Polaris Adventure Thermal Jersey review

Most long sleeve jerseys will only see a few weeks use a year, used only for those in-between days where jacket is too much, and a short-sleeve jersey with arm warmers isn’t quite enough. However the Polaris Adventure Thermal Jersey is much more versatile than that, providing a level of comfort and warmth far beyond its sub-£40 price tag.

Putting the thermal in thermal jersey is the thermastretch fabric from which the whole jersey is constructed. To say that this is warm for a long-sleeve jersey is an understatement; we’ve generally paired the Polaris Adventure Jersey with a simple base layer, and have been quite happy even as the mercury drops well into single figures. Put a decent winter jacket over the top and you should be good for all but the very worst the British winter can throw at you.

The smaller details only add to the jersey’s warmth and comfort. The fleece lining is soft to the touch and rather cosy. This is extended up to the high collar which sits comfortably close to your neck to keep the chill out, with the full-length YKK zipper covered by a flap to keep it from scratching at your chin. The thumb loops on the Polaris Adventure Thermal jersey also do a good job to keep the wind out at your wrists, while the material at the cuff is thin enough to easily slip inside a pair of gloves.

In general the jersey fits well. It’s certainly not super-aero and you’re unlikely to be racing in it any time soon, but for winter training rides it more than fits the bill. The only complaint we have in this area was that the cut on the sleeves wasn’t quite right, especially when using the thumb loops, meaning that the sleeves were tight on the top of the arm and loose on the bottom.

The only other area for improvement is the pockets, which could have been slightly bigger. Perhaps the reason for not making them any bigger was that this would have allowed more stuff to be stuffed in – not a good thing given that they were liable to sag when loaded with heavy items such as phones and wallets. This is a shame on such good jersey, and would mean we would look elsewhere in our wardrobe when kitting up for long winter rides requiring your pockets to be stuffed with waterproof, phone, energy bars, etc..

However given the price, these small problems shouldn't detract from what is an excellent jersey that will keep you warm when other more expensive long sleeve jerseys have been abandoned.

For more information visit the Polaris website.