General Cycling Discussion - jackets

hey I was wondering if some of you out there could give me some suggestions what you would concider the ideal jacket to wear while bike riding, such as pockets length and other gadjets.. if you could do that it would be much greatly appreciated because I have to design a jacket for my class..

thanks

Maria,

Ventilation is the most important thing to me. I don't want my sweat stuck inside the jacket, which makes me smell funny. I've got a Burley Rapid Rider jacket that has great ventilation. 2 mesh pockets in front act as vents, which are covered by rainproof flaps. then in back there is a giant vent with another big rainproof flap covering it. There is also a vent you can unzip that runs the length of your arms. Air flows freely through the jacket, but I can still keep very dry.

I also like a nice cozy material on the neck, where it will rub against your skin.

Reflective material is important, because as bicyclists we want to be seen by auto drivers.

Style is essential as well, because we don't want people to think cycling is for people without any style ;)

A big pocket in the back is nice while biking to stash your camera, cliff bar, or whatever.

Good luck!

Maria,

For my ideal jacket it would have the following:
Vented shoulders(across the back) or underarms (or both). Bright colour for visibility, and reflective panels
or piping.
zippered pockets across the back.
Long tail so it keeps covering even when riding in the
drops.
Wind resistant fabric for front of jacket, more breathable
fabric for back of jacket.
Self correcting zipper, easy access pockets in front.
I don't think other gadgets are really needed.
waterproof fabric (goretex?) would be really nice.
if you're designing for wet environment a roll up hood
is a good thing.
Check some of the designs by Assos, Castelli, Exte-Ondo
etc.

Marty

Would It be alright if it was a pull over???

Maria, don't forget a fundamental design issue either. Conventional jackets have almost equal length fronts and backs. Bike jackets have a slightly longer tail on them as that's important when you are leaning forward and helps to prevent the jacket (a) climbing up your back, and (b) prevents your a$$ from getting wet as the tail wont expose your bum to the elements.

Would It be alright if it was a pull over???

For me, pullovers are fine so long as there is a zipper that reaches at least half-way down the front. You want some flexibility in it's use so as the windproof front can get quite warm if the air temperature changes. With a long front zipper, you can easily let some more air in to cool yourself down. Even with a full-front zipper, I've never ridden with it fully unzipped as the flapping around bugs the heck out of me! It does make it slightly easier to take on and off, though.

My ideal jacket is about the same as lotek described. Simple, but very functional and flexible.

Here are some pictures of the jacket I designed. It is just a rough outline but feedback would be helpful.
http://www.boomspeed.com/diesel_chic/Jacket1.jpg
http://www.boomspeed.com/diesel_chic/jacket2.jpg
http://www.boomspeed.com/diesel_chic/jacket3.jpg

Nice looking, but it needs a lot of reflective surfaces with all that black. Visibility is a key issue for cyclists.

One thing missing, and not mentioned, and it may just be my pet peeve, but a little longer in the sleeves. Drives me crazy when sleeves ride up, or can't be tucked over my gloves, velcro at the sleeve is nice to for sealing it to gloves. If those are pockets on the front they may need a little larger opening than what it looks like now, and as someone else mentioned functionality as vents is a plus, with a velcro or fastener to be able to seal them off from the cold.

This link might be useful:

http://www.zyro.eu.com/cloth1.htm

My choice for a jacket was this one:

http://www.cyclexpress.co.uk/products/Nevis_Jacket_03_868.asp

I wanted a waterproof jacket (it pretty much is and has taped seams), breathable (the fabric's not quite breathable enough but it does have covered vents at the back and zipped under-arm vents), windproof, dropped tail (non-cycling jackets ride up when you bend over), velcro cuffs (easily adjustable), drawstring waist and plenty of reflective material. Reflective piping down each arm helps with visible signalling. Mine has a rear pocket that's large enough to take an OS map and also allows the jacket to be folded into it making a fairly portable package for stuffing in a bag in case of need.

Here are some pictures of the jacket I designed. It is just a rough outline but feedback would be helpful.
http://www.boomspeed.com/diesel_chic/Jacket1.jpg
http://www.boomspeed.com/diesel_chic/jacket2.jpg
http://www.boomspeed.com/diesel_chic/jacket3.jpg

The contrasting fabrics look good. I'd edge the blue with reflective piping and you might need to drop the tail a little more.

Looking good.

Ive been searching for the perfect cycling jacket. Ive got fairly close with
http://www.paramo.co.uk/UK/acatalog/CuzcoJacket-16-116.html

There are several styles of riding, such as athletic riding, touring, and utility riding (hopping around town).
You have different temperatures, cool, cold and freezing, and different conditions, dry, damp, showery, full-on rain, snow.
You can design a jacket as a windproof, a shower-resistant or a rain jacket.
In my experience, the most difficult conditions to dress for are cool and showery, ie a typical UK (or Seattle) fall and spring.
The features I like are a cut which is long in the arms, lose in the shoulder, but not baggy around the front. I like a longer back than front and a high, cosy collar. Im not keen on rear pockets. If you carry a bag, you really dont need them, and front/chest pockets are more accessable for storing gloves, keys, mobile phone, wallet. I guess that because Im a touring/utility rider rather than an athelete.

Material choice is important. Many people instinctively reach for goretex, but in my experience this is not a great material for riding.

i wear a sugoi shell with a single zippered pocket at the back. works for me.