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Sombrio Vapor - Storm Jacket
Jim - 19th November 2007
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Now that winter is setting in, and bringing the weather with it, I needed a decent jacket, it had to be tough but also look good enough to take to the pub afterwards, and if you look at most of the other mountain bike designed jackets they may work well on the track, but come the evening you'll be at the bar stool with the rest of the billy no mates. The Sombrio Vapor jacket is a lightweight, soft shell storm jacket, and while it is a high performance outershell, it still looks good.
Neat logo insert on the hood
When the decision came to cough up the cash for the jacket my one concern was how rugged the jacket would be in crashes and general wear and tear, after all my experience with waterproofs wasnt brilliant, most usually tear or rip. But this isnt the case with the Vapor, as well as passing with 5 gold stars on a bike, recently we went scrambling and rock climbing in Snowdonia and with a few slips and knocks on the hard Welsh slab the jacket came off no worse for wear. It's extremely strong, and with winds gusting over the top of the mountain and horizontal rain I was still kept dry and comfortable, once it warmed up a bit just unzip the underarms to vent a bit of heat. Sombrio are well known for their attention to detail, like the camo pattern lining when you open the pitzips, the neat logo insert on the hood and the patterned inner, this all goes towards creating an extremely impressive final product.
Detailing throughout, patterned underarm zip mesh
As well as being waterproof the material is also stretchy, think of it more like a tshirt 'gives', this elasticity in the garment makes it extremely comfortable to wear, despite the unlined jacket being clammy on skin, it works well with a long sleeve tee or a baselayer underneath, which is the best way to regulate heat and perspiration. With the neck zipped all the way to the top the shape of the hood means it hugs your head, do up the toggles either side and it fits nicely with a beanie on.
A few other key features to note would be the taped seams throughout, which makes a big difference once it gets really wet outside, couple this up with water seal zippers and a chest pocket with a port to run headphones through the inside of the jacket. One key thing to remember before purchasing is the sizing, if you want a more fitted size choose a size lower, usually I take an XL but a large Vapor fits nicely.
Taped seams throughout seals the jacket completely to the elements
Overall, after having used the jacket for a while now, and in all sorts of enviroments I would seriously reccomend it as a biking, climbing, scrambling, hill walking... delete as appopriate, all round storm jacket. Once it gets a bit cooler i'll also be layering this up to use as a snowboard jacket out in the Alps.. provided we have enough snowfall this year!
2008 is a big year for Sombrio, we tested the 07 Vapor in black which is available now, but next spring you'll be able to get it in the awesome wood camo design, created out of aerial pictures of Manchester, as a nod towards the city that created bands like Joy Division, Happy Mondays and the Stone Roses. The Vapor sells for an RRP of £120 and is available from Paligap.
2008 Camo design, no changes in the jacket itself
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