WHEN I first saw this kit hanging up in our stock cupboard two-years ago, I turned my nose up at it.
Hi-Viz? I'm not wearing that.
Until one day when the heavens opened and I'd only ridden in wearing jeans and a light jacket. I opted for a decent stab at keeping dry, rather than my daily hopeless stab at trying to look good ...and getting very wet.
The Held Uncover jacket and Icano trousers zip together with an almost completely around the waist zip. A chunky one too, so it's easy to locate and doesn't lock up on you. Both the trousers and jacket are made from re-assuringly thick 500D Polyamide textile fabric and have a mesh liner, removable thermal lining and Windstopper panels on the arms, thighs and knees. There's CE-approved armour in the shoulders, elbows and knees too.
It's tailored without being tight, it fits well and feels snug on. I hate badly-cut baggy textile gear.
There are three things I really like about this kit:
1) It's waterproof. Completely. I've used it for two years and it hasn't leaked. On one particular day's riding through heavy rain where even a block of wax would have been forgiven for letting some water in, the jacket was completely soaked. I had the usual problems of water running up the sleeves but nothing else to report.
2) It's comfortable. For a recent two hour blast down to Bristol, despite it being cold, I tossed it up between the bike and the car. I picked the bike because I knew I'd be warm and cosy in this kit. A well placed neck tube, an extra long-sleeve T-shirt and I was sorted. There's nothing worse than a long journey where the cold wind makes its way through one area because that's the area you'll be thinking about for the entire journey. I didn't have that problem.
3) The details count. It has a removable neck guard which may sound like a tiny detail but when worn with a neck tube, it keeps the windblast and rain down to an absolute minimum. The jacket's main front pockets feature horizontal zips which means if you're forgetful like me, you can ride to work with your zips undone and not lose your keys. The flap over the zip means they're truly waterproof too. The velco adjustable straps on the wrists are so much better than poppers and easy to use with gloves on. The main zip is covered by a flap, again keeping the rain out. Easy details to skimp on but they really make the difference.
It's a jacket designed by people who actually ride a motorcycle. You can unzip the hi-viz panels and replace them with colour-matched material but I lost those panels before I even realised I had them.
This is great kit at a reasonable price.
Product tested: Held Uncover jacket (£289.99) and Held Icano trousers (£224.99)
Contact: http://www.held.de/1-1-Home.html
