Sportful Cliff Supergiara Jersey review

The Sportful Cliff Supergiara jersey is aimed towards gravel riders and it takes the styling up a level compared to the standard Supergiara range. While it might be designed to cater to gravel riding, the fit and function are still very road-biased.

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Sportful Cliff Supergiara jersey – Technical details

The Cliff Supergiara jersey is available in sizes S to 3XL and in eight colours with each featuring a similar splash design in a mix of muted and bolder colours.

It might be aimed toward gravel riding but the cut makes it feel just like a road jersey, with a close-fitting chest section, slim arms, and raw-cut sleeves. With such a close fit, it feels more like a gravel race-style item of clothing, rather than a leisure riding item or something for bikepacking.

Sportful_Cliff_Supergiara_Jersey_Front.jpg, by Matt Page

If you’re happy with a skin-tight fit the size guide is accurate and, despite an initial worry about the very tight sleeves, there is enough stretch in the fabric to give a secure fit.

Although the sleeves and body section fit tightly, the upper chest and neck area offer some reprieve while in the riding position. It will depend on each person’s exact body shape but for smaller riders, it could mean a little material flapping while riding

Sportful Cliff Supergiara jersey – Performance

The jersey fabric is a polyester and elastane mix, with lightweight panels all around. The back has a mesh style seethrough fabric. The thin fabrics make this better suited to warm weather/summer use, and there is no protection from the wind. A size small weighs 91g, which gives some idea of how thin and minimalist nature of the fabric.

Sportful_Cliff_Supergiara_Jersey_back.jpg, by Matt Page

Sportful is pushing the Cliff Supergiara towards gravel riders and the inclusion of six pockets is perhaps its biggest feature. These are all on the rear, with three traditional pockets on the back but also further three mesh pockets in the same location, outside of the standard pockets.

The three mesh pockets outside of the main pockets can be tricky to use – the middle one is especially hard to find while riding. The left and right are easier but having things in your pockets, especially larger items such as a phone, can make it more difficult to find the opposite inside/outside pocket. Overall, the design can work but it can also feel like you need to plan what you want to carry a little more. That said, keeping certain things segregated, could be welcomed for some riders. It is never ideal to load a jersey with too many items and the mesh style pockets especially are best kept for the lightest gear – such as wrappers.

Sportful_Cliff_Supergiara_Jersey_pocket1.jpg, by Matt Page

The pockets are quite deep, and they are tight enough at the opening of the main three pockets to keep things safe inside but while they are deep, they are also narrow. If you have a larger phone for example and prefer to store this in a rear pocket, it could prove tricky.

Sportful_Cliff_Supergiara_Jersey_pocket2.jpg, by Matt Page

The front full zip has an easy-to-grab puller and it runs smoothly in both directions. The jersey features a few quite small reflective patches with the Sportful logo on the chest area and a small hatched design on the back to one side.

Sportful Cliff Supergiara jersey – Verdict

The Sportful Cliff Supergiara jersey costs £115, making it a premium offering. The close fit won’t appeal to all gravel riders but rather to those who like to race. The price is the same as the ASSOS  Mille GTC jersey C2, although that has a more relaxed, less race-orientated fit. The fabrics feel good and elements such as the zip, but it is still a big outlay for a jersey.

For riders who prefer a race-style close-fitting jersey, the only difference over most road jerseys is the extra pockets, which I found of limited use. They give the potential to fit more but can also cause problems.

The styling and design are the main stands out against a more traditional style of close-fitting road jersey, and this will be a welcomed change to many. If you like the design, there is no reason why this needs to stay as a gravel riding jersey and it is perfectly useable on the road.

• saddleback.co.uk
• The reader’s guide to off-road.cc’s review scoring system

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