Revolution Esk Short Sleeve Road Jersey

Made by Polaris for Edinburgh Bicycle Co-operative, the Revolution Esk short-sleeve jersey raises the bar for budget jerseys and makes you wonder, why pay more?

Stealth Lockheed bomber black with red panelling and Scotchlite detailing works really well in my book, complementing the entire wardrobe while having slightly menacing undertones. I was really impressed by the tapered cut and generous shoulder sections - sleek, yet facilitating movement when alternating between tops, drops or indeed tri bars.

The pockets are another brilliant deviation from the traditional script. Two fairly conventional pockets with elasticated cuffs keep bottles, bananas, CO2 cartridges, spare tubes and so on safe, and double as useful blinky mounts. The right pockets incorporates a zippered compartment that's perfect for phones, slimline compact cameras, bank cards and right hand dominant riders.

The mid length front zip provides easily regulated airflow without leaving one feeling overly exposed. Staying with detailing for a moment, 3M retro-reflectives barely merit mention nowadays but these are intelligently positioned. More noteworthy are the reflective silicone logos that sit silent by day, yet burst into life come dusk when hit by vehicle or street lighting. It's definitely more attention grabbing when it's on a moving item, like Revolution's longs, but from 50 to 80 metres out, it's pretty good.

Some polyesters work better than others and the Airbase fabric has a curious, silky texture that feels very similar to nylon against the skin. Wearing it is something of a Marmite experience. I found it slightly alien compared with plaited types intially, though this passed with successive machine washings. Line dry in twenty minutes, performance is generally pretty good once body heat triggers the fibres.

After 25 minutes at 90rpm with the mercury hovering around 26 degrees, I was stating to feel decidedly clammy between thoracic and lumber regions, wondering when the magic would begin. Moments later, I physically felt perspiration being sucked outwards through the spinal mesh. Successive outings confirmed this as a recurrent quirk. Things generally remain pretty arid then onward, although it takes some getting used to and odour control lagged very slightly behind two-layer fabrics. That said; it's well within socially acceptable limits and only apparent following a day's warm weather service.

Verdict

Really nice jersey with remarkably intelligent design. However, fibres react slower than more sophisticated polyesters