Gore Shakedry Insulated jacket review

The Gore C5 Gore-Tex Shakedry 1985 Insulated jacket – to give it its full name – uses Gore’s innovative Shakedry fabric. This is permanently waterproofed and, as its name suggests, will not wet out, with water just running off the surface. There are fully taped seams to stop water seeping in and the fabric is windproof too. We’ve consistently raved about the uninsulated jacket, which we placed in our elite Editor’s Choice list last year. How does the Gore Shakedry Insulated jacket compare?

Gore has now added a layer of Polartec Alpha insulation to the jacket to provide warmth as well as waterproofing. Despite this, there’s excellent breathability and very little tendency to get sweaty inside. And the Gore Shakedry Insulated jacket is washable without the water resistance diminishing and the fabric wetting out, unlike DWR-treated garments.

Whereas the uninsulated Gore Shakedry jacket weighs under 100g, the insulated version’s weight increases to close to 300g. And the insulation means that the jacket is no longer packable, so you need to decide that you’re going to wear it for your entire ride rather than carrying it along just in case. However, the breathability means that you won’t boil in the bag if you wear it and it doesn’t rain.

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There’s only one zipped rear pocket. This has a flap over it to help keep out the wet. But it’s not really large enough to carry much, so you either need to wear a pocketed jersey underneath the Gore Shakedry Insulated jacket or use a seat pack for the majority of your ride luggage.

Gore has majored on reflectives, with a reflective hot pink logo and strip on the rear pocket, more logos and stripes on each arm and a reflective chest logo. So despite the muted jacket colour, there’s plenty of visibility. There’s also a standard black colourway, but with the same reflective stripes as the grey version tested. Or there’s also a Viz version of the same jacket, at the same price but with yellow panels on the lower sleeves and the rear to add even more colour.

There’s good closure to keep the rain out of all apertures of the Gore Shakedry Insulated jacket. The waist is part-elasticated, there are double cuffs with stretchy inners under the waterproof outers and the collar is high, lined and adjustable via two Velcro tabs.

At over £300, you’re paying a lot for the Gore Shakedry Insulated jacket. If you’re serious about all-weather riding, it might be a good investment, though, as you’ll be certain to stay dry and the insulation adds the extra warmth you’ll need on cold wet rides.