The Mavic Lombarde jacket uses Gore-Tex Shakedry material and has been developed in partnership with outdoor experts Arcteryx – but does it have the features, durability and performance we look for in the best mountain bike jackets?

The thin, super lightweight Gore-Tex Shakedry material used here first appeared in road bike garments and quickly gained a reputation for being both fully waterproof and one of the most breathable fabrics on the market. The downsides were a prohibitively expensive cost and also being much more fragile than materials used in traditional multi-layer waterproof jackets with a DWR coating.

The fragility mentioned stems from Shakedry being essentially just the porous PTFE membrane (with perforations large enough to transfer steam, yet small enough to keep rain/splashes out) on the outside face, rather than sandwiched and protected between thicker fabrics like in a traditional Gore-Tex jacket. With no DWR coating to abrade away though, or outer fabric to ‘wet out’ and prevent moisture transfer (and also add weight by holding excess water), you literally just shake this fabric dry and the water falls off.

It sounds too good to be true, but Shakedry really does have an amazing ability to bead moisture on the surface without wetting out and just jiggling it after a rain event sees it dry enough to stuff it back into the included stash pocket and stow it.

So, for a high-intensity, sweat-generating activity like mountain biking, that’s often done in the wet and with foliage, luggage and spills all ready to rub away the DWR’s effectiveness, it sounds like the ideal solution, right?

Well, I certainly think so, and this Mavic Lombarde jacket made in partnership with Arcteryx also rolls up as small as a drinks can, so it’s super easy to carry; during testing, I’ve fitted it to a bike with internal frame storage, the smallest of hip packs and even in my shorts pocket.

One place it really shone was on the six-day Trans Savoie event, where Mavic’s Shakedry jacket proved by far the best waterproof layer solution I’ve ever used. Being so tiny and lightweight, I didn’t mind lugging it around for massive days, and being a 100% waterproof jacket that actually keeps moisture out properly, it delivers if you have to quickly stick it on when the mountain weather turns or you need an extra layer of warmth quickly.

More brands now offer Shakedry jackets (Gore-Tex kept it to itself when the technology was first launched) but most are tailored super-close to the body with a ‘roadie-cut’ aiming for aerodynamics over freedom of movement. Even though this Mavic Lombarde is primarily a road cycling item too, there’s a more generous cut since it’s designed to fit over an insulating layer, which means mountain bikers with bigger limbs, torsos and layers can still move unrestricted inside.

Having really long sleeves also helps minimise any further restriction of movement, plus there are also stretchy side panels to help accommodate extra twisting stemming from the body language required on an MTB, compared to a roadie’s more static position.

There’s no escaping that any jacket using the Shakedry fabric is still delicate, and I wouldn’t really wear this as an all-day outer layer for winter riding (especially in forests where you’re more likely to catch the thin fabric on bark or vegetation and potentially damage it). But, that said, I also have riding pals still using Shakedry jackets with small tears in the fabric because with ‘regular’ jackets not being ‘fully’ waterproof anyway (as they all eventually wet out and lose effectiveness), having a fully waterproof shell that continues to bead all over, even with minimal damage in places, is still  a better overall solution.

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