1095miles – running blog

As anyone who knows me will tell, I can be extremely frugal shall we say when it comes to making a first purchase. I like to buy cheap the first time, expensive the next. I have been pleasantly surprised with the Karrimor Wind Jacket however, as it has remained in good condition for more than six months without any problems whatsoever.

The jacket is made of a very thin nylon shell (in fact the jacket is 100% nylon according to the label) that provides good protection against the wind, but little against the rain. The cuffs of the jacket have velcro strap adjusters which are a little fiddly but allow the cuffs to be tightened.

It’s hard to justify wearing a jacket like this except for on the coldest of days as within a few minutes of running the sweat will quickly collect within the jacket. It is completely unbreathable. Otherwise, it is extremely comfortable and very lightweight. It ‘compresses’ well for storage in a bag – the velcro cuff straps come in useful to keep it in the small shape.

I’ve mentioned the lack of protection from the rain, and this is perhaps doubly underlined by the jackets lack of a hood. I have worn it in light rain quite a few times and it leaks quickly around the collar and through the front zip. On really wet days, you’d be better off without it!

There are three small zipped pockets on the front of the jacket with one at chest height which I have used for an ipod/iphone with some success – the pocket is large enough but the ipod does bounce around somewhat.

I’ve worn the jacket while cycling and running and have been thoroughly impresses with how it has held up. As a windbreaker it is ideal.

The lack of rain protection lets the jacket down quite a lot – with some small modifications the jacket would be much more usable. Adding a simple flap of material over the inside of the zip can’t be that hard can it? As a result I can’t justify four stars for the jacket.

I bought the jacket from SportsDirect for the very reasonable price of £19.99 – they are still available at this price in a number of colours here.