rain jacket

Sportful's Survival Jacket is, as the name suggests, designed for when you need a jacket that is going to allow you to survive just about the worst weather you could possibly imagine riding in. It's a lot of money, but protection of this sort doesn't come cheap. And it's packed with the sort of details and features that make it a standout jacket.

The Solo Rain Coat isn't the most waterproof option you can buy but it's a good-looking top that can be stowed in a rear pocket and brought out in a shower or for extra windproofing in cold weather.

Altura are known for producing good value kit that performs well for the money. The Night Vision Evo is just one below the company's top notch waterproof jacket (the Sirius Plus at £129.99) and as such is aimed at the more serious commuter, or rider looking for long duration protection from the elements and a comfortable ride.

It's an inoffensive looking jacket, with plenty of cycling specific features, such as huge amounts of reflective accenting, and the bright colour options (as well as good old black).

At just shy of two hundred pounds the Vulpine Cotton Rain Jacket could be seen as quite a spend, especially as it doesn't have all sorts of 'technical' features that believe they can command a premium. But it works out as better value if you consider you're getting both a casual rain jacket and a cycling rain jacket all in one.

Rapha continue to expand on their capsule women's range of products with the addition this season of a fully waterproof jacket. True to form, it's really not cheap, but it also displays all the attention to detail, high quality construction and innovative design that Rapha have become known for.

First things first: this jacket works. The first time we used it was on a 200-mile super-mountainous ride in the Pyrenees when it rained for hours on end, and it kept the water out without any trouble. A couple of months, several wet rides and a few spins through the washing machine later and it’s still doing the business.

Rapha Rain Jacket

Rapha Rain Jacket - neck