at no charge and with no expectation of editorial coverage.
— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org
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Castelli is great stuff. The foul weather kit is race tested and tighter-fitting, hence more aero, than some other choices.
My bike commute this winter has been 2 hours a day in the rain, which easily justifies the cost of good gear.
We are fortunate in Portland to have some really fine bike clothing companies with local operations. Not only does it help those companies design gear for our conditions, but sometimes we have the opportunity to shop their warehouse and sample sales. I find myself choosing those brands specifically to support their local presence.
This last week, I tried on a castelli windproof/water resistant jacket. For my medium proportioned body, the XL cut and fit was perfect: spacious across the shoulders, close fitting sleeves to resist wind noise, close fitting on the hips.
Looked very good too. I almost looked like a real cyclist, except for my baggy leggings and gym short combo. That’s my casual gear. When I want to look better, I do have tights.
The castelli jacket has vent airflow provision, but it’s modest, so I’m skeptical whether it would be enough to have the jacket interior resist sweating up. Very nicely crafted seams too. Didn’t get it, because I generally use a rain jacket only if I absolutely have to, which isn’t often…like yesterday up on the hill, where it wasn’t just raining but wind storming too. What I use because it was very affordable, is a loose fit garment, not so good. Coming down the hill, excessive sleeve material was flapping so loudly.
That perfetto jersey looks very interesting for rainy conditions.
I have to go a full size up for Castelli gear, but I’ve put many miles on a rain jersey and absolutely love it. Several years in (of not particularly treating it nicely), it hasn’t broken down like others suggest it might. I have a high-end Gore hi-viz rain jacket that my Mom gave me a few years back for Christmas. It just doesn’t get worn as much as the black Castelli anymore, simply due to fit and feel. Sorry Mom!
Good to know about the company’s gear from people’s personal experience. Is your jersey you’ve been happy with, been made out of what castelli is calling “…Nano Light fabric…?” Never really studied what they have, because my budget is tight…so instead, I’ve studied and have gotten lower priced apparel that seems to work reasonably well for me, at lowest possible prices.
I use tops, Champion, under armor, and some Old Navy active wear, Nike, none of which is designed specifically for biking. All, some variation on polyester. I do believe polyester active-wear technology has advanced since its early days. My system is layers of a mostly loose fit, which I like, but sometimes I take that idea a bit too far, and feel I can tend to look shabby. It’s kind of fun to switch back and from day to day, from loose fit, to sleek.
I might put together some more options for a sleeker fit, if I can find some things that fit well, and I can justify spending on. Again today, I tried on the castelli wind/water resistant jacket today, XL size. Worn properly, it has a great fit, but only with about one or two light layers. Today, over a long lighweight under-armor jersey with two more layers underneath, and with my small, packed full shoulder bag on, it was a tight fit. If I do use closer fitting gear, that would realistically limit the amount of layers I can comfortably put under it, and the shoulder bag contents would probably go into the seat bag.
One of the guys at the bike shop has been wearing a castelli long sleeve jersey with zip off sleeves. It’s supposed to be in the Performance online site, but so far, it’s escaped my effort to find it there. Looks interesting…how it would fit me, and how well it would work, don’t know.
I’m not really sure of the material; it was purchased as part of one of my team kits ($125, not sure if that’s discounted). One thing to note, the particular cut of my jersey is for racing, so standing upright with it fully zipped, it chokes a little. The zipper is really easy to grab with full-fingered gloves; even thick ones. The length is great for me; I have a long torso so it’s hard to find jerseys where I don’t have to turn my rotator cuff inside out to reach into the pockets. (It’s the long-sleeve jersey that the girls in first pic are wearing at http://www.hoodrivervelo.com, and the guy standing up is wearing in the first pic at http://www.hoodrivervelo.com/gallery).
Kind of hard to tell much about those jerseys from the pics. I’ll take your word for it that it’s good.
I often was the tops I use, by hand. With the lightweight poly fabric gear, it’s easy and quite quick in the bathroom sink. I used to like poly/cotton tops. Still do, somewhat, but they’re much more difficult and take longer to hand wash. Heavier weight poly is correspondingly more difficult to wash. That’s one of the reasons I like using lightweight layers, even for cold weather riding. Just add a layer for dips in the temperature.
One of the best buys I’ve got, which is of some amusement to me, is a nike lightweight fleece crewneck long sleeve running top from the lance armstrong livestrong days. It’s black, but I wear white over it, and a couple layers under. It’s poly fabric is really good for not reacting badly to body perspiration. Banding on the collar and sleeves is a bit scratchy, the only downside. After the great lance fall, nobody wanted the jersey with his name emblazoned on it, so it was in the thrift store bin for 75 cents.
Have some nanoflex knickers, very comfortable in the 40s-50s and while I’ve been satisfied with staying comfortable in the rain I don’t know that I would say they impress me any more than other similar products in terms of shedding water. I often grab my Sportful NoRain gear when the temperature is on the lower end and see similar performance (aka, longer than 20 minutes in a light / moderate rain and they will begin to saturate). Will need to look into the Jerseys though! The full rain jacket is getting a bit heavy with the warmer temps.
Why so much black on clothing used on dark, wet days? But then again, I don’t understand why anyone would wear any black cycling clothing other than shorts.
Often the background around cyclists contains many different visuals, being one solid color that offers contrast to that changing and varied background offers better visibility. It is not common to ride around mostly black environments so black is pretty versatile in offering this contrast. When it comes to riding in the dark… no color is that much more visible over any other, especially if you have good lighting and reflective accents, making black no less visible than any other color at night.
Thing is, I like Castelli. i own their stuff and wear at least some of it almost every day. But I like bight clothes, especially on a dark day. It feels better going out into the cold wearing something that is brighter than the sky.
And on sunny days? A black jersey reminds me of the Cinzano team in Breaking Away. And look what they did to poor Dave.
Castelli, if you are listening, make some bighter rainwear. There’s a certain blue with which you may be familiar that would work
I see two different blues on backcountry.com for the Perfetto that JM reviewed, as well as black, grey, red, fluo yellow, and a bright green. Looking at Gabba 2 and a bunch of other models on this retail site, looks like lots of color options (many are bright). Why do people here seem to imply they just make black?
I do prefer black leggings, tights and shorts. Can’t seem to get used to the idea of switching them out for brighter or lighter colors. Plus, it seems to me that the tops are the part of the body of people riding bikes, that color tone and shade may have the more important bearing on visibility.
For my biking gear, I avoid black tops like the plague. Black doesn’t reflect light, it absorbs it, which I think is bad news for people biking, in terms of being seen by people driving. For sunny days, I prefer white. For overcast, I’ve got something close to, but not exactly hi-vis orange and hi-vis green. No dark tones of those colors.
Possible exception to my ban on black tops for myself, might be one of those jackets that’s entirely retro-reflective. That material reflects back light, amazingly well.
I like black as a color because I think it looks nice and it matches everything. If it makes you feel any different, I always ride with bright lights and I have reflective bits here and there. I don’t feel the need to have everything I wear/use be hi-viz and neon.
Both the Gabba and Perfetto lines also come in bright colors including fluo yellow. And even the black has a good amount of reflective trim.
My winter clothing tends to be black, but I don’t mind because it helps keep me warm. My summer clothing tends to be lighter or mixed in color, which I don’t mind because it may help me be seen. I have a Pearl Thermal jersey which has short sleeves (rare!) and is black and white. Wearing it on a cool spring day, I once had a motorist tell me not to wear black clothing – mind you the jersey is half white. Oh, and I was wearing bright orange shorts…
I prefer not to wear black tops for a number of reasons. However, they’re not necessarily as big a visibility issue as one would think even if I don’t think it’s a good choice for highway riding in bright daylight. As has already been suggested, black helps with contrast — particularly at night if you have proper reflective gear and lighting.
I suspect most people like it for aesthetic reasons. It doesn’t show road grime or stains as much as other colors and you don’t look as ridiculous off the bike.
Because I like the color black!
Castelli is primarily designed for racing and training, so there is less emphasis on visibility and reflectivity than I would like, for city riding. But I do have a Castelli rain jacket that is all white, which turns out to be a very visible color.
And when can we expect the women’s version of this awesome jersey??
(Still waiting for my women’s Refuge jacket, Showers Pass…)
Be careful what you ask for. I love all my Castelli shorts/knickers/tights, particularly the ones with the progetto chamois. I bought my wife a pair of their women’s knickers and the chamois goes places it doesn’t belong. We later read some reviews and this is a common complaint. Making items for women may not be their strong suit.
Implied in that ask for a “women’s version” was a version designed for actual women that ride bikes and need high quality gear, not just a tighter pink version.
The Perfetto Light Women’s is due out next Spring (2018). Until then, There is a Gabba 2 Women’s shortsleeve and a Perfetto Women’s Longsleeve.
https://www.castelli-cycling.com/Products/Women/Tops/Protection/c/Protection-Tops-Women
Don’t ever count on clothing with those “nano” water repellent layers — they look great at first, but after a just few uses, the repellent no longer works.
Hmm, I’ve had my Castelli Gabba for two years and it works great. Have you actually been using Castelli kit?
The next development in waterproof kit is a new type of Goretex. The traditional Goretex product that we’ve all used for decades is a membrane sandwiched between an inside liner and an outside fabric. The membrane has pores too small for liquid water drops but large enough for water vapor, which is why Goretex is waterproof and breathable. However, if the outside fabric gets soaked, that blocks the vapor, so the garment is waterproof but not breathable. Goretex now has a new product where the outside is not fabric but is some sort of slick thin material. This is supposed to make the material much thinner and lighter, more water-shedding, and just as waterproof and breathable as Goretex is supposed to be. But the new material may be more fragile too.
In my experience there is no such thing as waterproof clothing. It’s all about how long it can last before soaking though, and how quickly it dries (honestly the latter is far more important). In light rain and cool temps, I love my waxed cotton jacket. It doesn’t breath at all but will repel light rain quite well. It will easily get soaked in heavy rain, however, and stay wet for a while. Most other times, I wear my rain jacket and wool midlayer. The fancy “waterproof” jacket (originally had a “nano” layer, but of course stopped working after a week) leaks though after a while depending on rain intensity, so the wool mid layer acts as a buffer before I get too wet.
Ultimately you are definitely going to get wet if you ride in the rain no matter how good your clothing is. The sooner you admit this to yourself, the happier you’ll be to cycle year-round.
So in other words, you are commenting on a product you have not tried.
“In my experience there is no such thing as waterproof clothing. …” adam h
My experience is that ventilation is essential to keeping the water resistant or waterproof tops from sweating up excessively on their interior. That’s why my thinking is tuned sharply to how well, close fitting water resistant tops are engineered and designed to be able to vent moisture off the cyclist’s body, and still keep most of the rain from coming in. As long as I’m warm or cool as need be, I don’t mind being a little wet, but I don’t want a flood happening inside the rain jacket from outside, or from inside.
I should mention that I’ve used gore-tex, the old stuff many years ago, in a close fitting custom jersey. The performance didn’t seem great. Also have never used a jacket with underarm zips, which is supposed to handle some ventilation issues. How well it actually works, I’ve not actually heard much, or asked people about. Always interested in hearing about that sort of thing.
Today was classic Oregon spring wet weather…beautiful but very wet. I set out hoping the rain would let up, but of course, no way, it didn’t. Instead of the heavier fleece leggings, and funky gym shorts, wore sleek lycra tights and shorts with poly long johns underneath. My legs felt warm and fine as the rain came down. Tops were: poly a-shirt, long sleeve under armor poly jersey, light fleece close fitting under armor top with half zip, and a water resistant runner’s type loose fit jacket from old navy. I stayed dry on top, but gradually got too cold, and could have used another light layer. it wasn’t an extremely hard workout ride, but I was clipping along at a fairly good pace, up the hill and around and back down.
When I look at possible new gear additions, I think about these kind of conditions that can be encountered. Any company that can produce gear it thinks can keep people warm, dry and looking good, is of interest to me.
So the answer is “no, I have not used any Castelli kit”.
I never ride in kit, so no. 😉
So, like a lot of things here (tubeless tires, etc.) you feel compelled to comment when you have never used the products.
I have a Gore jacket, You can ride all day in the rain and not get wet.
“…I have a Gore jacket, You can ride all day in the rain and not get wet.” dwk
Thanks for relating your personal experience with your gore jacket, but the kind of effectiveness in resisting rain from the outside, and moisture accumulation from within that I feel people need to know about might be better answered by questions such as, for example, how hard you’re riding…what you’re wearing underneath it…how closely it fits to your body…how much airflow through the jacket, you’ve got it adjusted for; zippers down, up, etc.
My two rain jackets are sized so that they’re spacious enough around my torso and up at my neck, to allow airflow from my neck, down my back. From there, the airflow seems to come around and out the front zipped opening, varied according to the zipper position. On the tops of my arms is where with both jackets, I seem to get the most moisture accumulation. It’s hard to get airflow going from my wrists up my arms.
Neither of the jackets are gore-tex or similar technology materials; they’re just water resistant nylon. One of them though, has a lighter weight nylon lining; mesh on the torso area, solid in the sleeves, while the other, more pack-able jacket is just a shell. The former, is far better than the latter, at dissipating moisture accumulation from inside. Of course, it’s about twice the bulk of the shell.
Disclaimer: I am a Gore-Tex product tester and receive consideration for sharing my opinions.
However, I spend way too much time outdoors to not wear what I like, and the idea that there is no such thing as waterproof clothing simply isn’t true. For example, regarding my drysuit, one of my friends once said, “it’s not like you can go swimming it it and expect to stay dry.”
But that is *exactly* what waterproof means. You can be submersed literally all day and so long as it doesn’t get around a seam, cuff or gasket, you never get wet.
I tested prototypes for the jacket John Liu referred to (the Gore One). It is awesome. You can scrunch it to the size of an orange and stuff it in your pocket. I’ve worn it from temps below 20°F on up.
Waterproof breathable fabrics are not equal. I’ve tested more than I’ll ever know, including many not containing Gore-Tex. The breathability is key and the ability for a jacket to breathe ultimately depends on vapor pressure which is a function of relative temperature and humidity differences inside and outside the jacket. If you overwhelm the ability of the jacket to breathe, you get soaked with sweat — same as you would if you wear no clothes at all and work hard enough that you generate sweat faster than the air can evaporate it.
None of the cheap stuff I’ve tried is appropriate for any but the lightest exertion. Even among expensive stuff, you need the right gear — alpine shells are not appropriate for cycling.
Having said that, there is nothing wrong with with natural fibers such as wool that keep you warm when they’re wet and surprisingly cool when dry. But good waterproof breathable stuff is absolutely real.
BTW, there’s much more to comfort than staying dry. Skin feel, heat loss through conduction, and bulk are highly relevant to garment performance as is fit. This coming weekend, I plan to climb Middle Sister. And even though I plan to stay out all night and temps should be around 20°F, I’ll carry less clothing than a lot of people use for a commute in the 50’s. That’s not because I’m some sort of tough guy. It’s because the right clothing matters and that if you have the right stuff, you need very little.
Thank you for your informed opinion!
I just wish Castelli fit me.
cite=”Adam H.”>
Adam H.
…The fancy “waterproof” jacket (originally had a “nano” layer, but of course stopped working after a week) leaks though after a while depending on rain intensity, so the wool mid layer acts as a buffer before I get too wet.
Were you actually getting wet or did it just feel wet?
Waterproof breathable fabrics have a water repellent coating, and if that coating fails, water sticks to the garment. This will make you feel cold and clammy and you’ll lose a lot of heat via conductive transfer, but you will actually be dry.
Also, did you know that you have to wash garments to keep them performing? Just toss in the washing machine and dry in the dryer.
If water was actually getting through, that is a garment failure, and I would return it for a full refund or exchange. But I have stuff I’ve worn for many years and it still looks great. Note that I have had experienced garment failure before — and I have had no trouble getting companies to honor their guarantees years later.
“Also, did you know that you have to wash garments to keep them performing? Just toss in the washing machine and dry in the dryer.”
Careful, though—many waterproof garments specify “no liquid detergent”, and “no fabric softener” in their washing/drying instructions. Always follow the instructions.
Correct with regards to the detergent and fabric softener as that seems pretty universal. And they are serious about the instructions. You also don’t want to throw these through high speed spin cycles in high efficiency machines.
Some garments cannot be put in the dryer (usually because reflective tape or something else might melt off), but most can be put in on hot.
To be safe, Nikwax Tech Wash is always safe to wash with (I have no relationship with that company)
If I could either move closer to work or find a good system that doesn’t dramatically increase my commute time when I’m not feeling like making my entire commute by bike, I could finally get rid of my car and therefore justify (to myself as well as my spouse) the cost of some of these nicer brands. I did have the opportunity to get some nanoflex bib tights for only $25 but wow, that Italian sizing really didn’t work for me. A guy I ride with sometimes got them instead, though, and he loves them.
I paid about the same price for my Castelli rain jersey as a synthetic oil change costs for my German car. Should be able to buy even more Castelli gear after someone buys my used Audi…
I love German cars. I wonder if there’s a relationship between cyclists and a fondness for German cars.
LOL
I have some of their non nano pants, they have kept me totally dry for the last 3 winter/spring seasons, only complaint is one of the zipper (handles?) snapped in half. still work, just kinda hard to pull the zipper up/down now. Thanks Mom, most used gift you ever got me 🙂
Castelli, for people that want to be a riding billboard.
Billboards are quite visible, regardless of color. Yes please.
Next to Assos, best quality bike clothing I’ve worn.
Some cycling apparel, for example, the team sponsor inspired ‘kits’ especially, are major traveling billboard territory. Other bike specific apparel lines are reasonably low key. Castelli seems to me to be kind of low key in that respect. Here’s a link to a performance bike store page for a castelli long sleeve I’ve been looking at: http://www.performancebike.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10052_10551_1207640_-1_400281__400281
…to my eye, that jersey seems low key on brand i.d. logo runs down the sleeve, but I like the letter font. Looks good, not too bold.
By the way, if you like red, backcountry.com currently has the Perfetto for half off (other colors ~40% off). Thanks for this review, JM, as I’m always looking for a lighter water-repellent jersey for CA spring and fall, and prefer short sleeve which is rare.
Thanks for the heads up, I snagged one for myself. WBW didn’t have that one in stock.
To confirm what others warned me about prior to ordering: this runs smaller than Castelli’s already small sizing. I wear Cuore, Pearl Izumi, and Craft in medium, and I wear Castelli in large. But I ordered this in XL, and it fits perfectly. Yes, I’m a 5’6″ man wearing an ‘extra large’.
I rode in this morning in the Perfetto short sleeve, with a short sleeve jersey underneath and soft shell arm warmers. 47 degrees, 15 miles, 1500 up and 1500 down, 1 hour total travel time. I don’t know how well it works in the rain, but for these conditions it was perfect. It’s rare that I’m able to start my ride in something that’s warm enough for the first 15 minutes that I didn’t want to tear off after the first big climb, but I left the Perfetto alone the entire way in. I didn’t even zip down the collar or look for ventilation zips (it doesn’t have any). I was just slightly warmer than I’m used to, but I’m sure part of that was the small backpack I was wearing, blocking the rear venting. The only thing I wanted to remove was the arm warmers. When I arrived at work, I checked the inside of the Perfetto for moisture and found that the inside shoulders were slightly damp, but they have already dried out. I’m sure it would be better to wear with a thin wool shirt underneath (or nothing), but I wore a jersey underneath so that I’ll have something light to ride home in.
Rode home from Vancouver to Portland today in the pissing rain. Wearing my Castelli rain jacket. Did not get wet. A little sweaty, that’s all. Good kit is really worth it.
I prefer to get wet when I ride because it helps prevent sweat.
Great detailed reviews! Thank you!!!