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review
£64.99
VERDICT:
A good-enough cooler-weather jersey, but not cheap for one with few cycling 'features'
Weight:
274g
Contact:
At road.cc every product is thoroughly tested for as long as it takes to get a proper insight into how well it works. Our reviewers are experienced cyclists that we trust to be objective. While we strive to ensure that opinions expressed are backed up by facts, reviews are by their nature an informed opinion, not a definitive verdict. We don't intentionally try to break anything (except locks) but we do try to look for weak points in any design. The overall score is not just an average of the other scores: it reflects both a product's function and value – with value determined by how a product compares with items of similar spec, quality, and price.
What the road.cc scores meanGood scores are more common than bad, because fortunately good products are more common than bad.
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The Cannondale Performance 2 Long Sleeve Jersey does the job on cooler days, but its simple design means it will probably appeal most to Big C fans.
It has few technical features: there's no gripper strip around the hem, or specially engineered or placed fabric beyond being 'thermal'. And it's the same thermal fabric throughout – so nothing specifically windproof at the front or breathable at the rear.
Over the test period I paired it with the matching Performance 2 bib tights (review to come), and a 150gsm long-sleeved merino baselayer. Worn thus, it was good for about 5-15°C, with a gilet/shell on occasion.
> Find your nearest dealer here
Fit-wise, it's body-hugging – in the arms, around the waist and the chest. I'm a 37in chest, 33in waist, and the medium suggested by the size chart was spot on. Even the sleeves were long enough – many jerseys come up short for us 1.04 Ape-Index orangutans.
The three pockets across the back are functional – they swallowed phones, tool rolls and rolled-up lightweight jackets with a bit of a push. But don't count on taking the kitchen sink with you – there's not a huge amount of give, and no zipped valuables pocket either.
The collar comes up nice and high, but the zip pull is tiny and not easy to find if you're wearing bulky gloves.
The tested colour scheme is understated, but the large Cannondale logos spelt out in stripes had the weird effect of catching my eye when going fast; even the tight sleeves rippled a bit at top speed, and strobing of the fine white lines was noticeable.
> Check out our guide to the best winter jerseys here
In a way, the lack of claims as to capability (water shedding, windproofness, and so on) made clothing choice easy during the test period – I always took a gilet or thin waterproof shell with me. If this were the only cold-weather top I owned, I wouldn't be disappointed – it does the job when paired with a merino baselayer and a waterproof shell. But over time I'd probably miss the features we've come to expect, such as decent zip pulls, zip garages, gripper strips, zipped pockets for cash/keys, that sort of thing.
Ultimately, I think this jersey will appeal to Cannondale owners wanting to fly the flag. It's an okay jersey, at an okay price, but without the latest tech.
Verdict
A good-enough cooler-weather jersey, but not cheap for one with few cycling 'features'
road.cc test report
Make and model: Cannondale Performance 2 Long Sleeve Jersey
Size tested: Medium
Tell us what the product is for, and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?
It's a very simple yet effective jersey for Cannondale fans.
Cannondale says:
Year round riding essential item in your kit.
A versatile long sleeve jersey with thermal fabric for extra warmth.
Fully sublimated with Cannondale graphics.
Traditional three back pockets.
Full front zip for additional venting.
Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?
Brushed thermal fabric
Full length zip
Three pockets
Rate the product for quality of construction:
6/10
No flatlock seams or gripper strips here.
Rate the product for performance:
7/10
It does the job, helped by a good base and windproof layer.
Rate the product for durability:
8/10
Has survived a few months of washing unscathed.
Rate the product for fit:
8/10
Very snug. If you're beefy, you might want to step up a size.
Rate the product for sizing:
8/10
Spot on for me.
Rate the product for weight:
6/10
A bit on the heavy side, I feel.
Rate the product for comfort:
7/10
Comfy enough - especially the draught-free wrists and tall collar.
Rate the product for value:
4/10
Can't help but feel for £65 I deserve more tech and performance.
How easy is the product to care for? How did it respond to being washed?
No probs - used wool cycle, always came out clean and tidy.
Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose
It did the job of keeping me warm, within reason - on particularly windy or cool days, lacking sun, I needed a windproof layer.
Tell us what you particularly liked about the product
The fit of the sleeves.
Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product
The pockets - could be more generous and offer a zipped one too.
Did you enjoy using the product? It didn't annoy me.
Would you consider buying the product? No, not really.
Would you recommend the product to a friend? If they really wanted to advertise their affiliation to Cannondale, it wouldn't disappoint, especially if on sale.
Use this box to explain your score
It's better than average, but for £65 the lack of features disappoints, and the fact that you need to trolley along a windproof shell in the tight-ish pockets was a bit of a faff.
About the tester
Age: 42
I usually ride: Charge Juicer My best bike is:
I've been riding for: Over 20 years I ride: A few times a week I would class myself as: Expert
I regularly do the following types of riding: club rides, general fitness riding, fixed/singlespeed, mountain biking and Dutch bike pootling
Living in the Highlands, Mike is constantly finding innovative and usually cold/wet ways to accelerate the degradation of cycling kit. At his happiest in a warm workshop holding an anodised tool of high repute, Mike's been taking bikes apart and (mostly) putting them back together for forty years. With a day job in global IT (he's not completely sure what that means either) and having run a boutique cycle service business on the side for a decade, bikes are his escape into the practical and life-changing for his customers.
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2 comments
So, apart from being labelled Cannondale, what benefits do you get for the £50 on top of what a non-branded jersey from Amazon provides?
Said another way: With no discernible value above a bargain basement item, how is this getting 3 stars?
It gets three stars ('above average') because for £65, it's just that. If it were £90 it would be below average. A 'bargain basement item' costing just £15 would not be the same. It would be made from inferior materials, and in an inferior way. The fit on the bike would almost certainly be worse.