Gore C7 Windstopper Pro Jacket

The Gore C7 Windstopper Pro Jacket is a smartly designed, feature-packed jacket with a close aero fit that is ideal for riding in cold and windy weather backed up by the warmth from the excellent Polartec Alpha insulation. There's a lot of choice for this sort of money but the Gore is a serious contender for your hard-earned cash.

Pros: Great fit, superb performance, details, warmth, breathability

Cons: Pricey, more reflective details would be good

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Gore is a trusted name in the cycling jacket market because the fabrics it has developed are amongst the best and used by a large number of cycling brands. Windstopper is one of the most recognisable names in the outdoor clothing world and this new C7 Windstopper Pro Jacket is obviously made from it. As its name suggests Windstopper is exceptionally good at stopping the wind from beating through to your base layer and skin while still being breathable enough to prevent undue heat buildup on warmer days or when riding up lots of big hills.

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To provide a good level of warmth on colder rides, the jacket features the excellent Polartec Alpha synthetic down insulation. I'm a real fan, I've tested it in several jackets from Rapha and Sportful and have always been impressed at its ability to provide the necessary warmth for chilly rides whilst being breathable to prevent overheating, and all without much bulk to speak of. Gore gives a 5° to 15°C which is a fair indication but provided you wear a chunkier base layer and ride at a brisk pace, it'll go closer to zero.

The Polartec Alpha is well utilised in this jacket and combines brilliantly with the Windstopper fabric, resulting in a really good fitting jacket with an emphasis on hugging the body closely for an aero fit, ideal for fast training rides where you want a minimal bulk and weight. I wore it over either a short or long sleeve base layer, the weight picked to match the conditions and temperatures and found good warmth, protection and comfort down to really chilly temps. It gives the protection and warmth of a jacket with the fit and comfort of a jersey.

The C7 Windstopper Pro is packed with features that make it a pleasure to wear and use on a daily basis. You have the usual dropped tail for lower back protection and a high neck for hunkering down into like a turtle on cold morning rides. The arms are pre-shaped with a good length to the cuffs, which feature two long zipped vents if you need some cooling airflow up the arms. Another two zipped vents on the chest also provide additional cooling when you need it, helping you to regulate temperature nicely.

For the safety conscious reflective details abound, from the wide angled cuffs, the back of the collar and the logos, but I do feel they could have added a few more on the back panels. On the back are three large pockets, the two outer pockets a little taller than the central pocket. A zipped pocket is ideal for storing your house keys safely.

I found the fit (I was testing a size small) to be really good. The cut is close, but the pre-shaped arms, the elastic waistband and the shape of the panels all combined to ensure the jacket was nothing but exceedingly comfortable in all situations. There's enough space for a good thickness baselayer underneath but you won't be getting another jersey underneath, but even in the coldest temps I wore it I never felt the need for extra layers.

Windstopper is extremely effective at stopping wind but it's also adept at keeping you protected in light rain showers. It's not waterproof, the heaviest downpour will eventually breach its ability to keep the water put, but for brief showers and drizzle, it's enough to prevent the waterproof jacket from making an appearance. If you want a close fitting fully waterproof jacket Gore have that covered too in the shape of the Gore C7 Gore-Tex ShakeDry Stretch Jacket at £279.99 fifty pounds more than this. There is also a women's version of the C7 Shakedry Jacket – while there doesn't seem to be a female version of the C7 Windstopper Pro.

It sure is an expensive jacket though. By comparison the Gore Power jacket is a snip at £150 but it doesn't feature the incredible insulating properties of Polartec Alpha. Better to compare it to similarly priced rival such as the Rapha Classic Winter jacket or the Castelli Alpha RoS jacket.

Fit and comfort of a jersey with the protection of a jacket excels in cold, windy and miserable conditions with lots of nice details that help to mark it out in a crowded market.

Verdict

Warm and close-fitting jacket for cold and windy rides and is very breathable