I also cannot recommend the endura gridlock enough. Buy one...you will not regret it.

I like the J+G waterproof breathable jacket. My commute is seven miles and its worked great in heavy rain and also in cold weather down to 28 F. I wear a light fleece and power dry base layer at the colder temps. very windproof and less money than anything else I've seen that's even close to its performance level.

I like my Trek, but I can't find the current model online. It's quite water resistant, even up here in the Pacific Northwet. Mine has a hood as well, that's thin enough to wear under my helmet when it's really coming down. It rolls up nicely into a velcro pocket, or can be unzipped and removed completely (which I will probably do when I get around to getting a helmet cover). I got it on sale for about $60 a year ago.

I can NOT recommend my Showers Pass jacket after this morning. I've only had the jacket a month and this was the first ride when rain was coming down pretty steady the whole time. Also might have been the first time I was wearing regular street clothes underneath (normally I am headed to the gym first thing in the morning and tend to wear more technical fabrics). Wasn't on the bike long at all, maybe 6 miles? Started to notice my arms felt a lot colder than normal. Couple miles later got to my destination and took off my jacket, and sure enough, my long-sleeve cotton shirt felt damp. Definitely not sweat (was mostly my forearm area).

It's disappointing since I live in the PNW and of course the rain is a regular visitor. I still like the jacket for the visibility it provides, and I will probably try to wash it in Nikwax to see if it works better then.

Which jacket was it specifically? Ive been leaning towards the showers pass line thusfar

my friend here, oregon coast, found rain leaks through the pit zip, even if closed..

Think it was called the Club. It is the cheapest one. It was my first jacket specifically for cycling that is supposed to be waterproof, and maybe some of that dampness is intentional for breathability, I dunno. I am pretty sure I read a review with a similar outcome by the Path Less Pedaled people about the SP rain pants.

Here's a review of an SP jacket PLP did:

http://pathlesspedaled.com/2012/03/g...ass-elite-pro/

Overall, I guess I am just disappointed that it's less than a month in and I already need to treat the jacket to make it more waterproof. I am used to having to do that with things, but my city jacket (a dark grey Marmot that gets daily use) didn't need it for a whole year!

I have a Craft rain jacket that is excellent in cooler weather, say below 50 F. In warmer temps, you will sweat lot unless you take it easy. The Craft jacket has pit zips and back vents as well as a mesh liner and zipped back pocket. Mine is fluorescent yellow, so it's very visible. My only complaint is the cuffs have an elastic band that fits kind of tight and doesn't vent; velcro would be better.

That's what I use too. I glued some SOLAS reflector tape to the back with Shoe Goo though, as I wasn't satisfied with the reflection it comes with.

To another poster: my arms get damp just from sweat, even with the extensive pit zips open. That doesn't mean your Showers Pass didn't leak.

I don't think there's any way to climb my hills without sweating.

hmm seems to be at fault of the lighter weight materials

was lookin at the elite 2.1, anybody have any stories with that one?

+1 on the Craft. I see lots of recommendations for other jackets and I'm surprised this one doesn't get mentioned that much. I've been very satisfied with it and use it year-round in New England. It layers well, is great for stopping wind and was fairly waterproof when I bought it but after four years of hard use is kinda porous at this point. I Nikwax it and it works for a while but it's probably time to replace it if I really want to be dry. See here.

Showers Pass touring (now being replaced with Transit). My wife is trying to get me to buy another one now, for when this one wears out.

I don't know if Performance still has their Century, but that was a pretty good jacket until I wore the front zipper out; packable, too!

I wear a reflective mesh vest with blinking lights on it. Its really visible along with two planet bike superflash blinkies and my magicshine tailight plus reflective tape on my fender and panniers I think I'm plenty bright

I've found that the Craft makes a great winter jacket, even if it's not raining. It's very wind resistant and has decent breathability in colder weather. It is warm enough that I just wear a long-sleeve base layer under it most of the time, with no jersey. With Craft mid-weight base layer, I am plenty warm down to 20 F.