+1 on the Century Jacket. It's available in a yellow that will fry your retinas if you look at it too long... :-)

I have to sympathise with TruFy's hubby though. I had a good look through both bike shops here today with a mind to expanding the wardrobe of cycling gear, and I seriously balked at the prices asked. They're outta my price range, and even if they weren't I'd have to wonder if it'd be better to simply sweat, get smelly, and carry an extra water bottle!

Although I balk at many of their component prices and so called sales (I don't consider selling something at the same price you have already been selling it at a "sale" even though below MSRB), Performance Bike's speciality is really the reasonably priced clothing they sell. It appears that you can trust their sizing information and buying from their internet site is reasonably practical.

My wife and I wear wind vests with a mesh back and arm warmers all summer and adjust as necessary during the ride by stowing outerwear in our jerseys. I would find a jacket too much. Our microclimates are challenging for which to dress. We did a Sonoma tour a couple of years ago in September and stayed at the Geyser Inn. When we left in the morning it was 50 ish and foggy and warmed up to 95 degrees when we returned. Each year at the Tour of Napa it is cold at the start and warms up for the climbs. Similarly, there are large temperature variations all over the bay area throughout the summer. Good luck.

I hope this post doesn't break a rule, but I've bought some nice clothing at good prices on ebay. My last puchase was a screaming orange Shebeest jersey and a pair of Body Geometry Specialized gloves. The total, including shipping, was $36. Both were new with tags.

https://sporting-goods.search.ebay.co...ZR4QQsacatZ382

I have a hi-viz yellowish-green jacket from Performance around $30 and I bought a Canari hi-via on ebay for $25. They both work great and I get a lot of comments on my visibility. The Canari was a 2nd because the logo was upside down..

This is the route to go for visibility. You can wear this in almost any weather hot or cold and still be seen.
The jacket is nice but will be hanging in the closet much of the time.

Performance is indeed a chain, and they've got a store in San Rafael, in the same shopping center as Trader Joe's (on Third St., east of 101, IIRC) , should you be down Marin way.

If you are going to spend money on a jacket to be seen- Then why not turn it into a secondary use.

I have a pertex top. Very lightweight and they come in all the bright colours you can imagine. It only has one use- It is windproof. It has no lining- so has no warmth- It most definitely is not waterproof- but as a wind proof- it is remarkable. It also breathes aswell.

Being so lightweight- it packs up very small--About the size of a fist. It has NO warmth to it but by keeping the wind out- it is ideal for those Cool mornings when you know it will warm up and perfect for when you get to the top of a hill and suddenly realise that there is a wind and you are cold with the Clothing that has just got soaked going up the hill. Cost is up to you- but My road one only cost about $50 and is the one that goes on all the rides where I do not start out wanting the full top coats.

And Truf- Catweazle has answered- but reflective strips do work in daylight as well as night time. I tried to find it but I have a picture taken on a Dull Overcast day and The reflective strips stand out well.


Edit----And on the pertex- I have said it breathes and I have ridden most of last Summer in my pertex on the road. (It was not a HOT summer) Never get overwarm in it as it has a full zip that does allow LOTS of ventilation.

I'd dearly love to find an outlet such as that here. I suppose they must exist, but I'm yet to find one in
Australia.

Currently I've accumulated one short sleeved cycling 'jersey' and two pairs of lycra cycling shorts. All sub-$30 items, and whilst not 'quality' they're definitely heaps better than ordinary casual clothing. The jersey and one pair of shorts came from a local Aldi chain store, whilst the other pair of shorts was picked up from a large 'Adventure Recreation' outlet during a trip to the city.

In contrast, around here the LBS is the only option available, lycra shorts start at around $50, and the only sub-$60 jersey I've seen quite frankly looks like **** up against the Aldi $20 jobbie. With winter approaching here I went looking for suitable gear yesterday. Cheapest deal I found was a cycling 'rain coat' which was basically a colourless clear jacket similar to this, with a couple of narrow reflective strips and webbing under the armpits. That was retailing for around $50.


Nothing, but nothing on offer in local stores is free of franchised brand names, so a bloke like me who isn't interested in the 'cool' factor of franchised brand names and can't justify the extra 30% to 50% or more cost of them is pretty much buggered for choice.


I'm happy to say, though, that having now had a good look at the 'Performance Bikes' catalogue there are some rather reasonable purchases to be had from there. It's not enough to make me want to move, though.

I'm on my second PI Vagabond jacket. I'm not saying you can't find less expensive jackets, but I truly like mine. The zip off sleeves are perfect for three seasons in CenTX, and the zippers still work perfectly on both the jacket and sleeves of even the older one, its just pretty grungy.

If it's a warm summer day, why bother with a jacket unless you need it. I have a Performance Century jacket, a Performance Century vest, and Performance Classic jerseys, all in neon yellow. I even think they'll ship to the land of Oz.

https://www.performancebike.com/


https://www.performancebike.com/shop/...tegory_ID=1110


https://www.performancebike.com/shop/...tegory_ID=1130

https://www.performancebike.com/shop/...tegory_ID=1130

Keep your eyes open for sales. Sometimes they sell the jerseys for $19.99, and they also used to have a "Classique" jersey that shows up from time to time.

Thanks, everyone!!! Great recommendations and dialog. I love this forum.

Here's another one. They sometimes offer other discounts and free shipping. Great customer service.

https://www.sierratradingpost.com/d/1...ts.html?page=1

It bears mentioning that to get the discounts you have to sign up for their emails (which, BTW, are only occasional, not daily or weekly). In general their prices aren't anything to write home about, but if you watch their clearance/closeout items you can get some great deals, particularly in conjunction with the email discounts. They also offer free freight on returns.

I saw these reflective vests at Wally World, in the fatness department. Six bucks or so. Cheeep.

Having just acquired one, I'd also highly recommend the Planet Bike Superflash for daytime visibility. It's astoundingly, even obnoxiously bright--look right at it at close range and you'll be seeing spots for minutes afterwards (5 and counting!)

I've previously lurked this forum in my own search for a wind jacket to replace my old one. It recently ended in my purchase of a Pearl Izumi Zephrr jacket which is bright, breathable, has some ventilation, and light and packable. I'd searched for and even tried on various models with detachable sleeves that turns the jacket into a vest. Upon trying some of them on, I had some trouble re-attaching the sleeves on some of them, others were heavier because of this feature, would soak up water or persperation easily, and so on. If you want a vest, Pearl Izumi sells those, too. Besides, it might be less trouble to be able to change into a vest and back again in the middle of a ride. While out on a ride, I keep outerwear I don't immediately need tightly folded in my jersey pocket or panier.

I went with a high viz yellow Pearl Izumi jacket. Picked it up at a garage sale for $3. All of my jerseys and jackets came from either garage sales or thrift stores. But I look all the time...

+1 If you don't want to spend a lot of time hitting the garage sale/thrift store circuit, then ebay can be a good option. A lot of the bicycle specific clothing goes pretty cheap on ebay.

Zephrr Jacket $80.00 on the PI website. Seems to me that with a bit of shopping on the internets you should be able to snag it under 60...

Some of us that have been around a few years, have a variety of clothing and that includes top coats. Most of which has been aquired over the years and if the others are like me- they have made a few errors in the choice of that clothing.

20 years ago I did not have much spare money to be able to afford good clothing and if it looked suitable for Cycling- I bought it. That $10 coat that was lightweight and looked as though it was suitable for cycling was a mistake. Wasn't waterproof- or windproof and offered no warmth. All it did was keep the mud off my $20 cycling jersey and the waist of my $15 shorts. But gradually better clothing was bought- some from Sales and some from recomendation.

We do seem to have a bit of wet weather over here in our mild summers and my favourite top coats are a Polaris smock that came from a sale bin and a completely waterproof- but breathable- Yellow lightweight outer jacket that I bought from a Hiking shop. The Polaris is no longer waterproof and the inner rubberised material is peeling away- but it is warm. So cold weather and I wear that and if it is wet- the hiking jacket goes over the top. Then if it is really wet then the Goretex is used. Windy and it is the pertex.

But this was bought home to me this week. Son-in law is on a tight budget and recently bought cheap clothing from a Chain store. All cycling specific in fit but not quality. He commutes on a daily basis now and he was moaning that by the time he got to work- he was either cold or running in sweat. Took him to my LBS and bought him a Base layer wicking long sleeve and a good waterproof. Base layer is worn every day and the waterproof is in his Camelback. Only complaint he has now is that the Bib Shorts are not up to grade- but at the quality he is looking at- he had better start saving. He has learnt the hard and expensive way- like me- that Quality cycling specific clothing works better than something from the supermarket ------- or the cheap stuff from chain stores.

I'll add my vote to the construction vest, most are mesh which makes them much less hot, plus they usually have retro-reflective stripes so they "light up" at night, people are familiar enough with them, to recognize one as meaning a person, so they will typically avoid. Of course if someone has gone to a bunch of wine tastings, they could be well past caring.

Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words. Showers Pass rain gear https://www.showerspass.com/catalog/m...ro-tech-jacket The peloton's choice.



My wife and I entered the Petaluma Road Race. On the morning of the race, rain was called for with temps in the low 50s. We drove to the race and 10 miles from the start, it was pouring rain and the temperature was 48 deg. F. I received a call from one of my friends in the 55+ group who was at the start line and said he and two others were scratching - horizontal rain and low temps. It is tough for skinny guys to stay warm in those conditions. We all met and had breakfast. Of course, many racers did the race. Each person has his own risk reward profile for any event. There a 50 photos similar to the one posted showing SP rain gear.

We have PI and wish we would have purchased the showers pass pro. Oh well. Sell it on ebay and buy what we should have got in the first place.

I noticed on Amazon a yellow green reflectiveball cap for about $7, plus shipping, that looks like it would do for a (non-helmet wearing) hot weather bicyclist. I have been considering one of the lite up vests of the sort that uses a strip of flexible fabric and a battery to produce light, though maybe they are not long lasting enough. (Actual light has to beat reflections, right?) And for my winter coat I expect to get a jacket that is OSHA approved (class 2?) stripes, half yellow green (upper) and half navy blue (lower), with a bit of insulation and gore-tex-like fabric. So I can put it on in cold rainy DARK weather.

Of course, my bike is Torker's retina-searing-Acid Green Cargo T. That get's attention, and I added reflective tape all over. The LED pedals and the REELights are coming. Now sure as the world some biddy will mow me down and claim that I was too brightly lit for her to be able to see me!

Pls tell me why we do this again?
There are times when the trainer is better than the real world.