Review - Sportful Fiandre Extreme Winter Cycling Jacket [Polartec Neoshell]
The Sportful Fiandre Extreme Jacket is one of the most impressive pieces of cycling kit I have come across to date; the single layer Polartec Neoshell fabric creates an outer layer that is lightweight, yet extremely protective against the elements.
I used the first iteration of the Sportful Fiandre Extreme Neoshell Jacket for the TorTour Cyclocross Winter Stage Race, last year in Switzerland. The jacket instantly impressed: I was riding at threshold effort, in wind and snow, and yet I never once overheated or felt cold.
The superb temperature regulation is thanks to the innovative Polartec Neoshell fabric. This single membrane holds properties similar to neoprene, in that it is waterproof, insulating, and super stretchy; it is different from neoprene though, in that it is highly breathable, and much thinner in profile. The way that Sportful has used the Neoshell fabric in the Extreme Jacket – with taped seams and a YKK waterproof zipper, make for an impressive jacket: a shielding layer that acts like waterproof, but breathes and stretches like a fabric jersey.
For 2018, Sportful redesigned the Fiandre Extreme Jacket with improved seam positioning and a better cut. The minor incremental improvements are noticeable, and the latest version allows for even greater freedom of movement, making this a superb option for mountain biking and cyclocross in the winter months, as well as road cycling.
You get three good-sized rear pockets, for all those winter essentials and snacks. You get a high-cut collar to seal out the foul weather. Aside from that though, the bulk and features of the jacket have been kept to a minimum – with the mission to create a low weight, high protection shield jacket successfully achieved.
>> View the Sportful Fiandre Extreme Neoshell Jacket here <<
I used the first iteration of the Sportful Fiandre Extreme Neoshell Jacket for the TorTour Cyclocross Winter Stage Race, last year in Switzerland. The jacket instantly impressed: I was riding at threshold effort, in wind and snow, and yet I never once overheated or felt cold.
The superb temperature regulation is thanks to the innovative Polartec Neoshell fabric. This single membrane holds properties similar to neoprene, in that it is waterproof, insulating, and super stretchy; it is different from neoprene though, in that it is highly breathable, and much thinner in profile. The way that Sportful has used the Neoshell fabric in the Extreme Jacket – with taped seams and a YKK waterproof zipper, make for an impressive jacket: a shielding layer that acts like waterproof, but breathes and stretches like a fabric jersey.
For 2018, Sportful redesigned the Fiandre Extreme Jacket with improved seam positioning and a better cut. The minor incremental improvements are noticeable, and the latest version allows for even greater freedom of movement, making this a superb option for mountain biking and cyclocross in the winter months, as well as road cycling.
You get three good-sized rear pockets, for all those winter essentials and snacks. You get a high-cut collar to seal out the foul weather. Aside from that though, the bulk and features of the jacket have been kept to a minimum – with the mission to create a low weight, high protection shield jacket successfully achieved.
>> View the Sportful Fiandre Extreme Neoshell Jacket here <<
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