Gilets
Windproof and thermal cycling gilets, for road and gravel. A gilet keeps the torso warm and lets the arms shed heat: you choose one for the pocket or for the whole ride.
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Torso warm, arms free
A gilet protects where the cold costs most, the chest and stomach, and lets the arms shed the heat of the effort. It is the descent layer. At the top of a climb 1,000 m above the valley, the air has lost about 6.5 °C; at 10 °C, descending at 50 km/h feels like 5.5 °C on bare skin, with a jersey still damp from the way up. The coach's tip: put it on at the summit, before you cool down, zipped right up, and stow it at the foot of the next climb.
Pocket gilet or all-ride gilet
The Air weighs 69 g in size M: a tightly woven front that stops the wind, and a mesh back that breathes and makes it compact enough for a jersey pocket. The Dottore Hybrid is worn from start to finish over a long-sleeve jersey. Q36.5 used the wind tunnel to track the cold air that wraps around the torso along the sides: its windproof fabric therefore covers the sides too, and a mesh panel in the centre of the back lets the heat out.
The gravel thermal gilet
The 7mesh Chilco insulates as much as it blocks the wind: its WTV 300 fabric holds warm air and releases the heat of the climbs. Once off, it packs into its own back pocket, which hidden straps attach to the frame. There is also a women's version. None of these gilets has a membrane: in sustained rain, switch to a rain jacket.
A close fit so it doesn't flap
A loose gilet flaps in the wind and lets air in under the arms. On the road, between two sizes, take the closer-fitting one, and try it on with your hands in the drops: pressed against the chest, it should cover the top of the bib shorts. For the unisex Dottore Hybrid, Q36.5 advises women to go one size below their women's jersey size.
Frequently asked questions
When should you put on a windproof gilet?
At the top of the climb, before the descent, or at the start when the ride begins in the cool. Put it on before you get cold and zip it up to the collar; put it away when the road climbs again.
Gilet or windproof jacket?
A gilet protects your torso and lets your arms shed heat, and it packs into a pocket. When your arms get cold or the rain sets in, switch to a jacket.
Does a windproof gilet protect from rain?
From a light shower at best: the front of the Air has a water-repellent treatment. No gilet in the selection has a waterproof membrane; in rain that lasts, you need a rain jacket.