a jacket that weighs about a pound and a quarter yeah, a heavy, wicking barrier fleece , wow.

I'm talking about a jacket that packs to the size of a small apple, sheds moderate rain and performs well in nearly every riding condition, even being caught out in heavy rain for an afternoon ride. For mountain rescue or climbing to 14,000 feet I'll bring a different system (actually, a heavier, epic encapsulated, bicomponent knit fabric that 'sucks the moisture right from you' too...

Epic shell clothing packs small, is a weather resistant enough fabric tents are made out of it and performs admirably well in mixed conditions.

I've been testing 3 different Epic shell jackets for bicycling this last year.

I also have a tent made with an Epic fabric canopy from Black Diamond and have taken it all season camping in the rainy northwest and above treeline on the volcanoes. Epic fabric does not rely on DWR treatments or heavy laminates.

My high mountain shell jacket is a heavy duty, (weighs about a pound and a quarter) bicomponent knit, Epic encapsulated fabric and has seen heavy use the last decade in full conditions during demanding mountain rescue actions on Mount Adams And Mount Rainer in Washington state as well as hundreds of more mundane dailies like backcountry ski patrol on Mount Rainier, ski instruction, etc.

I know that i have thoroughly vetted EPIC fabrics and what i'm describing as an effective weather layer for cyclists' shell jacket needs.

a caveat-

i DID wear the waterproofs about 10 times the entire last winter commuting season in seattle so this epic fabric stuff just can't work very well for everyday riding. sarcasm.

one of the great things over this fabric versus any nikwax renewable DWR dependent stuff is exactly that.